Riffbox and Windows 10

I decided to bite the bullet and try out Windows 10. I wanted to learn the new operating system and determine if I could run specific software/hardware combinations under the new Windows that I had been running in Windows 7, specifically Riffbox. I happy to report, that after some trial and error, I have determined a reliable way of running riffbox under Windows 10. This should work equally well under Windows 8, as the issue is the same.

Hey, What's Your Sign? 

Windows 8 and now 10 both required a driver be digitally signed by a vendor known to Microsoft of it will flat refuse to install the driver. Under Windows 7, you had the option to continue even if the driver was not digitally signed, but not so for Windows 8/10.  The only solution is to reboot the computer into "Disable device driver signing detection" mode.

Disabling Driver Signing

1. Right-click the start menu, select Shut down or sign out.
2. Click Restart while holding the Shift key.  The boot option will appear.
3. Select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Startup Settings > Restart.
4. In the Startup Settings menu, press F7 to disable driver signing.

The PC will now perform a one-time boot with driver signing disabled.  In this mode, it is possible to install the Riff Box software.  If the driver's do not automatically install, navigate to C:\Program Files (x86)\RIFF Box JTAG Manager\Drivers\64Bit directory and run the dpinst.exe program as Administrator.  Use Windows 7 compatibility mode if necessary.  You will be warned that the three drivers are not digitally signed, but you will have the option to install anyway.

After you install the drivers, plug in Riff Box and launch JTAG Manager.  

Common Issues

If you plug the riffbox into your Windows 10 system and the green light continually flashes, riffbox has not been properly recognized.  An easy fix for this is to right-click the Start menu icon and select 'Device Manager'.  Under 'Ports', you should find the 'RIFF BOX Control Port (COM #)' entry.

1. Right click the entry and select Update Driver Software.
2. Select Browse my computer for driver software.
3. Select Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer.
4. With the Show compatible hardware box checked, select RIFF BOX Control Port.
5. Click the Next button to install the driver.  The Riff Box will now be recognized as a 'RIFF BOX Control Port.'

Note: Follow this procedure, too, if instead of the Riffbox entry, you see a generic 'USB Serial Device.'

Reboot Reincarnation

Rebooting reinstates the device driver signature requirement in Windows 8/10. Riff Box will not be recognized by JTAG Manager in normal boot mode because the unsigned drivers will not load.  Even if you follow the trouble shooting listed in the Common Issues section above, JTAG Manager will not detect Riff Box.  The only solution (to date) is to reboot into Disabled Signature Enforcement Mode.

That said, there are ways to force disabled signature enforcement mode on each boot, but do they work?

Permanently Disabling Driver Signature Enforcement

You will read that you can use the bcdedit command line tool to disable driver signing on each boot automatically.  The tool modifies the boot configuration data store which replaced the boot.ini file of windows 7 and earlier.  However, while this process will allow driver installation, it still does not allow the drivers to load when Riff Box is connected to the PC.  I include the instructions below to show you what I did in testing.

To disable driver signing mode on boot (and start in Test Mode):

1. Right-click on the Start menu icon, select Command Prompt (admin).
2. Run the command:
   bcdedit /set loadoptions DISABLE_INTEGRITY_CHECKS
3. Run the command:
   bcdedit /set TESTSIGNING ON
4. Reboot.

To reenable driver signing (and exit Test Mode):

1. Right-click on the Start menu icon, select Command Prompt (admin).
2. Run the command:
   bcdedit /deletevalue loadoption
3. Run the command:
   bcdedit /set TESTSIGNING OFF
4. Reboot

Another possible permanent solution would be to disable driver signature enforcement in the Group Policy Editor.  You will only have this tool if are running Windows Pro and higher, however.  I did not have Windows 10 pro at the time of this writing, so I have not tested the following procedure:

1. Right-click the Start menu icon and select Run.
2. Enter gpedit.msc and press Enter.
3. In the editor, select User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Driver Installation.
4. Double-click Code signing for device drivers.
5. Click the Enable radio button and then select Ignore in the Options drop down.
6. Apply the changes and reboot.

If you have success with this second method, please post a comment so others will know the solution.