Windows 7 gets more locked down!

[BetaMan]

Chris Pirillo has posted more info on Windows 7's latest build, 7057. Apparently, you can't install any video decoders from third-party developers. It's completely locked and no one can change that setting.
Quote

Microsoft has locked mpeg4 and h264 codecs into Media Foundation, the replacer of DirectShow (even if directshow is still supported).There is no way to override those codecs, even if you develop a Media Foundation version of your decoder, because Microsoft maintains a list of preferred codecs (their codecs) into the registry (HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and HKLM \MediaFoundation\Transforms\Preferred), and this registry key cannot be modified, even in admin mode. Only TrustedInstaller user can modify it, which is FYI the user that protects system files, and it cannot be used. Microsoft brought those new codecs, but blocked the possibility to use alternate codecs in their applications.

Link
http://www.lockergnome.com/theoracle/2009/03/28/windows-7-gets-more-locked-down/

 

[Psikea]

7057 is not lates buld , anyway , i guess they wond block anything , as fat as they made an obility to remove ie , wmp etc ( thatnks to european court )

 

[Ian]

How strange, I wonder why they do that (and how they get away with it!).

 

[Psikea]

thats really stange , maybe its some temporary decision

 

[BetaMan]

thats really stange , maybe its some temporary decision

That's what I figured.

 

[Thrax]

As of 7068, the Windows Media Foundation lock is still in place. I have been talking to my sources and they say it's still present in build 7072 as well.

Back in build 7000 you could take ownership of the relevant WMF DLLs with CACLS, which would shift control back to third-party codecs. This technique no longer works, which has left me scratching my head.

My first unfortunate runin with this BS came when I tried to use FFDshow's post-processing engine to tweak the output of an MPEG4 stream on Media Player Classic (HC fork). More precisely, I prefer to sharpen the image and tweak the levels of the image to produce more vibrant colors... This is not possible with WMF in play, as FFDShow's decoders are superceded by Win 7's internal WMF codecs.

I'm of three minds on this predicament: It's intentional to get an accurate and sanitized look at WMF codec performance, it's a deliberate gambit to crush codec conflicts (XP was a mess), or programmers haven't figured out the new model.

I tend to believe that the first option is the case, as the latter two seem incredibly irregular. I and others have spoken to Microsoft PR about the codec issue in Windows 7, and they're distributing this canned response:

As we move toward the release of Windows 7, we have worked to add more codecs and file types to allow for a better user experience. We also allow Microsoft experiences to use codecs and other format technologies from third-party companies, just as we always have. Third party applications can use the Microsoft codecs or their own. Microsoft does not restrict the use of third-party codecs.

All told I believe that we'll probably see codecs unlocked for RC1.