Vista Users - UAC and You
If you don't want to know all the background information on WHY this is necessary, and just want to get WoW to work, then scroll down "Making It Work" below.
Are you having trouble installing addons? Are you changing files or deleting your WTF folder, but somehow magically WoW ignores the changes? If you're on Windows Vista, a new security feature called "User Account Control" is likely to blame. About User Account Control (UAC) Microsoft's Windows Vista is the latest generation of their Windows operating system. Along with new eye-catching features, Vista also takes a new, hard stance on security. This new stance, however, caught some programmers off-guard. As a result, these new features have caused some programs to operate slightly differently than expected, and unfortunately, World of Warcraft is one of them. The new feature in question is called "User Account Control" or "UAC." UAC is a great feature that provides users with the security that they are not running as administrators all the time. *nix users will be familiar with this system, as the overwhelming majority of them will agree that you should not be running as root, and only give permissions to programs as necessary. One of the restrictions imposed by this is that the Program Files folder cannot be modified without "escalated" (administrative-level) permissions. WoW (by default) does not run escalated, so it does not have access to the Program Files folder. You may, however, be aware that WoW needs to write files there! It stores all of your configurations (in the WTF folder), it stores the cache data (in the Cache folder), and it even puts some default addon keys there. So why doesn't WoW just crash when it can't write there? Well, Microsoft was intelligent. They foresaw that older programs consistently used this folder to store configuration information, even though it has been strongly discouraged by Microsoft for years in favor of the %APPDATA% folder. So they invented this idea of "virtualization." If a program does not indicate to Vista that it is "UAC Aware" (via a "manifest"), Vista assumes that the program is not aware of the permissions restrictions. So, instead of denying access, it "fakes" write access. Anything the program tries to write or create in the Program Files folder then gets actually written to the "Virtual Store" which is located at C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore. If you go there and don't properly have WoW set up, you may even see that there is a Program Files\World of Warcraft folder there with various files that have been virtualized away. Making It Work So, how do we stop this? There are actually several solutions, though some are preferred over others due to simplicity.
Conclusion UAC is a useful feature provided by Microsoft that enforces policies that have been encouraged a long time ago. Unfortunately, programs are still not up with the times, and thus these changes sometimes cause a few glitches along the way. UAC still can provide the security you desire and your programs can get along with it just fine, it just may take a little extra attention. With this attention you can be sure to have a secure user account while enjoying the world we all love. |
Two other solutions to add:
* You can simply move the "World of Warcraft" folder from outside of the default install location, "C:\Program Files" or "C:\Program Files (x86)" to somewhere else. Once you run the program again via the Launcher, it will automatically detect where it is and change the needed registry settings itself. You do not need to reinstall. * Second option involves manually adding the security information. Note that these procedures assume you installed World of Warcraft into its default location. - Click on START. - Double-click on your system drive ( C: ). - Vista 32-bit only: Double-click on the folder labeled "Program Files" - Vista 64-bit only: Double-click on the folder labeled "Program Files (x86)" - Right-click on the "World of Warcraft" folder and select "Properties". - Click on the "Security" tab. - Click on the "Edit" button. If UAC is enabled, it will prompt you to continue. Do so. - Click on the "Add" button. - Type in the name of your user account into this field. Usually it will be "Senior Admin", and be at the top of your Start Menu. If you are unsure, after typing in the name, click on "Check Names". If it gives "Name Not Found", that means it was incorrect. If you are still unsure of your user account name, go into the User Accounts in the Control Panel and it should be listed there. - Click OK. - Back in the "Permissions for World of Warcraft" window, select your user account name (again, probably "Senior Admin"). - In the Permissions box, click on the little checkbox for "Full Control". - Click OK. - Click OK. You should now have no problems with anything that requires access to your World of Warcraft folders, such as Addons. |
Couldn't you just put the addons in the local store copy?
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I usually disable UAC the 1st time I boot into my newly installed Window Vista.
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Also note that disabling UAC usually means that Vista will nag you about it via its security center every time you boot. |
For the love of all that's holy, don't tell people to disable UAC. I'm trying to be nice when I say that the vast majority of people likely to hear such advice have zero clue what it exposes them to.
Run as administrator only as long as it's actually needed, and work to convince Blizzard to re-work how they interact with UAC to perform their patches. In particular, tell them to move the interface and addon folders to Program Data, where they belong. |
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Besides, a system is only as secure as its user is knowledgable. It is arguable that a user is more secure if they disable UAC and know what they've exposed themselves to than if they enable it and have no clue what's going on. The Interface and Addon folders will probably never be relocated, mostly because too many users are familiar with their position as it is now and because WoW is a portable application. Attempting to provide a place like %APPDATA% on every operating system is just asking for trouble. It is a far easier solution to just not install in Program Files in the first place. |
Uac
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Bad idea to disable UAC, its there for your protection. Although it can be annoying at times I agree, you need to remember its there to help prevent malicious software on your computer being installed without your consent such as key loggers, back doors etc thats there to steal your wow login details or credit card details. UAC shouldnt be disabled at all! |
Again...
