How can I find the XP key code on the PC ?

[Bubey]

Is the XP installation key code stored somewhere
on the laptop? I tried to help a friend clean up
her PC this weekend and when I went to do an
Update of the XP - OS on it, I got a "couldn't
validate". She got this laptop in lieu of unpaid
rent from a tenant. The website asked for the
key code of which she doesn't have. Thought
maybe it might be on the hard drives somewhere.
It's a Gateway laptop, if that makes any
difference.
Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Kerry Brown]

Is the XP installation key code stored somewhere
on the laptop? I tried to help a friend clean up
her PC this weekend and when I went to do an
Update of the XP - OS on it, I got a "couldn't
validate". She got this laptop in lieu of unpaid
rent from a tenant. The website asked for the
key code of which she doesn't have. Thought
maybe it might be on the hard drives somewhere.
It's a Gateway laptop, if that makes any
difference.
Thanks in advance for the help.

On most laptops the key is on the bottom of the laptop. If it's not there
then the key that was used for the installation can be found with this
program.

http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml

If the laptop still has the original factory installation then the key you
get from the registry will be different than the key on the bottom of the
laptop. The factory image uses a preauthorized key that does not need to be
activated.

 

[Guest]

If the laptop still has the original factory installation then the key you
get from the registry will be different than the key on the bottom of the
laptop.

An aside, but to me that raises issues over the whole Genuine Windows
campaign. If you are required as a consumer to have a valid licence then
surely there is also a legal/moral/ethical onus on the supplier to install
the correct licence?

Piracy? Grey area, if you ask me. Who _are_ the pirates when 90+% of
computers have an incorrect licence and an OEM-modified copy of Windows?

http://genuinewindows.co.uk

 

[FreeComputerConsultant.com]

google keyfinder

though you may well not have a legal copy of XP.

www.FreeComputerConsultant.com

 

[FreeComputerConsultant.com]

actually, it's

www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.html

www.FreeComputerConsultant.com

 

[Kerry Brown]

An aside, but to me that raises issues over the whole Genuine Windows
campaign. If you are required as a consumer to have a valid licence then
surely there is also a legal/moral/ethical onus on the supplier to install
the correct licence?

Piracy? Grey area, if you ask me. Who _are_ the pirates when 90+% of
computers have an incorrect licence and an OEM-modified copy of Windows?

http://genuinewindows.co.uk

I have no idea what you are talking about. A legitimate OEM supplied
computer has a legitimate license. Why would you think otherwise? It is
within the terms of the OEM license for the OEM to modify Windows to work
with their systems. It is also within the terms to use a preauthorized key
for the factory image.

 

[Kerry Brown]

Parallel example:

If you were told that you MUST submit to biometric scans and renew your
passport to remain a legal USA resident, yet were issued with a passport
having someone else's photo -and a printed number which didn't match the
one
on the biometric chip- would you accept that 'It was done that way to save
duplicating costs?'

Or, if you ordered a new Merc, would you willingly pay for a respray
before
you even took it on the road, to remove the word "TAMPAX" emblazoned on
both
doors? Would you humbly accept the fact that it's in your best interests
as a
consumer not to complain about this defacement of your property, as the
advertising reduces the cost of each car by $25. ? Or would you return it
as
'Not genuine' ...?

No to both? Then why should I accept a computer in a similar condition?

Only a few days ago I had to charge a lady 2hrs time plus a Windows CD to
reload Windows MCE onto a brand new, top-of-the-range laptop, as she
couldn't
get AOL off the damn thing, there were no drivers, and the recovery disk
didn't work. She accepted my bill very politely, but I could see that she
was
fuming inside, not at me but at the OEM for robbing her this way. I felt
like a crook myself in charging her for something she had already paid for
and not received, but hey, I have to pay my taxes too so I can't afford to
be
a charity.

I never said I liked the way some OEMs provide Windows on their systems. I
said it was legitimate according to the OEM license and the customer ends up
with a legitimate license. If you don't like it don't buy a computer that is
setup that way. I recently purchased a new laptop. Part of my purchase
decision was the cost and the time involved in setting it up as I wanted it
not as it came from the factory.

In the context of this thread and helping the OP this is all irrelevant.
They were asking about determining what key was used to install XP because
they were having problems with WGAN. I explained how to find the key and one
possible reason there may be an anomaly. Your rant was not helpful to the OP
in any way.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

<some parts of this thread were removed>
<to see the entirety of the thread:>
http://groups.google.com/group/micr...lnk=st&q=author:Bubey&rnum=3#b918a2f66a1b1c81

Is the XP installation key code stored somewhere
on the laptop? I tried to help a friend clean up
her PC this weekend and when I went to do an
Update of the XP - OS on it, I got a "couldn't
validate". She got this laptop in lieu of unpaid
rent from a tenant. The website asked for the
key code of which she doesn't have. Thought
maybe it might be on the hard drives somewhere.
It's a Gateway laptop, if that makes any
difference.
Thanks in advance for the help.

On most laptops the key is on the bottom of the laptop. If it's not
there then the key that was used for the installation can be found
with this program.

http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml

If the laptop still has the original factory installation then the
key you get from the registry will be different than the key on the
bottom of the laptop. The factory image uses a preauthorized key
that does not need to be activated.

An aside, but to me that raises issues over the whole Genuine
Windows campaign. If you are required as a consumer to have a valid
licence then surely there is also a legal/moral/ethical onus on the
supplier to install the correct licence?

Piracy? Grey area, if you ask me. Who _are_ the pirates when 90+% of
computers have an incorrect licence and an OEM-modified copy of
Windows?

http://genuinewindows.co.uk

<snipped>

Kerry Brown wrote:

In the context of this thread and helping the OP this is all
irrelevant. They were asking about determining what key was used to
install XP because they were having problems with WGAN. I explained
how to find the key and one possible reason there may be an
anomaly. Your rant was not helpful to the OP in any way.

It has everything to to with the poster's problem. If they had been
given what they had paid for (A genuine copy of Windows, drivers
and key) they would not have had to raise the question here.

Plus, if you make a strongly-worded reply you must expect a
strongly-worded foillow-up. If you don't like flamethrowers being
turned on you, then don't throw that Molotov.

That is very much *not* in line with the OPs question - reasonable question
maybe (but even you know it is an 'aside') - but probably better discussed
in a different thread.

The OP purchased nothing.
The OP's friend purchased nothing.
No one now involved paid anyone for anything.
The OP's friend was given this laptop.
The OP's friend was given this laptop by an individual - not an OEM.

Therefore - you have no idea if your 'question' has anything to do with the
OPs issue - as this laptop has passed through another's hands before the
OP's friend even got it. If the OP's friend had bought the machine
themselves from an actually OEM - your assumption would be 'on-target' -
unfortunately - you are shooting at another target. ;-)

The real advice here is that the OP was given a computer and since they have
no idea what was done to/with the system before it got to them (it is not
new) - they should install the OS and all applications clean - make it their
own. As should be the common sense approach to getting any used computer
system.

So while I admit your question is reasonable in many ways (yes - it is
annoying when an OEM installs some default image whose product key does not
match the sticker on the given machine) - perhaps you should start your own
thread.