How do i change the name that is registered in XP

G

Guest

I just baught a laptop only 6 months old. I want to be the registered owner
of the XP Home edition thats on the laptop, cause the late owner are still
registered in XP
how do i do that ?
 
K

Ken Blake

In
Arcticus said:
I just baught a laptop only 6 months old. I want to be the
registered
owner of the XP Home edition thats on the laptop, cause the
late
owner are still registered in XP
how do i do that ?


If I bought a used computer, the first thing I would do with it
would be to reinstall the operating system cleanly. You have no
idea how the computer has been maintained, what has been
installed incorrectly, what is missing, what viruses and spyware
there may be, etc. I wouldn't want to live with somebody else's
mistakes and problems, possibility of kiddie porn, etc., and I
wouldn't recommend that anyone else do either.
 
B

Bruce Chambers

Arcticus said:
I just baught a laptop only 6 months old. I want to be the registered owner
of the XP Home edition thats on the laptop, cause the late owner are still
registered in XP
how do i do that ?


With second-hand computers, especially if acquired from strangers
but perhaps even if acquired from a family member, your wisest course
of action would probably be to format the hard drives and start fresh.
You don't want to get in trouble because the original owner may have
filled the hard drive with kiddie porn, or have problems because the
original owner downloaded/installed viruses or other malware.

However, to fix the "Registered to" information for WinNT/2K/XP,
you can use Start > Run > Regedit.exe to edit:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\RegisteredOwner

and:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current
Version\RegisteredOrganization

How this will affect the name displayed in previously installed
applications will vary depending upon each individual program; some
read the registered owner information dynamically, while others read
it only during installation.

The user profile folders (C:\Documents and Settings\Username)
_cannot_ be renamed, even if the associated user account has been.
So, your best course of action would be to log on using the built-in
Administrator account, create a new user account, with the username
desired. You can then delete the old user account(s).

HOW TO Create and Configure User Accounts in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;279783

How to Copy User Data to a New User Profile
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;811151


--

Bruce Chambers

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You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
both at once. - RAH
 

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