Getting legal - properly licensing a copy of XP

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mike Hall \(MS-MVP\)
  • Start date Start date
I have a client who purchased a home-built PC from a friend. I discovered
that this "friend" loaded his personal copy of XP Pro onto this machine
before selling it to my client. The client is shocked and hurt by this and
we are ordering him his own copy of XP for this computer to get him legal.

The question is this: without totally wiping the hard drive and reloading
everything, is there a way to either 1)apply the license info to this PC, or
2) install over the top of the OS and updates without causing problems?

Any advice would be appreciated!
 
Michael

I have a feeling that one has to enter the new key if the version type is
different.. that is to say, changing from the pirated 'volume' version to
Pro retail.. maybe you could confirm this..
 
Mike Hall (MS-MVP) said:
It's called a 'repair' install, and details of how this is accomplished
can be found at

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
Click to expand...


It annoys me when people sell a system and use an illegal copy of XP. A
friend of the family got me to quote for supplying a her with a new PC and
then went elsewhere because he was £80 cheaper. Imagine my delight when 3
months later she asks me to look at the computer (I agree only becasue it
might convince her to buy from me in future). The system will not access
the internet without at least 25 pop ups appearing. Gladly I oblige only to
find the system is full of adware, malware, virii (??) and the obligatory
install of Kazaa and it's associated junk. After removing some of the
adware programs etc I came to the conclusion (since some where rooted deep
into the OS) that the best thing here is to start afresh and do clean
install. Where is the XP disk I ask? The rest you can guess but the price
to repair I tell her is £80 for the XP license and disk.

Andy
 
In
Mike Hall (MS-MVP) said:
It's called a 'repair' install, and details of how this is
accomplished can be found at

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
Click to expand...

In addition to Mike's suggestion check the FAQ for I need to change a Key.
I need to change my XP Product KEY #18 on the FAQ list
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/xpfaq.html
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
 
Redeemed said:
I have a client who purchased a home-built PC from a friend. I discovered
that this "friend" loaded his personal copy of XP Pro onto this machine
before selling it to my client. The client is shocked and hurt by this and
we are ordering him his own copy of XP for this computer to get him legal.

The question is this: without totally wiping the hard drive and reloading
everything, is there a way to either 1)apply the license info to this PC, or
2) install over the top of the OS and updates without causing problems?

Any advice would be appreciated!
Click to expand...

As Mike said the way to make it legal is with a repair install.
However, I would strongly recommend a clean install. You don't know
what nasties are hidden on that system - child porn, or other
undesirable things. Best option when getting a used computer is to do a
clean install.
 
In
Mike Hall (MS-MVP) said:
Michael

I have a feeling that one has to enter the new key if the version
type is different.. that is to say, changing from the pirated
'volume' version to Pro retail.. maybe you could confirm this..
Click to expand...

You must have a valid key for the version to make the change. VLK will only
accept pro keys.
I recommend Rock XP.
But as Nepatsfan suggests, a clean install is the safest.

--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
 
AndyP said:
Where is the XP disk I ask? The rest you can guess but the price
to repair I tell her is £80 for the XP license and disk.
Click to expand...

Only £80? How come? Mine cost £180 and that was from a discount
supplier!
 
Found similar in my older son's PC. Its a Gateway PC. He said he was not
provided with an install CD. Disk management does not detect a hidden
partition on the 8GB hard drive either. He got his money's worth at $150
paid though.

My advice was to either buy a new Dell w/XP Home Edition, or spend alot of
money bringing this PC to some kind of decent performance level and buy XP
Pro as well.

The reason this came to light is he had no working internet connection to
the cable modem via hub. The non-working connection noted in XP could not
be removed, even in safe mode by default Administrator logon. Used same
cable to the hub as the HP PC in the same room was using for internet
connection. We came to the conclusion the non-working connection setup in
XP was preventing any added working connection. When a clean install was
suggested, our shoulders slumped when he said he had no install CD.
 
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