Java applets run locally now blocked by Windows XP SP2

[Mickey Segal]

After installation of the Windows XP SP2 update, Java applets running
locally get blocked by Internet Explorer for Windows. This occurs even for
simple Java applets, such as the "Hello world" applet at
http://segal.org/java/Hello/ (when run locally, not from the Web). This
occurs regardless of whether Internet Explorer is using the Microsoft or Sun
JVM.

IE's new yellow "Information Bar" appears, warning "To help protect your
security, Internet Explorer has restricted this file from showing active
content that could access your computer. Click here for options..."

I had heard there was a new file property that could be set to overrule this
behavior for individual files, but I don't see it. It seems the choices are
to turn off all ActiveX protection or approve the same HTML file calling a
Java applet every time it is run.

I use APPLET tags; it would be interesting to know if this problem could be
avoided using OBJECT tags.

Are there any good workarounds for this problem?

 

[Paul Lutus]

After installation of the Windows XP SP2 update, Java applets running
locally get blocked by Internet Explorer for Windows.

/ ...

Are there any good workarounds for this problem?

Yep. Don't design your site with pop-ups.

 

[Mickey Segal]

Yep. Don't design your site with pop-ups.

This thread has nothing to do with the "showDocument blocked by new
microsoft pop-up blocker" thread. The problem discussed in this thread
occurs for a simple "Hello world" applet run locally (the same applet as at
http://segal.org/java/Hello/ but run locally).

(Incidentally pop-up Java Frames are not blocked by Microsoft's pop-up
blocker; the problem in the other thread only affects showDocument).

 

[Ike]

Mickey,

Wow.....have you figured or encountered a resolution for this yet? I have
not yet installed SP2, but I am wondering if it isn;t the new embedded
firewall in there that may be causing this? -Ike

 

[Andrew Thompson]

After installation of the Windows XP SP2 update, Java applets running
locally get blocked by Internet Explorer for Windows. This occurs even for
simple Java applets, such as the "Hello world" applet at
http://segal.org/java/Hello/ (when run locally, not from the Web). This
occurs regardless of whether Internet Explorer is using the Microsoft or Sun
JVM.

IE's new yellow "Information Bar" appears, warning "To help protect your
security, Internet Explorer has restricted this file from showing active
content that could access your computer. Click here for options..."

Are you saying that you have to override,
or specifically tell, IE *each* *time*
you want to load that 14 line
'Hello World' applet?

 

[Philip Patel]

Look at the site, www.phdcc.com/xpsp2.htm

They explain how to allow CD and local active content to run. It's
under Internet Options, Advanced, Security

It worked for my local files

 

[Mickey Segal]

Look at the site, www.phdcc.com/xpsp2.htm

They explain how to allow CD and local active content to run. It's
under Internet Options, Advanced, Security

It worked for my local files

The "Internet Options, Advanced, Security" approach worked for me too.
Thanks. However, users are not likely to do such fiddling, as the phdcc.com
document notes, so I've used the "Mark of the Web" approach for all files
that a user might run. However, for some programs I've found that the "Mark
of the Web" approach and the "Internet Options, Advanced, Security" approach
can't be used together, so I need to use two different HTML files, one for
launching from the IDE and another for launching by users who won't fiddle
with Security settings.

This is a mess, but at it has a semi-workable solution.

 

[murdock]

Mickey -

You say that the "MOTW" solution worked for you? Would you mind
answering a couple of questions about that for me? I can't get it to
work at all.

Where in the file did you place the MOTW line?

Did you use the generic version <!-- saved from
url=(0013)about:internet --> or a domain-specific one? If the generic,
did you use the number 13 or the number 14? MS has two different
versions on their site, and in one they say you shouldn't count the
colon.

Also, are you saying that if a user has changed his/her security
settings, the MOTW solution doesn't work?

I'm trying to get an entire website to run from a CD, and this is
causing major problems for my client. I'd really appreciate your help.
Thanks.

 

[Mickey Segal]

Where in the file did you place the MOTW line?
Did you use the generic version <!-- saved from
url=(0013)about:internet --> or a domain-specific one? If the generic,
did you use the number 13 or the number 14? MS has two different
versions on their site, and in one they say you shouldn't count the
colon.

The location of the "Mark of the Web" matters a lot. I don't know the full
rules but I start my HTML pages in the form below, with the domain name
"mydomainname" replaced by our actual domain, which has the same number of
characters, needed for the count. I think the MOTW code needs to be on a
separate line:

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0
Transitional//EN""http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd">
<!-- saved from url=(0028)http://www.mydomainname.com/ -->

Also, are you saying that if a user has changed his/her security
settings, the MOTW solution doesn't work?

The MOTW messed up programs running from my IDE so for HTML pages launched
from within the IDE I had no MOTW and I set Tools | Internet Options |
Advanced | Security | Allow active content to run in files of My Computer.
This IE setting does not mess up the MOTW approach for programs running
outside the IDE.

I'm trying to get an entire website to run from a CD, and this is
causing major problems for my client. I'd really appreciate your help.

The approach described above worked for us, though the whole experience of
dealing with such XP SP2 hassles was one that the mind suppresses to improve
job satisfaction so I might be failing to reconstruct some detail.

 

[Andrew Thompson]

..

The approach described above worked for us, though the whole experience of
dealing with such XP SP2 hassles was one that the mind suppresses to improve
job satisfaction so I might be failing to reconstruct some detail.

Observations of the c.l.js group suggest to me that it was occasionally
enough to drive people insane. Consider yourself lucky, and work that
'forgettery'. ;-)