Microsoft pulls Windows 7 Download tool

Microsoft has removed the Windows USB/DVD Download Tool from the Microsoft Store after a blogger reported that the tool appeared to contain code that was remarkably like code in the Codeplex hosted, and GPL2 licensed, ImageMaster project. The Microsoft tool is designed to make it easier to burn downloaded copies of Windows 7 onto USB sticks or DVDs.

The blogger, Rafael Rivera, had examined the compiled code of the download tool using Redgate's .NET Reflector after feeling that "there was just wayyyyy too much code in there for such a simple tool". He announced his findings on the 7th of November in a posting on his Within Windows blog. He initially showed similar code for routines such as Readbytes and later showed code comparisons with UDF writing code. This was similar, with only constants appearing to be different, which would be an artefact of the decompiling process.

Today, Microsoft pulled the code from its Micrsoft Store; a Microsoft spokesman told US media that "Microsoft is looking into this issue and is taking down the WUDT tool from the Microsoft Store site until its investigations are complete. We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience."

(djwm)