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I am currently looking for a "Windows 7 compatible" certification, and to get it, you need to implement code signing. Now I look for a cheap certificate, and I found some cheap alternatives to Verisign certificates in Stack Overflow question Cheapest Java code signing certificate? (not self-signed).

I found comments somewhere on the Internet that Microsoft only accepts certificates. Is this true, or can I go with the Comodo certificate?

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Daniel
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It's not obvious, but on that same site for the logo, there's a link for getting a certificate at a significant discount. I seem to recall it was US$100 instead of US$500? And that's from Verisign. I took a client of mine through it and getting the certificate was the easy part of the process :-)

Update: this page http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/ff718579.aspx makes it clearer:

Submissions for the Compatible with Windows 7 Software Logo Program will only be accepted through Winqual. To establish a Winqual account for your company (a prerequisite for creating user accounts), you must establish your company’s identity using a VeriSign Certificate. There are two VeriSign certificates supported by Winqual for creating company accounts...

Basically you must have a Verisign certificate of some kind, but it doesn't need to be a code signing one. You can use a US$99 one just to prove you are you, and then buy your code signing one from anyone in the PDF you can download from http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931125 (it appears to include Comodo). Or you can buy your code signing from Verisign and cover both bases. This is also where you can find the link to the US$99 first year offer.

Peter Mortensen
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Kate Gregory
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  • Yes. And each of the following years costs 499$. The Comodos are available for 66$ a Year when buying 3 years at once. – Daniel Jun 22 '10 at 12:03
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    I believe the theory is that as an ISV selling a product with the Windows 7 logo, your revenue (or your savings on buying MSDN subscriptions for all your staff, since the logo is the doorway to the ISV competency in the partner program) will more than cover the cost of a cert. Reducing the initial layout at a time when you may not yet have sales makes sense, but few people will stay in or get out of the ISV business due to the cost of certificate renewal. That said, if you can make it work for $66/yr why not? – Kate Gregory Jun 22 '10 at 12:26
  • Thanks for the enlightenment. Nowing I can go for 99$ initial costs and 66$ per year later makes the work to be done for the logo far more attractive. – Daniel Jun 22 '10 at 18:22
  • The KB 931125 article states: "This article contains a download link to a list of the third-party certification authorities (CAs) that are trusted by Microsoft and whose root certificates are distributed through the Microsoft Root Certificate Program." It is less clear where that link actually is. A more direct link may be *[Windows Root Certificate Program - Members List (All CAs)](http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/2592.windows-root-certificate-program-members-list-all-cas.aspx)*. – Peter Mortensen May 27 '13 at 12:59