Unable to activate via TMG

[WestminsterSA]

I am unable to activate Digital Editions on our school network. We need to use this software, as the library is now doing ebook loans.

I am able to go to http://adeactivate.adobe.com/

When I open up Digital Editions it asks for my username and password (for the Microsoft TMG proxy) but fails over and over and I receive the E_ADEPT_IO ActivationServiceInfo Error%20#2032

I do not see anything in the TMG logs when I open Digital Editions and enter in the password.

I have also tested with the Firewall on the desktops disabled.

[WestminsterSA]

BUMP

[WestminsterSA]

I managed to chat with an Adobe representative. He gave me basic fixes.

Then he told me that Adobe only support the install of Digital Edition as a Local Administrator on a network with no proxies. I explained how that was very bad for security and he closed the chat session.

This is terrible, considering we HAVE TO use these terrible proprietary ACSM files in our school because that is what the ebook borrowing software we will be using, uses.

[WestminsterSA]

I have now figured out at which stage it is failing.

Using http://www.wireshark.org/download.html I discover that Digital Editions is successful in accessing http://adeactivate.adobe.com/adept/ActivationServiceInfo which downloads ActivationServiceInfo.acsm

It appears to be failing after downloading that file.

This means that Digital Editions is having no problem going through the firewall until after it downloads that file and tries to run it.

This is the proxy error I receive at that stage "Expert Info (Chat/Sequence): HTTP/1.1 407 Proxy Authentication Required ( Forefront TMG requires authorization to fulfill the request. Access to the Web Proxy filter is denied.  )"

Why does it authenticate fine to the proxy for the first part but fails for the second part?

[WestminsterSA]

I have so far discovered that I need to allow adobe.com and macromedia.com through my proxy as anonymous users.

Why the hell doesn't Adobe Digital Editions use the system wide proxy? This can be fixed? Why can't it use the system wide proxy. This just seems mental to me.

[Guest]

Hi WestminsterSA, I have the same problem. Can you tell me please How should I configure my proxy server? Thanks in advanced

[WestminsterSA]

You need to allow anonymous connections through your proxy for particular adobe activation sites. I can't remember what they are now, but if you monitor anonymous connections to TMG when attempting to activate you will see the sites requested.

"If Adobe did not design it's software to work with a local computer system

wide proxy.... why does it? It uses the system proxy but then fails at

authentication. This IS bad software design."

He fails to understand that his school proxy settings - anonymous - are not

connected in any way to the way ADE is coded. It was never designed as

anything other than a 1:1 software system: the user connects directly with

Adobe. Your network is passing stuff up the line, but it's failing at the

network's authentication, not at ADE's. My comments about use in a

networked environment are still valid. And that's not 'bad software

design" at all.

You fail to understand how proxying works. The anonymous part is because ADE is not using the system wide proxy credentials supplied to it for the whole of the connection. This is due to the way it is coded. The software is using the correct proxy settings for the most part but is not passing the authentication through for the entirety of the activation. This has absolutely nothing to do with the proxy itself. If the software is not using supplied credentials when talking to the proxy server it is not going to be allowed through.

Basically ADE is going... "I will send this through the proxy but I'm not going to supply credentials with it." This is bad software design. This design will only work with a filter that filters ALL traffic without any authentication. This is an issue lots of people face with iOS and Android because lots of apps don't use a system wide proxy and also have no way to enter in credentials for a proxy. This is simply people writing software and ignoring the fact that people will use proxies that require authentication.