Previously with Windows Live Essentials 2009 (14.x), a simple uninstall of the Windows Live ID Sign-In Assistant corrected any problems accessing shares on my Windows 7 systems. But with the new beta of version 15, there is no such item to uninstall. I’ve even tried with only the Windows Live Messenger component installed and no other parts or pieces and instantly I can no longer access shares from the WDTV Live. Uninstalling it completely restores functionality.
So is there a workaround? This problem will become much more prevalent once Microsoft finishes the final version in the next few months. I’m not sure how to scream and wave my arms in the air to get WD to notice and address this either for they should have been able to fix the well known Sign-In Assistant problems by now as it is.
If your uninstall was successful, that’s great. Several people have said a complete uninstall of EVERY component often doesn’t fix it. But, there’s SO MUCH to the “Live Essentials” package that who really knows what results in what…
I’m not holding my breath on Microsoft fixing this issue. From what I can gather, they’ve stopped supporting the storage of “Old” password hash forms in the credentials cache when these Live features are turned on. Reports of this issue have been coming in to Microsoft’s Technet forums for about a year.
Password Hashes are what’s transmitted on the network; it’s basically encryption. If they’ve decided they’re not going to cache / hash the older SMB password keys, it’s gonna cause lots of problems.
The only workaround fix (and I’m not sure if it really fixes anything, because I haven’t tested it myself) is to go change about a half-dozen keys in the registry instructing Windows to resume the old-style password hashing function.
Am I correct in assuming this would not affect an NAS on the network? (Assuming, of course, that the NAS is Linix based, as they mostly all are).
IOW, let’s say you have a Win 7 machine with all the Live ■■■■ on it on the network – so you can’t login to those shares, but the NAS shares should be just fine, right? (I know, that seems obvious but I just want to be sure there isn’t anything that Win 7 machine would be doing, like the master browser issue thing, that could keep ALL net shares from working properly).
