Valid CD Key, use another recovery CD?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Guest
  • Start date Start date
G

Guest

I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of reasons it needs a
rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but his previous IT guy took
the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on the bottom of the
computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version, then upgrade to Pro he’d
save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full version.

So….is there any reason I can’t take a spare XP Home Dell Recovery CD, use
his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP Pro? Can I use the Dell
Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his wpa.dbl and copy it back
into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
 
Probably you can use any Dell Windows CD of the same
version, the issue might be whether one was SP1 or SP2 or
just the RTM version.
Dell ships a recovery CD and a regular Windows install CD
that will allow all the same functions as a retail MS CD.

Dell can replace the CD, however the customer should contact
the former IT guy and demand his property back. Theft of a
$100 CD is a major crime, the IT guy should return or
replace the CD at his expense.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


|I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of
reasons it needs a
| rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but his
previous IT guy took
| the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on the
bottom of the
| computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version, then
upgrade to Pro he'd
| save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full version.
|
| So..is there any reason I can't take a spare XP Home Dell
Recovery CD, use
| his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP Pro?
Can I use the Dell
| Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his wpa.dbl
and copy it back
| into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
 
mtrox said:
I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of reasons it needs a
rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but his previous IT guy took
the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on the bottom of the
computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version, then upgrade to Pro he’d
save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full version.
Click to expand...

If the system is working you should be able to install the upgrade right????
The upgrade comes with its own serial # I suspect. You should always be
able to boot into safe mode and run the install. You mention saving 100 on
the upgrade version. You can get XP Home OEM for under $150 though you may
have to buy a mouse or some cheap hardware to qualify. I dont think you can
get a full upgrade for $50 but I might be mistaken.

If he was the original owner I suspect Dell will furnish a recovery CD for a
small charge. If bought on ebay, look and see if any are available. Might
want to do that anyway as it might be cheaper than buying a replacement from
Dell. I have a couple of Dell XP CD's. I have noticed that the "blue cd"
(sp1a) matches the systems with blue stickers. The "green cd" matches the
green stickers. I cant guarantee this always works but it might if you can
borrow somebody dell xp cd you might match it up against the sticker on the
notebook.

Be sure to make an image backup in case things go really wrong. I would use
acronis true image, boot the acronis cd and back up to another system on a
local network setting the file size to 4.6gb to fit on a dvd (assuming
notebook has dvd). You might verify that he has original microsoft office
(if applicable) as SP2 will want to see the original disks at some point and
word, excel, etc will no longer run.
So….is there any reason I can’t take a spare XP Home Dell Recovery CD, use
his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP Pro? Can I use the Dell
Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his wpa.dbl and copy it back
into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
Click to expand...

HTH...good luck
 
Jim,

My guy, like a lot of my clients, is a small entraupenurial guy who makes
about $250/hour but doesn't understand this stuff....and doesn't want to.
He's asked for the CD back, he's given up, and his time is worth way more
than a $100 disk.

I know what you're saying about SP1. The wpa.dbl structure changed a bit at
that point.
 
Well, the system is working, but there are 60 background processes, and a lot
of crud on this computer. I’ve learned that you can spend 6 to 12 hours on
these things trying to figure out all the spyware/general crud on them, or
just spend about 4 hours rebuilding.

Part of the rebuild is he bought Office 2003….a legal copy versus whatever
this other guy put on there. I usually back up with the F.A.S.T…..though got
burnt a few weeks ago when I hit the 63,000 file limit. If I have to I’ll
just dump it all onto my notebook, then transfer it back.
 
If he is earning $250 an hour, don't bother with the
upgrade, just buy a retail XP Pro full install, that can be
moved from machine to machine as the guy changes up.

Dell's proprietary drivers should be available by download.

There is a service tag number (sticker) on all Dell
computers, you can create an account as a technician and
have access to all the Dell specs and data on that computer.
A very handy service.


