iTunes Store Authoris(z)ation... Any idea?

Aiadi

I have recently noticed that the iTunes authorisation / de-authorisation status of a computer is apparently not linked to the operating system. I found that formatting the hard drive and re-installing Windows does not have any bearing whatsoever on the iTunes authorisation status.

Does any one have an idea on where the code or whatever it is that iTunes uses is stored on the system?

dragon934

Sounds like it could be related to IP address, and (apologies if i'm teaching you to suck eggs) by that i mean the IP address assigned by your internet provider, not the 192.168.1.x your pc will show up. I don't use itunes so cant be certain. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong though.

(Also it could be that entering a code ties it to an OS by going online, installing windows may not help as the itunes server could reject a code that's already in use, think of it like your MSE user name, if I were to delete your PC's windows I still couldn't create an account named "Aiadi"

Aiadi

dragon934 wrote: »

Sounds like it could be related to IP address, and (apologies if i'm teaching you to suck eggs) by that i mean the IP address assigned by your internet provider, not the 192.168.1.x your pc will show up. I don't use itunes so cant be certain. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong though.

(Also it could be that entering a code ties it to an OS by going online, installing windows may not help as the itunes server could reject a code that's already in use, think of it like your MSE user name, if I were to delete your PC's windows I still couldn't create an account named "Aiadi"

Thanks Dragon. The IP address theory is unlikely as I have several PCs connected through the same ISP. I'd tried getting an image of my system whilst authorised, de-authorised after imaging and then flashed the OS image when the iTunes store remained de-authorised which would suggest to me that it is nothing to do with the OS. It seems to be working completely independently and I am fascinated to know how it is done.

dragon934

Then it's almost certainly done buy what they log on the server end. Your allowed 5 authorised pc's at once i believe, and I think its simply a case of being allowed to log in with the same code on 5 different machines (as you said, regardless of ip address) I'm not sure of the exact ID method (although i read somewhere it uses the computers MAC address). This would make sense as its always a constant (unless you spoof it[and you shouldn't!!])
So basically you log in with your credentials, itunes logs your MAC address, and you then do it with your other 4 devices, which of course all have a unique and permanent MAC address regardless of OS.
And I bet SkyPlayer uses exactly the same method as they also limit number of devices per account.

http://www.macintouch.com/readerreports/itunes/topic2467.html (3rd post down but if you read on, its argued against MAC address method)

and this taken from LifeHacker... iTunes stores authorization info in a hidden folder (/Users/Shared/SC on Macs, C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\SC Info on Windows)

So maybe its a combination of whats on your HDD and your MAC address

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1420 (some other info you might find useful, although you probably already know this much)

hope this clears things up for you

Aiadi

Thanks Dragon. this makes a very interesting read indeed.

I guess you are right that it must be a combination of identifier rather than a single method. The plot thickens.......:eek: