Microsoft has become an unknown publisher
I installed Windows 7 from MSDN over the weekend. At first everything was running great, but somewhere along the way something happened. All of a sudden everything I try to run is from an unknown publisher and I get the "Open File - Security Warning". I'm not just talking about third party apps, I'm talking about every single Microsoft app, even the Calculator! Its seems that anything I try to run either through a shortcut or directly comes up as "unknown publisher". When I first started installing, I installed Nvida graphics drivers, then Avira, then Visual Studio 2003, 2005, 2008, then MS SQL 2005, then Office. Up to then everything worked perfectly. The rest is just minor apps/tools. I can't really remember when it happened. What is going on and how can I fix it?
August 10th, 2009 4:59pm

Sounds like you did not make a default install. There should be no problems checking the publisher if the file has one.Vote if answered or helpful, I am running for Office (joke)! IT/Developer, Windows/Linux/Whatever I need a new web server, the old IBM 300GL has a 137GB disk limit, for my chess site as the hard disk finally bit the dust. The Windows box is a RaidMax Smilodon chassis, Asus M2NBP-VM CSM motherboard, AMD 4200+ 65W CPU, 2GB RAM, ATI x600, over 1TB storage, Windows 7 RC.
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August 10th, 2009 5:31pm

Sounds like you did not make a default install. There should be no problems checking the publisher if the file has one. Sorry, but your statement is meaningless and provides absolutely nothing towards resolving this issue. Did you read the part about the Calculator causing the "Open File - Security Warning"???Something got broken from when I first installed Windows 7 and now. Somehow Windows 7 doesn't even think Microsoft is a known publisher. EVERY single shortcut or executable, regardless if it's for a Microsoft Product, Windows 7 OS application/shortcut or third-party signed or not signed causes the security warning to open. This is not the UAC dialog, this looks just like the Attachment Execution Services (AES) dialog. I've tried following the recomendations regarding the Group Policy Editor as well as the Local Intranet settings and nothing seems to work. About the only way to get rid of it is to right click the shortcut, click Advanced, and check the Run as Administrator option. This is what you do for truely unknown publishers/third party unsigned apps.
August 10th, 2009 6:08pm

I do not use policies as I am using Linux servers at present.As for the signing, you are the first I have ever seen of the problem here.Vote if answered or helpful, I am running for Office (joke)! IT/Developer, Windows/Linux/Whatever I need a new web server, the old IBM 300GL has a 137GB disk limit, for my chess site as the hard disk finally bit the dust. The Windows box is a RaidMax Smilodon chassis, Asus M2NBP-VM CSM motherboard, AMD 4200+ 65W CPU, 2GB RAM, ATI x600, over 1TB storage, Windows 7 RC.
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August 10th, 2009 6:14pm

Hey Adrian, I am having this same issue. What did you do to resolve? In addition, the Microsoft Updates services are not turned on... can't figure that one out either.
October 13th, 2011 10:16am

Hi, I also have the same issue after changing harddisk and reinstall Windows7. Does anyone solve this and can help? THANK YOU
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June 18th, 2012 4:13am

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