Reactivation?

[Guest]

I plan to upgrade my computer from an amd athlon 2800+ to the amd X2. I'm
gonna be changing the motherboard, the ram and the video card too. I know
that this is probably gonna require reactivation but do I have to buy windows
xp again or can I ask Microsoft for another activation key? what are my
options?

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

If you have a retail version of WinXP, then the hardware changes will not
deter activation. You simply activate during the reinstall the same as you
did originally. If it has been less than 120 days since the original
activation, you may need to phone it in. If you purchased a generic OEM
version, then you may need to purchase a new copy, but I would simply try it
first (it's not like you don't have 30 days). If your system was
preinstalled, the OEM version you got is likely locked to the original
hardware and you will almost certainly need a new copy.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

 

[Vanguard]

I plan to upgrade my computer from an amd athlon 2800+ to the amd X2. I'm
gonna be changing the motherboard, the ram and the video card too. I know
that this is probably gonna require reactivation but do I have to buy
windows
xp again or can I ask Microsoft for another activation key? what are my
options?

First, the old instance of Windows will not run properly because you are
changing the brains of the system. All the motherboard, controller, and
many other drivers and hardware support must change. That means you will
need to perform an in-place upgrade (Repair) to get the old install of
Windows still sitting on the hard drive to work with the new brains; see
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315341/en-us.

Second, yes, you will need to reactivate. No, you do not need a new license
of Windows - but that depends on WHICH version of Windows that you have. If
it is an OEM version, it may not work with the new motherboard and its new
BIOS. Some OEM versions are BIOS-locked which means they will only work
with one brand and model of motherboard. There are Microsoft-branded retail
OEM versions that install on any supported hardware platform regardless of
brand and model. The bastardized vendor-specific OEM versions may not work
with your new motherboard, so you will need to ask whomever provided you
with the vendor-specific OEM version of Windows.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Mike;
As long as Windows XP is retail, you will not have a problem.
You will probably need to perform a Repair Installation to properly detect
the new hardware:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/repaxp.htm

If Windows XP is the generic OEM, the procedure should be the same as retail
since you are upgrading the same computer.

Activation will be required.
Try internet activation first.
Otherwise call the displayed number to Microsoft.
Normally activated in about 5 minutes.

If you have OEM Windows XP that came with your computer, contact the
computer manufacturer.
You may need to buy Windows XP if the motherboard is not from the computer
manufacturer.

 

[Guest]

Hi,

If you don't want to reinstall Windows, you should do this with sysprep.

1- Get the good version of sysprep (sp1, sp2) and copy it in "C:\Sysprep"
2- Run setupmgr.exe ...
3- Open Sysprep.inf, add [SysprepMassStorage] (+enter) at the end and save
the file
4- From the command prompt type "C:\sysprep\sysprep -bmsd
5- Run sysprep.exe and choose mini installation
6- DONT RESTART THE COMPUTER... install your new material... and start your
computer

 

[Michael Stevens]

In

I plan to upgrade my computer from an amd athlon 2800+ to the amd X2.
I'm gonna be changing the motherboard, the ram and the video card
too. I know that this is probably gonna require reactivation but do I
have to buy windows xp again or can I ask Microsoft for another
activation key? what are my options?

Move XP to new hardware.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/moving_xp.html
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

 

[Alpha]

In

Move XP to new hardware.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/moving_xp.html
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

Revise the page again, and learn some writing skills!

"Besides the possibility of being in non-compliance with the OEM EULA, and
the practice of OEM's electing to provide a set of restore disks or hidden
restore folders on the hard drive to satisfy Microsoft's restore
requirement."

 

[Michael Stevens]

In

Revise the page again, and learn some writing skills!

"Besides the possibility of being in non-compliance with the OEM
EULA, and the practice of OEM's electing to provide a set of restore
disks or hidden restore folders on the hard drive to satisfy
Microsoft's restore requirement."

Alpha,
Thanks for the feed back, I can't believe I missed the obvious comma and
'and' typo. I must have looked at it hundreds of times. The sentence always
bothered me anyway.
I think it reads better now, but feel free to email me if you have
suggestions.
P.S. Suggestion, rudeness is not often the best tool.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

 

[Alpha]

In

Alpha,
Thanks for the feed back, I can't believe I missed the obvious comma and
'and' typo. I must have looked at it hundreds of times. The sentence
always bothered me anyway.
I think it reads better now, but feel free to email me if you have
suggestions.
P.S. Suggestion, rudeness is not often the best tool.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

Michael,

There is no subject-verb syntax even now. You could add "is a problem" at
the end as a simple fix, but I admit that does not help the awkward reading.

