The biggest problem arises from people buying a fully assembled
computer with a branded OEM OS pre-installed from a "low-end"
supplier. It does one very little good to have a valid OEM license,
if the OEM's recovery method locks the CDs to a specific BIOS or
hardware configuration, which most of the lower-end manufacturers do.
If the computer comes with a true installation CD, rather than a
Recovery disks containing a drive image, the user has a much better
chance of successfully upgrading the computer.
Anyway, according to the EULA, an OEM license may not be transferred
from one distinct PC to another PC. However, this most emphatically
does not prohibit one from repairing or upgrading the PC on which an
OEM license is installed.
Now, some people believe that the motherboard is the key component
that defines the "original computer," but the OEM EULA does not make
any such distinction. Others have said that one could successfully
argue that it's the PC's case that is the deciding component, as that
is
where one is instructed to affix the OEM CoA label w/Product Key.
Again, the EULA does not specifically define any single component as
the computer.
Microsoft has, to date, been very careful _not_ publicly to define
when an incrementally upgraded computer ceases to be the original
computer. The closest I've ever seen a Microsoft employee come to
this definition (in a public forum) is to tell the person making the
inquiry to consult the PC's manufacturer. As the OEM license's
support is
solely the responsibility of said manufacturer, they should determine
what sort of hardware changes to allow before the warranty and support
agreements are voided. To paraphrase: An incrementally upgraded
computer ceases to be the original computer, as pertains to the OEM
EULA, only when the *OEM* says it's a different computer. If you've
built the system yourself, and used a generic OEM CD, then _you_ are
the "OEM," and _you_ get to decide when you'll no longer support your
product."
