Making my system legit again

[Dennis]

I know I was stupid but what's done is done. My system came with XP Home and I
needed XP Pro. At that time the XP Pro Upgrade box did not say it would upgrade
XP Home to XP Pro so I bought XP Pro off Ebay. Now when I try to install SP 2 I
am told I can not because my Windows is not valid. I have the restore CD's that
came with my system but if I do that I lose all my applications and data so that
isn't really an option. Do I have any options to get this fixed short of
purchasing XP Pro again?

Thanks for your help.

Dennis

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I know I was stupid but what's done is done. My system came with XP Home and I
needed XP Pro. At that time the XP Pro Upgrade box did not say it would upgrade
XP Home to XP Pro so I bought XP Pro off Ebay. Now when I try to install SP 2 I
am told I can not because my Windows is not valid. I have the restore CD's that
came with my system but if I do that I lose all my applications and data so that
isn't really an option. Do I have any options to get this fixed short of
purchasing XP Pro again?

Other than reverting to the original WinXP Home, no, you don't.

If you are trying to install a WinXP Service Pack and getting the
following:

The Product Key Used to Install Windows Is Invalid
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q326904

You need to purchase and use a _legitimate_ full copy of WinXP Pro
to perform a repair (a.k.a. in-place upgrade) installation, using the
new CD and Product Key.

How to Perform an In-Place Upgrade of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;Q315341

Alternatively, if you have a legitimate license and real
installation CD for a qualifying OS that is not installed on another
computer, you could purchase the desired version of WinXP Upgrade and
perform a clean installation.



--

Bruce Chambers

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