The main reason an installer is on Windows used:
- SEB needs to install and run a Windows Service in the background (which is inactive most of the time), which has administrator rights (that's why you need to enter an administrator password when installing SEB). This Windows Service can set/reset specific system-wide Registry settings, most importantly to disable the options (like Switch User and Task Manager) in the screen displayed when pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del (this shortcut cannot be blocked by software).
- The SEB installer registers the .seb file type and the seb/sebs URL protocols, so SEB config files or seb(s):// links are opened with SEB
You could theoretically omit running the SEB Windows Service with SEB 2.3, as when the user would switch to another Windows user account using Ctrl+Alt+Del and the Fast User Switching option found there, use other software in the other account to cheat and then return to the initial user account, SEB displays a red lock screen in all browser windows which can only be unlocked with the quit/unlock password, which usually the teacher/exam proctors/invigilators/supporters know.
You would not be able to use .seb config files or seb(s):// links to start SEB with a specific configuration. You would need to pre-configure SEB by deploying a client config file to the AppData or ProgramData directories or start SafeExamBrowser.exe with the config file path as a command line parameter.
Until now we didn't get enough requests (from paying SEB Consortium Members, as those are relevant for deciding what features we will work on) for a non-installer SEB version with these restrictions.
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Thanks! I just posted a support issue elsewere, but you've answered most of those questions – thanks!
One more question, though: Do you see any risks that running SEB without install (by just copying the files from the program folder) could cause any lasting problems on a student computer? (Such as ending up in lock-down scenarios or conflicts with other web browsers or something.)
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
Discussions on how to run SEB without installing it on student computers.
The main reason an installer is on Windows used:
- SEB needs to install and run a Windows Service in the background (which is inactive most of the time), which has administrator rights (that's why you need to enter an administrator password when installing SEB). This Windows Service can set/reset specific system-wide Registry settings, most importantly to disable the options (like Switch User and Task Manager) in the screen displayed when pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del (this shortcut cannot be blocked by software).
- The SEB installer registers the .seb file type and the seb/sebs URL protocols, so SEB config files or seb(s):// links are opened with SEB
You could theoretically omit running the SEB Windows Service with SEB 2.3, as when the user would switch to another Windows user account using Ctrl+Alt+Del and the Fast User Switching option found there, use other software in the other account to cheat and then return to the initial user account, SEB displays a red lock screen in all browser windows which can only be unlocked with the quit/unlock password, which usually the teacher/exam proctors/invigilators/supporters know.
You would not be able to use .seb config files or seb(s):// links to start SEB with a specific configuration. You would need to pre-configure SEB by deploying a client config file to the AppData or ProgramData directories or start SafeExamBrowser.exe with the config file path as a command line parameter.
Until now we didn't get enough requests (from paying SEB Consortium Members, as those are relevant for deciding what features we will work on) for a non-installer SEB version with these restrictions.
Thanks! I just posted a support issue elsewere, but you've answered most of those questions – thanks!
One more question, though: Do you see any risks that running SEB without install (by just copying the files from the program folder) could cause any lasting problems on a student computer? (Such as ending up in lock-down scenarios or conflicts with other web browsers or something.)