Massive X 1.6.1 update (September 2025)!

[swilow11]

Okay I just did the update...meh. Nothing in there for me.
It required Native Access to be updated and that brought their NTKDaemon.exe spyware back:.

Yeah, it's not spyware though. It does however seem unnecessary- at least disabling it doesn't seem to have any major impact.
The oft repeated explanation for its ultimate purpose seems pretty tepid for something that is constantly running. But calling it spyware is a bit of an overreaction imo.

What else would you call an .exe that is constantly sending who knows what data for who knows what purpose to third party sites without your permission?

It sends and receives data even when Native Access is not running, even when you have no N.I. plugins running and even if you don't have a DAW open.

What possible legitimate reason could it have to be running in the background sending data? Do you know what data it is sending and receiving?

I have about 400 plugins on my studio system from probably two dozen different companies and none of those other developers need to be data mining our systems. So neither does NI. Just because we buy some software from a company that doesn't give them the right or permission to do whatever they wish to our systems. I don't how that could possibly be a controversial stance.

The fact that NI plugins work just fine when the NTKDaemon.exe is moved tells us it's not a critical component for them to function.

So yeah if it quacks like a duck and walks like a duck, it's a duck. Calling it spyware is not an "overreaction" it's a technically accurate description:


Spyware.png


Ignoring what it's doing is blind trust in a world where trust is rarely deserved, especially when it comes to the activities of for profit businesses.

If you don't care about the security of your data and your music production computer then just ignore it at your own risk. I do care which is why I will continue to either move or disable the NTKDaemon whenever it comes back. If they ever block our ability to disable the spyware then I will uninstall everything from NI and move on. Nothing I own from them is mission critical.

Settle down mate. I just said I don't think it's spyware. Believe what you want.

[osiris]

It's not spyware. It's a virtual CD bay.
A very long time ago I had a program called Daemon which was used to run disc images off of.
You can look it up on Wiki FFS
In Windows, a Windows service provides the functionality of a daemon. It runs as a process, usually does not interact with the user (i.e. via monitor, keyboard, or mouse) and may be launched by the operating system at boot time. In Windows 2000 and later versions, a Windows service is configured and controlled via various interfaces including the Control Panel, the Service Control Manager sc command, the net start and net stop commands, PowerShell, or a custom program.

[BBFG#]

... the cost of them is our submission to their ideology.

God, that mindset just seems exhausting. Have fun, fighting the 'machine.'

Ha. You've misread the decision to not fight and let others be their cuckstomers. It's plain to see you're the one continuing to fight for them.

[RobGee]

This update does nothing for me, a macro page, with an xy pad and a limited modulator. Really?

At least the synth still sounds just as great as it always did, hopefully some worthwhile updates are coming.

[DashOfLime]

Y'all are hilarious. We have this thing in 2025 called a "search engine". It's this amazing thing where you can type in stuff you want to search on. You might want to try it with "native instruments ntkdaemon".

You'll see posts like this one: https://community.native-instruments.co ... -access/p1

That post is about overhauling NA to decouple the UI from the parts that do the work...NTKDaemon. It's part of NA, not some sleeper agent waiting to upload pics of you wanking.

"The gist of it is that the functionality was decoupled from the interface, and two separate entities operate the system: one is the new dark-themed Native Access (NA2) interface you see today, the other being the NTK Daemon, responsible for activating, downloading, installing, and managing your products. You can think of it as NA2 being the button and the Daemon the wiring and the cogwheels. This allows us to work in parallel without blocking each other, allowing for swift UI iterations, and installation improvements without blocking all other work from going through."

It's an integral piece of NA.

[idoru97214]

... the cost of them is our submission to their ideology.

God, that mindset just seems exhausting. Have fun, fighting the 'machine.'

Ha. You've misread the decision to not fight and let others be their cuckstomers. It's plain to see you're the one continuing to fight for them.

You are paranoid. And that's ok.

[revvy]

cuckstomers

IMG_3959.jpeg

[Digivolt]

If you're really concerned about Daemons in your computer, hire an exorcist

[jules99]

I mean we can't for sure rule out that Teksonik knows something that NI really wants to know about so we can't say that NTK Daemon is nothing but a necessary thing of NI Access, we can only say NTK Daemon is not spyware for those who DON'T KNOW. Just think about it.

[osiris]

Screenshot (2).png

A partial list compiled of some Windows daemons:

[Teksonik]

If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to worry about.

If you have nothing of value on your system (like your music projects, etc) then you don't have to care about somone data mining your system.

I do value my intellectual property so I do care.

If you're trying to insulate that I have any cracked or warez software on my systems you could not be more wrong and you could not have been more insulting.

[Teksonik]

Can you apply a Firewall Rule to block it from accessing the internet?

Yes but I have little faith in Windows Defender's firewall and it's just easer and more bullet proof for me to move the .exe out of its location.

[Teksonik]

A partial list compiled of some Windows daemons:

Completely and utterly irrelevant to the fact that N.I. feels the need to keep a constant up/down internet connection sending and receiving data even when you're not using their software.

No other developer that I have done business with feels the need to data mine our systems. It's not a necessity, it's a choice by NI.

But if anyone is fine with letting any developer do whatever it wants to their systems then they are free to keep simping away.

Call me paranoid if that makes you feel better but if anyone was to step out of their mom's basement for an half an hour and take a look at the world around us now they'd realize that caution and not blindly trusting any business is a logical and prudent course of action in this day and age.

I'll not discuss it any further. I'm simply pointing out what N.I. is doing so people can make the decision to stop it or stay asleep and let it keep mining their systems.

*End of Discussion*

[revvy]

f**k

I was gonna discuss more but now Tek has ended it.

Oh well, I’m off out for a pint then.

[nirm123]

A partial list compiled of some Windows daemons:

Completely and utterly irrelevant to the fact that N.I. feels the need to keep a constant up/down internet connection sending and receiving data even when you're not using their software.

No other developer that I have done business with feels the need to data mine our systems. It's not a necessity, it's a choice by NI.

But if anyone is fine with letting any developer do whatever it wants to their systems then they are free to keep simping away.

Call me paranoid if that makes you feel better but if anyone was to step out of their mom's basement for an half an hour and take a look at the world around us now they'd realize that caution and not blindly trusting any business is a logical and prudent course of action in this day and age.

I'll not discuss it any further. I'm simply pointing out what N.I. is doing so people can make the decision to stop it or stay asleep and let it keep mining their systems.

*End of Discussion*

OK, we'll now call you paranoid since:

1. you asked for it ("Call me paranoid")
2. it's 100% true (as hundreds of your previous posts have shown)

paranoid!