WinXP license

[Guest]

HI,
What is the difference btw an OEM license and a retail license?
If the license had been used before on an old pc, can I reinstall it in my
new pc?

Thanks

 

[Guest]

OEM means it has to stay on the Hardware it came with. i.e. the HDD. Under
the new activation procedure it will prompt you to call the support number to
do a re-install. Retail OTOH means you can load it onto a new box becuase you
you bought it w/o hardware.

 

[Docwho via WindowsKB.com]

An OEM license is meant to be installed on brand new PC's only and is meant
ONLY for that specific machine. It is not in any way transferable. In
addition it is only meant to be sold to business that vendor PC's and not to
the man in the street.

A retail version is in most cases sold to a person. It can be installed on a
machine then uninstalled and installed on another machine.

That is the major difference between the two. Retail usually comes with far
better documentation and support as well and higher price of course!

 

[Bruce Chambers]

HI,
What is the difference btw an OEM license and a retail license?

There are some very important reasons that an OEM license costs so
much less than a retail license. OEM licenses are very limited:

1) OEM versions must be sold with a piece of non-peripheral
hardware (normally a motherboard or hard drive, if not an entire PC,
although Microsoft has greatly relaxed the hardware criteria for WinXP)
and are _permanently_ bound to the first PC on which they are installed.
An OEM license, once installed, is not legally transferable to another
computer under any circumstances. This is the main reason some people
avoid OEM versions; if the PC dies or is otherwise disposed of (even
stolen), you cannot re-use your OEM license on a new PC. The only
legitimate way to transfer the ownership of an OEM license is to
transfer ownership of the entire PC.

2) Microsoft provides no free support for OEM versions. If you
have any problems that require outside assistance, your only recourse is
to contact the manufacturer/builder of the PC or the vendor of the OEM
license. This would include such issues as lost a Product Key or
replacing damaged installation media. (Microsoft does make allowances
for those instances when you can prove that the OEM has gone out of
business.) This doesn't mean that you can't download patches and
service packs from Microsoft -- just no free telephone or email support
for problems with the OS.

3) An OEM CD cannot be used to perform an upgrade of an earlier
OS, as it was designed to be installed _only_ upon an empty hard drive.
It can still be used to perform a repair installation (a.k.a. an
in-place upgrade) of an existing WinXP installation.

4) If the OEM CD was designed by a specific manufacturer, such as
eMachines, Sony, Dell, Gateway, etc., it will most likely only install
on the same brand of PC, as an additional anti-piracy feature. Further,
such CDs are severely customized to contain only the minimum of device
drivers, and a lot of extra nonsense, that the manufacturer feels
necessary for the specific model of PC for which the CD was designed.
(To be honest, such CDs should _not_ be available on the open market;
but, if you're shopping someplace on-line like eBay, swap meets, or
computer fairs, there's often no telling what you're buying until it's
too late.) The "generic" OEM CDs, such as are manufactured by Microsoft
and sold to small systems builders, don't have this particular problem,
though, and are pretty much the same as their retail counterparts, apart
from the licensing, support, and upgrading restrictions.

If the license had been used before on an old pc, can I reinstall it in my
new pc?

If OEM, not legitimately. If retail, yes.


--

Bruce Chambers

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both at once. - RAH

 

[Alias]

HI,
What is the difference btw an OEM license and a retail license?
If the license had been used before on an old pc, can I reinstall it in my
new pc?

Thanks

Retail, no question; you can move it. OEM, technically, yes. Would you be in
breach of the EULA? Maybe, never gone to court so there's no legal
precedent. The EULA does say you cannot move it to another machine, although
how much upgrading constitutes a "new machine" is not defined. Does MS want
you to do it? No. They want you to buy retail and pay more for the same
thing (other than the upgrading feature. Retail has it, OEM doesn't).

Alias

 

[Anando [MS-MVP]]

Hi Alex,

Without going into the complexities of licesing issues, in short, an OEM copy of Windows XP is tied
to a specific piece of hardware. Many hardware manufacturers bundle a copy of Windows XP with a
piece of hardware. A retail copy of Windows XP can be installed on any machine and any number of
times as long as it is running only on a single machine at a time. Retail copies of Windows XP can
be bought at Bestbuy or Futureshop etc.

--

Anando
Microsoft MVP- Windows Shell/User
http://www.microsoft.com/mvp
http://www.mvps.org


Folder customizations
http://newdelhi.sancharnet.in/minku

Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/protect

 

[Alias]

An OEM license is meant to be installed on brand new PC's only and is
meant
ONLY for that specific machine. It is not in any way transferable. In
addition it is only meant to be sold to business that vendor PC's and not
to
the man in the street.

Perhaps where you live but where I live, OEMs are sold to the man on the
street and you would be hard pressed to buy a retail copy anywhere. No
hardware purchase required.

A retail version is in most cases sold to a person.

*People* who buy OEMs aren't persons?

It can be installed on a
machine then uninstalled and installed on another machine.

No, the EULA says you shouldn't do that. No law does. I can be done
technically.

That is the major difference between the two. Retail usually comes with
far
better documentation and support as well and higher price of course!

A much higher price.

If you're in the US, you can get generic OEM versions at WalMart. They even
sell them to a "person".

Alias

 

[Alias]

Retail, no question; you can move it. OEM, technically, yes. Would you be
in breach of the EULA? Maybe, never gone to court so there's no legal
precedent. The EULA does say you cannot move it to another machine,
although how much upgrading constitutes a "new machine" is not defined.
Does MS want you to do it? No. They want you to buy retail and pay more
for the same thing (other than the upgrading feature. Retail has it, OEM
doesn't).

Alias

That said, the OEM I was referring to is generic, not the crap that comes
with an HP/Packard Bell/Dell/ et al OEMs. The ones from big computer makers
can't go anywhere.

Alias

 

[GregRo]

An OEM license is meant to be installed on brand new PC's only and is meant
ONLY for that specific machine. It is not in any way transferable. In
addition it is only meant to be sold to business that vendor PC's and not to
the man in the street.

A retail version is in most cases sold to a person. It can be installed on a
machine then uninstalled and installed on another machine.

That is the major difference between the two. Retail usually comes with far
better documentation and support as well and higher price of course!

You need to read the new rule.
A end user can buy an oem if building a new or rebuilding an old
system.

Greg Ro

 

[Alias]

You need to read the new rule.
A end user can buy an oem if building a new or rebuilding an old
system.

Greg Ro

I have three, all bought at reputable stores and all passed PA and WGA.

Alias

 

[ANONYMOUS]

Alex,

Without explaining the differences, I would just say that we should be
fortunate that we have a choice of buying an OEM version or Retail
version.

I understand that from next year when new products come out, PC
manufacturers will be required to install the said software on their
hardware before shipping and we won't have the choice of buying OEM from
private retailer.

PC manufacturers would be compelled not to distribute CDs of all
software preinstalled but they can image the systems for easy recovery.

This would avoid the problems of what is legal and what is not.

So all those pirates out there should find other means of raising
revenues!!! How about learning MS products properly & legally and using
this new found knowledge to teach people out there to be lefal as
well!!!

 

[Ron Martell]

HI,
What is the difference btw an OEM license and a retail license?
If the license had been used before on an old pc, can I reinstall it in my
new pc?

Thanks

See http://onlinehelp.bc.ca/oem_software.htm for information about OEM
versions.

Good luck

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

In memory of a dear friend Alex Nichol MVP
http://aumha.org/alex.htm