It has been a long time since I have posted something about Kaspersky. This 6 months KAV2010 license promotion which I am about to post is not from any CD magazine promo but a legitimate collaboration between Kaspersky and Microsoft for Windows Live Messenger users. As long as you have a Hotmail or Live account, you are eligible for the free Kaspersky 6 months trial license.

First of all, this Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 activation code is a trial license and not a commercial one. If you have previously activated a trial license before, you cannot use this key. Secondly, this license is meant to to activate the Chinese version of the installer. If you try to activate it on the English setup, you will get the error “Activation code is not compatible with this application. It is impossible to activate Kaspersky Anti-Virus using the activation code for another application. Please, check your product.”

1. Open Windows Live Messenger and sign in to your Live account.

2. Add this email msn.help@live.cn to your Windows Live Messenger contact.

3. Visit http://kaba.msn.com.cn/

4. Copy the line that I have circled in red and send it as a message to msn.help@live.cn in your Windows Live Messenger. You should instantly receive a reply with the Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 activation code.

So far I’ve researched a total of 3 methods on how to change the Chinese interface into English. The first and second method uses the Chinese installer but switching the interface skin to English. The third method is the latest one which I’ve discovered on how to use the Chinese key to activate the English setup.

Important Note: Before proceeding in making any changes on the registry based on the steps below, you will have to first disable the Self-Defense option. You can do that by double clicking the Kaspersky icon at system tray, click at the top right icon and a window will open. At the left pane, click on the icon that looks like this , uncheck the first option and press ENTER key to close the window.

First method: Install Chinese version of KAV2010 and activate using the license code. Then at the registry, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\KasperskyLab\protected\AVP9\environment\ and change the SkinSwitchDisabled value from 1 to 0. At the Kaspersky program, press Shift+F12 to instantly switch the skin from Chinese to English.

Second method: Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\KasperskyLab\protected\AVP9\environment\ and change the Localization value from sch to en.

Third method: Install Chinese version of KAV2010 and when asked to activate, close the window. Go to registry, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\KasperskyLab\protected\AVP9\environment\ and note down the InstallBasesID value data. Uninstall Kaspersky Chinese and restart computer. Now install Kaspersky English, click Activate Later and click Next. Click Finish to Start Kaspersky Anti-Virus. Disable Self-Defense and exit Kaspersky by right clicking on the system tray icon and select Exit.

Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\KasperskyLab\protected\AVP9\environment\ , change the InstallBasesID value data to the one that you noted down and also the localization from en to sch. Run Kaspersky and a window will appear with no text, two buttons and one dialog box. Enter the activation code to the only box and hit enter. When you see a window with only ONE checkmark, right click the Kaspersky tray icon and click the lowest selection to Exit. Finally, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\KasperskyLab\protected\AVP9\environment\ and change the Localization value data from sch back to en. Run Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 and you have a valid 183 days license subscription.

The third method is very long and troublesome but I am just sharing the possibility of activating a Chinese license key on an English installer. The second method is the easiest although I’ve got reports from some people that it reverts back to sch after a few updates.

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 (9.0.0.736) Chinese Installer: kav9.0.0.736_CF2_sch.exe
Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2010 (9.0.0.736) English Installer: kav9.0.0.736en.exe