 

[Michael Stevens]

In

Michael,

There is no subject-verb syntax even now. You could add "is a
problem" at the end as a simple fix, but I admit that does not help
the awkward reading.

Thanks again,
Completely changed the format.
This might be easier by email. I have never professed to be a great writer,
but a least I try.
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I plan to upgrade my computer from an amd athlon 2800+ to the amd X2.
I'm gonna be changing the motherboard, the ram and the video card
too. I know that this is probably gonna require reactivation

It will require more than reactivation. You will have to do at least a
repair installation (see "How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install" at
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm), but in some
instances that's not enough; a clean reinstallation will be necessary.

but do I
have to buy windows xp again or can I ask Microsoft for another
activation key? what are my options?

First, is yours a retail version of Windows or an OEM one? If it's a retail
version, there will be no problem. You'll have to reactivate, but assuming
that it's been over 120 days since the last activation, that should work
over the internet just as it did before, perfectly legitimately. You could
even have moved your retail version to a complete new machine.

But if it's an OEM version, thee situation gets stickier. First, if it's an
OEM version that came with the computer, it may be BIOS-locked to the
computer and not work at all with the new motherboard.

Second, even if it's a generic OEM version (not sold branded by a particular
OEM), its license ties it to the first computer it's installed on. However
there's a gray area in that the EULA doesn't define what's meant by
"computer." How much can you change in the box without its becoming a
different computer? There's no clear answer to that question that everyone
agrees on, but be aware that if you have to call Microsoft for activation,
some people have reported that Microsoft has denied them such activation on
the basis that changing the motherboard makes it a different computer.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I plan to upgrade my computer from an amd athlon 2800+ to the amd X2. I'm
gonna be changing the motherboard, the ram and the video card too.

Normally, and assuming a retail license (many factory-installed OEM
installations are BIOS-locked to a specific chipset and therefore not
transferable to a new motherboard - check yours before starting), unless
the new motherboard is virtually identical (same chipset, same IDE
controllers, same BIOS version, etc.) to the one on which the WinXP
installation was originally performed, you'll need to perform a repair
(a.k.a. in-place upgrade) installation, at the very least:

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

The "why" is quite simple, really, and has nothing to do with
licensing issues, per se; it's a purely technical matter, at this point.
You've pulled the proverbial hardware rug out from under the OS. (If
you don't like -- or get -- the rug analogy, think of it as picking up a
Cape Cod style home and then setting it down onto a Ranch style
foundation. It just isn't going to fit.) WinXP, like Win2K before it,
is not nearly as "promiscuous" as Win9x when it comes to accepting any
old hardware configuration you throw at it. On installation it
"tailors" itself to the specific hardware found. This is one of the
reasons that the entire WinNT/2K/XP OS family is so much more stable
than the Win9x group.

As always when undertaking such a significant change, back up any
important data before starting.

This will also probably require re-activation, unless you have a
Volume Licensed version of WinXP Pro installed. If it's been more than
120 days since you last activated that specific Product Key, you'll most
likely be able to activate via the Internet without problem. If it's
been less, you might have to make a 5 minute phone call.

I know
that this is probably gonna require reactivation but do I have to buy windows
xp again

Only if you have a BIOS-locked OEM license that's bound to the original
motherboard.

or can I ask Microsoft for another activation key? what are my
options?

There's no limit to the number of times you can reinstall and
activate the same WinXP license on the same PC. Nor is there ever a
charge. Nor does a Product Key (so long as it's not an evaluation
license) ever expire. If it's been more than 120 days since you last
activated that specific Product Key, you'll most likely be able to
activate via the Internet without problem. If it's been less, you might
have to make a 5 minute phone call.

Here are the facts pertaining to activation:

Piracy Basics - Microsoft Product Activation
http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/basics/activation/

Windows Product Activation (WPA)
http://www.aumha.org/a/wpa.htm



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



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

 

[Guest]

I have the Windows xp home upgrade version. is the upgrade version still
considered a retail version?

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Mike;
Almost always yes.
The exception is some OEMs gave OEM upgrades to their customers who bought a
computer shortly before the release of Windows XP.
If you bought the upgrade at a store, it is retail.