[rotuts]

Hello
do PCC chips in current pwermacs have a unique serial number on the chips that can be identified by software? I think this came up with intel a few years ago and apple said they would not do it.

this is not a piracy question but a privacy question re transition to intel.

please that this in that light

thanks rotuts

[d.fine]

Doesn't look like anyone knows. What I do know is that when I get a message from MacPhoneHome (security app that reports once the G5 comes online) there is a " Processor Serial Number ", but I can't tell you if its a number that comes from a hardware encoded serial number, or if its something they use to separate my machine from the rest.
My guess is all CPU's have a serial number encoded, if only for tracking purrposes.

[reader50]

Since PowerMacs use CPU cards, a "Processor Serial Number" might originate in the card's firmware rather than the CPU itself.

[rotuts]

thanks for the ideas. its odd no one really knows or posts to this thread. in the end, would the intel chip be that different?

thanks rotuts

[bowwowman]

Yes Intel & M$ tried that crap a while back, and it was a public-relations NIGHTMARE..........after getting a gazillion nasty emails about it they quickly stopped it too

[baw]

I was under the impression that Intel still serializes their processors.

[Gelfling]

Does it really matter? You mac already has a serial number. It's written on the machine somewhere, and accessable via software, in fact it is displayed in the About This Mac box if you click on the OS version number once or twice.

Also every ethernet card has a unique identifier, and every mac has an ethernet card built in.

There are pleanty of ways to tie your mac to a piece of software

[bowwowman]

Yea they do, but the part they got zinged on was that the chip SN was tied to the Windblows activation code, and anytime you replaced any components like GPU, pci card ect, you had to call M$ and re-activate your copy of windblows......which really, really, really, sucked bigtime

[andrewbw]

Yea they do, but the part they got zinged on was that the chip SN was tied to the Windblows activation code. and anytime you replaced any components like GPU, pci card ect, you had to call M$ and re-activate your copy of windblows.....

This isn't even remotely true. Look, if you don't know the answer, it's ok to say "I don't know," but don't make **** up.

[Nugget]

Originally Posted by bowwowman

Yea they do, but the part they got zinged on was that the chip SN was tied to the Windblows activation code, and anytime you replaced any components like GPU, pci card ect, you had to call M$ and re-activate your copy of windblows......which really, really, really, sucked bigtime

What you are referring to here is XP's product activiation anti-piracy features. This feature exists today and only slightly resembles what you've described. The vast majority of Windows users never have to contact Microsoft at all -- it doesn't require manual reactivation "anytime", rather only if the user is making frequent drastic changes to hardware configuration. It's no big deal at all, assuming of course that you're not pirating the operating system. In any event, the presence or absence of a CPU serial number really isn't a factor with XP's activation stuff.

The debate of XP's product authorization is unrelated to the debate over Intel's Pentium III processor serial number (PSN), which many privacy advocates found distasteful. The focus of the debate was not that the processors contained a unique ID (which is not unusual) but rather that Intel's plans would have made that ID accessable to internet sites, removing anonymity. There's no risk in having a serial number, but there are some glaring risks if amazon.com can view that serial number without your knowledge or permission.

In response to the criticism, Intel did not follow through with their plans to expose the PSN in the network stack of Intel-based computers. They also quietly stopped using PSNs with the move to the P4 architecture in late 2000. I'm not sure if the PIII forks like the Pentum M contain a PSN or not.

The notion of a processor serial number is hardly unique to Intel. Sun was embedding CPU serial numbers since the early '80s. What made Intel's idea so novel (and controversial) was that the serial numbers would potentially be viewable by web servers or other online services, making it much more difficult to be anonymous online.

[rotuts]

Nugg

thanks for the expert clarification. thats what I was thinking of in a vague way. thanks again!

rotut