Do I have good title to this copy of XP?

[Alex Nichol]

If a private individual sells me a machine with XP on it then do I
have good title to use that copy of XP?

The giver says he has lost the CD and manuals and that he has gone
over to using Mac. I tend to believe him.

I figure I can extract the XP key using one of the tools avilable
to do this.

He *ought* to provide you with the CD, Certificate of Authenticity, and
Product key. But it is astonishing how people manage to lose these. The
activation of the machine was to the machine - not the owner, so
provided he does not 'find' those materials and sell them elsewhere you
are OK. I would discount the value of the system in assessing the
price, then if you do have trouble with activation you are covered to
an extent for a replacement.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

In

If a private individual sells me a machine with XP on it then do I
have good title to use that copy of XP?

The giver says he has lost the CD and manuals and that he has gone
over to using Mac. I tend to believe him.

Whether you believe him not isn't the issue. If he is unable to
transfer all the materials, including the CD and manual, no, you
don't have a legitimate copy.

I figure I can extract the XP key using one of the tools avilable
to do this.

Yes.


But will it be legitimate ?

Sorry, no.