Lost XP OEM Discs.

[Guest]

History

Originally bought XP oem discs and installed on pc no. 1 which blew up (well
not that dramatic really!!!)
Had new system (No.2) built using the above discs and transferred COA
sticker to new machine.
Moved house and lost/mislaid discs.
No.2 developed fault, and sent for repairs.
Repair guy couldn't fix fault, so did a full reinstall.
Instead of using my COA he installed a VL version of XP which wont pass
authentication, although works ok.

I want to obtain all MS updates, but obviously there is a problem passing
authentication.

Don't know the best way to proceed. The OEM was bought off ebay with a piece
of hardware? So can't really go back to supplier.

What I need to know is whether the COA on the side of my machine is now
useless.?

Could I use the COA somehow to reinstall the OEM software without the discs.?

If this is not feasable, I want to avoid wiping the drive and reinstalling XP.

Could I keep the VL version on the drive and install a retail copy on the
drive, later removing the VL version. Would this result in all info being
wiped?.Or could this be avoided by partitioning the drive. If this is the way
to go could I partition the drive install the new copy: remove the Vl copy
and restore the drive to its pre partitioned state, leaving the retail
version in charge so to speak?

I've heard that you can copy your hard drive or subscribe to a service that
does this. Could I do this and then delete VL XP, later installing Retail XP,
and reclaiming all the files from the save or the subscription service?

Now for the good bit.!!

Dont know how to save all the info on my PC to CD.
Nor how to partition the disc, or reverse this if this is possible.

Any advise would be well appreciated .

Thanks

Ian

 

[Shenan Stanley]

History

Originally bought XP oem discs and installed on pc no. 1 which blew
up (well not that dramatic really!!!)

Okay - that sucks.

Had new system (No.2) built using the above discs and transferred
COA sticker to new machine.

Well - by the strict guidlines of the OEM license agreement - you are not
supposed to have done this. OEMs are non-transferrable. First machine they
are installed on is where the license stays - even if the machine melts to
slag leaving only a pristine COA and CD.

Moved house and lost/mislaid discs.
Sucks.

No.2 developed fault, and sent for repairs.
Repair guy couldn't fix fault, so did a full reinstall.
Happens.

Instead of using my COA he installed a VL version of XP which wont
pass authentication, although works ok.

Get a new repair guy.

I want to obtain all MS updates, but obviously there is a problem
passing authentication.
Naturally.

Don't know the best way to proceed. The OEM was bought off ebay
with a piece of hardware? So can't really go back to supplier.

Yes - this is a disadvantage of not only OEM, but buying such things off
eBay.

What I need to know is whether the COA on the side of my machine is
now useless.?

By the strict guidelines of the original license agreement - it was useless
long before machine #2 died. By technical terms - no. If you can get your
hands on a generic OEM CD and use it with your generic OEM COA (CD Key) -
you can perform a fresh install. You may even be able to use (with or
without the OEM CD - not sure - let me know) this procedure:

The Genuine Advantage Product Key Update Tool is only valid for
users attempting to change their current non-genuine Product Key
to a genuine COA sticker or genuine Product Key - all without a reinstall!
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=50346&clcid=0x409

http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/purchase/UpdateInstructions.aspx

Could I use the COA somehow to reinstall the OEM software without
the discs.?

Without an OEM CD, you can't really "reinstall", now can you. That's like
having the key but no car to put it in. You cannot really start the car
you don't have. heh See the above method for changing your invalid product
key to a valid one - may save your butt without the CD. However - you
should look to a friend to get a new generic OEM CD so you have on lying
around. And make a backup of it and have that lying around too.

If this is not feasable, I want to avoid wiping the drive and
reinstalling XP.

See above again.

Could I keep the VL version on the drive and install a retail copy
on the drive, later removing the VL version. Would this result in
all info being wiped?.Or could this be avoided by partitioning the
drive. If this is the way to go could I partition the drive install
the new copy: remove the Vl copy and restore the drive to its pre
partitioned state, leaving the retail version in charge so to speak?

Yes - a repair installation is possible. That is another alternative.

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315341

I've heard that you can copy your hard drive or subscribe to a
service that does this. Could I do this and then delete VL XP,
later installing Retail XP, and reclaiming all the files from the
save or the subscription service?

Uhm.. What? I am sure there are web-backup services out there - but do you
really want to trust people you don't know with your data?

Now for the good bit.!!

Dont know how to save all the info on my PC to CD.
Nor how to partition the disc, or reverse this if this is possible.

You shouldn't have to with any of the advice above.

Burning a CD is possible if you have a CD burner (hardware). Although
Windows XP will just let you drag/drop files to the CD drive (given a
correct format of CD is in it) and burn to it.. It will not do the same for
DVD. And most third party applications have better options for backing up
and such than is built into Windows (for backing up to CD/DVD. Consider
Ahead Nero or Roxio.

You could also consider an imaging application (if you have an external hard
disk drive).. make a snapshot of your entire system to it. (Symantec/Norton
Ghost, Acronis TrueImage, BootItNG, etc..)

 

[The Computer Lab of Zephyrhills]

That's the whole joke about COA's. If you stretch the logic a bit,
Microsoft's definition of a computer is the pc case itself. Until they use
a method of flashing the COA into the pc parts, that is...