Re-installing WinXP????

[Xantipis]

Looking for some personal experience with having to re-install
winXP using the "original" disk and the "original "SP2 disk which I have.
My machine is 4 years old so I have an older build of WinXP.
Since the original install I have allowed "Windows up-date" to keep me
current.
Questions.
1. Will I have to re-register?
2. Can it be done on line or will I have to call?
3. Will "Windows up-date" Update everything at once?
Thanks
Xan

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

1. You mean Activate, not register.
Yes, you will need to activate again.
2. Internet activation will probably work but if not, choose the
option to Activate by phone.
Call Microsoft at the displayed number, usually done in less than 10
minutes.
3. Yes, if that is what you select.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Looking for some personal experience with having to re-install
winXP using the "original" disk and the "original "SP2 disk which I have.
My machine is 4 years old so I have an older build of WinXP.
Since the original install I have allowed "Windows up-date" to keep me
current.
Questions.
1. Will I have to re-register?

No, you *never* have to register. But you will have to reactivate.

2. Can it be done on line or will I have to call?

Almost certainly, it should work online. But worst case, if it
doesn't, the phone call is quick and easy.

 

[Frank Saunders MS-MVP IE,OE/WM]

No, you *never* have to register. But you will have to reactivate.



Almost certainly, it should work online. But worst case, if it
doesn't, the phone call is quick and easy.



Yes.

Actually, I had to do this to a machine recently and as near as I can recall
it did a few updates at a time, installed them and then downloaded more.

 

[Xantipis]

news[email protected]...

 

[Pete Puma]

On Sat, 17 Nov 2007 15:50:15 -0600, Xantipis posted...

Looking for some personal experience with having to re-install winXP
using the "original" disk and the "original "SP2 disk which I have. My
machine is 4 years old so I have an older build of WinXP. Since the
original install I have allowed "Windows up-date" to keep me current.
Questions.
1. Will I have to re-register?
2. Can it be done on line or will I have to call? 3. Will "Windows
up-date" Update everything at once? Thanks
Xan

If you have to do this often, check out slipstreaming:

http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxp_sp2_slipstream.asp

it's very cool and works perfectly.

 

[M.I.5¾]

Looking for some personal experience with having to re-install
winXP using the "original" disk and the "original "SP2 disk which I have.
My machine is 4 years old so I have an older build of WinXP.
Since the original install I have allowed "Windows up-date" to keep me
current.
Questions.
1. Will I have to re-register?

Yes, unless you first rescue the two files 'wpa.dbl' and 'wpa.bak' from the
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 folder from the old installation.

When your rebuild offers to activate, decline the invitation. Boot into
safe mode and then into the adminstrator account. Now copy your two saved
files into the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 directory, and reboot. Provided your
hardware has not changed significantly from the first time you activated
windows, you should now be activated.

2. Can it be done on line or will I have to call?

If it is more than 120 days from the last time, it should work on line.

3. Will "Windows up-date" Update everything at once?

You betcha!

 

[M.I.5¾]

Almost certainly, it should work online. But worst case, if it
doesn't, the phone call is quick and easy.

This may be a matter of perception, but I would describe the phone proces as
neither quick nor particularly easy.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

This may be a matter of perception, but I would describe the phone proces as
neither quick nor particularly easy.

It's certainly a matter of perception, but the phone call is normally
under five minutes, and presents no difficulties for most people.

Regardless of perceptions, my point, when I call it "quick and easy,"
is that it is not something that anyone should fear doing. Activating
over the internet *is* easier, but phone activation is far from any
kind of real problem.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Yes, unless you first rescue the two files 'wpa.dbl' and 'wpa.bak' from the
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 folder from the old installation.

When your rebuild offers to activate, decline the invitation. Boot into
safe mode and then into the adminstrator account. Now copy your two saved
files into the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 directory, and reboot. Provided your
hardware has not changed significantly from the first time you activated
windows, you should now be activated.

Have you ever tried this? Despite the number of times it gets
repeated, it doesn't work.

 

[WaIIy]

It's certainly a matter of perception, but the phone call is normally
under five minutes, and presents no difficulties for most people.