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In fact, let's quote the first sentence in the "Disable UAC" section: Quote:
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They Designed UAC to annoy the user in an effort to force programmers to write programs that didn't cause UAC Violations (Popups) by doing so programmers would write better programs that were more "secure" in the first place. Hence why they have an option to turn it off. |
Well, it is not "UAC bad", it is "Virtualization bad".
It just hides the fact that problem (Program writing data in installation folder) exists. But we're here not for discussing Windows design troubles. Let me add Option 4? Pure theorycrafting, I hate Crapsta enough to never touch it even with 100-feet stick. But it is what I'm doing if I have such problem with applications under W2k/WinXP. Note before you dive into reading: It require some additional tools to complete process, so read it to the end BEFORE you start following these instructions. If you have slightest feel that you're not understand intentions, process, and expected results, DON'T! Just don't do it. Step 1: Start WoW as administrator once and let it create all the needed "WTF/**" folders for your account. You do not need to log in every character you have. One is enough. Ok, you did it. Log your char out, close WoW client. Step 2: Go to your %APPDATA% folder. Basically, open any Explorer window (Win+E anyone?) and type Code:
%APPDATA%<CR> Step 3: Create the "Blizzard/World of Warcraft" folder there in %APPDATA%. 2 steps, I hope you can do it yourself. Refer to "Windows for dummies" for more precise instructions. Step 4: Go to "%ProgramFiles%/World of Warcraft/WTF" folder. Open it in separate window. You must see your account name as folder in there. Copy "%ProgramFiles%/World of Warcraft/WTF/<YourAccount>" to "%APPDATA%/Blizzard/World of Warcraft/<YourAccount>". Critical: I emphase the word "Copy" because you must do exactly that. Copy it, otherwise you may have applied rights moved along with folder and effect would not be what we want to be done. Hold "Ctrl" key while dragging your stuff, or use whatever you feel applicable for that task. I know at least 4 ways to have it done through Explorer itself. Step 5: Delete "%ProgramFiles%/World of Warcraft/WTF/<YourAccount>". (Shall I notice you to make a backup?) Step 6: Create symlink to "%APPDATA%/Blizzard/World of Warcraft/<YourAccount>" at "%ProgramFiles%/World of Warcraft/WTF/<YourAccount>". Cannot be done through Explorer. :) Find your way and tool. You should be able to do so. Step 7: That's all. Log in your another char and see if you have it's settings created in the "%APPDATA%/Blizzard/World of Warcraft/<YourAccount>/<YourAnotherChar>". I *really* hope it would work. Otherwise, I'd say M$ really stupid... >.> P.S. Advantages? Ok, you asking, I tell you. You'll be able to have different system accounts to have their own WoW profiles stored inside system profiles. Easy to backup, transfer, etc. And for patchdays, it's Real Simple. Unlink WTF/** folders. Update. See if all works ok in first place. Cleanup WTF folder and link your profiles back. See if all works as expected. Make adjustments, shuffle backups etc. As you need. |
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I'd say it should be done way-way early, with Win2k probably. And to one who said "WoW is not runned on windows exclusively so there's no reason for Blizzard to change the way" - that's even GREATER reason... Mac is a *NIX style OS as far as I know, thus using classic *NIX-like separation of programs, configuration data and user personal data. I *DUNNO* why Blizzard so unaware of this fact. And if they ever considering Linux release, as many more users moving to Linux in case of Vista release (they can't sustain it's stupidity). |
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And it is not even hard to install with any modern distribution. |
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You are correct, OSX is a *nix OS. Quote:
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And the way default users is set must be changed in W2k (when MS considered to abandon W9x' line and started to line things up to WinXP as replacement for both NT(W2k as the moment) and 9x based OS. Simple demand for default user to be in "Users" group rather tan Administrator would help alot, disturb whole development and build right coding practice in 1,5-2 years easily. Now it is too late, *nix-like OS' progressed to the level where they can easily concur with windows for everyday work. And every thing MS did bad (Vista) more users going to *nix. I just clearly see it as increased population on *nix-related forums. Quote:
Back to topic. Can anyone give a feedback to my first post? Does it really work as expected? |
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Yes, it should work. I don't see the point though, sadly. |
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