Regardless of perceptions, my point, when I call it "quick and easy,"
is that it is not something that anyone should fear doing. Activating
over the internet *is* easier, but phone activation is far from any
kind of real problem.

I called for activation a few times and the experience was quick,
painless and the person on the other end knew what they were talking
about.

I recently e-mailed Microsoft Tech Support regarding an update issue.
I've been using Windows since 1994 and have never e-mailed MS.

I am very impressed by the complete response from MS and the tech even
followed up to see if all was okay when I didn't respond back for a few
days.

Oh, and he fixed my problem with the first e-mail.

 

[M.I.5¾]

Have you ever tried this? Despite the number of times it gets
repeated, it doesn't work.

Other forums on the 'net would suggest otherwise and no one seems to have
suggested that it doesn't work (and to my knowledge, it's the first time
it's been mentioned on this and related newsgroups). Maybe you are doing
something wrong. I rebuilt my windows XP system around six months ago, and
I must have done it this way because I certainly didn't activate it any
other way, but my memory of the event is fairly hazy now because of all the
other problems that I had - and there were plenty.

Even Microsoft's own information on how the activation profile is built
gives no reason to suggest that the activation won't continue once the two
files are restored (the only likely change being the volume serial number on
the active partition - not enough to require reactivation). However, it
should be pointed out that enough hardware may have changed since the
original reactivation (new bigger hard disk, new DVD/CD drive etc.) that the
VSN is the last straw and trips reactivation anyway.

A contributor at:

http://www.dclug.org.uk/archive/2001/07/msg00382.html

even claims that by fooling other windows XP installations into believing
that they are installed on dockable notebooks (which deactivates much of the
no hardware change rules - but according to Microsoft, not in the way he
claims), it becomes possible to use one activation on multiple PCs. I
should add that I cannot vouch that this actually works.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Other forums on the 'net would suggest otherwise and no one seems to have
suggested that it doesn't work (and to my knowledge, it's the first time
it's been mentioned on this and related newsgroups). Maybe you are doing
something wrong. I rebuilt my windows XP system around six months ago, and
I must have done it this way because I certainly didn't activate it any
other way, but my memory of the event is fairly hazy now because of all the
other problems that I had - and there were plenty.

Read this article by the late MVP, Alex Nichol: "Windows Product
Activation (WPA) on Windows XP" at http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php
and note what it says in Hint No. 3.

 

[M.I.5¾]

Read this article by the late MVP, Alex Nichol: "Windows Product
Activation (WPA) on Windows XP" at http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php
and note what it says in Hint No. 3.

I have read this. He sems to be the only person making such a claim as far
as I can see. As I pointed out: Microsoft's claims on the contents of the
Activation files does not seem to include anything that isn't based on
physical hardware so it's difficult to see how his claim is substantiated.
Other forums still maintain it works. Have you actually proved that it
either does or doesn't work?

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I have read this. He sems to be the only person making such a claim as far
as I can see. As I pointed out: Microsoft's claims on the contents of the
Activation files does not seem to include anything that isn't based on
physical hardware so it's difficult to see how his claim is substantiated.
Other forums still maintain it works. Have you actually proved that it
either does or doesn't work?

No, I haven't tried it personally. But I know others who have, and I
trust them.

 

[Daave]

Read this article by the late MVP, Alex Nichol: "Windows Product
Activation (WPA) on Windows XP" at http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php
and note what it says in Hint No. 3.

<quote>
HINT No. 3: It is valuable to back up the two files WPA.DBL and WPA.BAK
from the Windows\System32 folder.Then, should they get damaged, or
should you do a 'Repair' reinstallation of Win XP, these files can be
copied back to restore the prior activation status. However, this only
works in those limited circumstances. The contents of these two files is
matched to the specific Windows setup; therefore, contrary to what many
journalists and members of the user community have written in recent
months, restoring these files will not restore your activation status
following a reformat and clean install.
</quote>

Alex didn't go into detail concerning "restoring these files." Did he
mean to simply copy them back to the System32 folder? If so, then it
shouldn't work. However, I believe the extensions need to be changed to
"nonactivated."

I've never done this. I am curious to know if it works or not. Perhaps
it only works for pre SP1 versions.