--
The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.


| Jim,
|
| My guy, like a lot of my clients, is a small
entraupenurial guy who makes
| about $250/hour but doesn't understand this stuff....and
doesn't want to.
| He's asked for the CD back, he's given up, and his time is
worth way more
| than a $100 disk.
|
| I know what you're saying about SP1. The wpa.dbl
structure changed a bit at
| that point.
|
| "Jim Macklin" wrote:
|
| > Probably you can use any Dell Windows CD of the same
| > version, the issue might be whether one was SP1 or SP2
or
| > just the RTM version.
| > Dell ships a recovery CD and a regular Windows install
CD
| > that will allow all the same functions as a retai MS CD.
| >
| > Dell can replace the CD, however the customer should
contact
| > the former IT guy and demand his property back. Theft
of a
| > $100 CD is a major crime, the IT guy should return or
| > replace the CD at his expense.
| >
| >
| > --
| > The people think the Constitution protects their rights;
| > But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.
| >
| >
message
| >
| > |I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of
| > reasons it needs a
| > | rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but
his
| > previous IT guy took
| > | the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on
the
| > bottom of the
| > | computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version,
then
| > upgrade to Pro he'd
| > | save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full
version.
| > |
| > | So..is there any reason I can't take a spare XP Home
Dell
| > Recovery CD, use
| > | his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP
Pro?
| > Can I use the Dell
| > | Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his
wpa.dbl
| > and copy it back
| > | into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
| >
| >
| >
 
mtrox wrote on 23-Jan-2005 7:35 AM:
I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of reasons it needs a
rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but his previous IT guy took
the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on the bottom of the
computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version, then upgrade to Pro he’d
save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full version.

So….is there any reason I can’t take a spare XP Home Dell Recovery CD, use
his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP Pro? Can I use the Dell
Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his wpa.dbl and copy it back
into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
Click to expand...

I know that the Optiplex desktops and Latitude laptops can be
reinstalled from any Dell XP CD and the appropriate ResourceCD. You
can't tell by looking at the ResourceCD whether it handles the model in
question, but if you "install" it, the CD will tell you what models it
handles. You can also look up the system online and find out what
ResourceCD is required. I think the Dimension and Inspiron model lines
work along similar lines with XP and Resource CDs that cover a number of
similar models. Resource CDs have a type number that tells whether it
covers your model, if you look the model online or call Dell support.

Therefore, if you have a Dell XP CD and the right ResourceCD, you can
fix things with your own disks. For this reason, it's a good idea to
keep a library of Dell CDs. You can sometimes find them on eBay.

As Jim Macklin said, it is long past time just to buy a new XP Pro
retail CD and save your time and his. But you need the ResourceCD or you
need to build your own to install the video, audio, mobo chipset, and
possibly the ethernet adapter.
 
mtrox said:
I have a client with a Dell notebook. For a variety of reasons it needs a
rebuild upgrading to XP Pro. God only knows why but his previous IT guy
took
the XP Home Dell Recovery CD though his CD key is on the bottom of the
computer. If I could rebuild with the Home version, then upgrade to Pro
he'd
save $100 on the Upgrade version versus the full version.

So..is there any reason I can't take a spare XP Home Dell Recovery CD, use
his CD code and have it activate, then upgrade to SP Pro? Can I use the
Dell
Recovery CD without the CD key and just save his wpa.dbl and copy it back
into windows\system32 before I upgrade?
Click to expand...

Dell is pretty good about replacement parts, you might want to check with
them to see if you can buy a replacement cd, then everyone's legit except
the IT guy who has a stolen coaster.

As far as the upgrade, if you're planning on wiping the system, just install
the Pro upgrade and use any CD you have around to verify when it asks. You
don't need to have Home installed first. Then when you have the Dell cd, you
can put it somewhere safe with the upgrade, and everything's fine again.
 
My guy, like a lot of my clients, is a small entraupenurial guy who makes
about $250/hour but doesn't understand this stuff....and doesn't want to.
He's asked for the CD back, he's given up, and his time is worth way more
than a $100 disk.
Click to expand...

In that case, why are you setting yourself up for a lot of hassle (and
potentially hours of work with possibly questionable outcome) just to avoid
an (justified) expense of something he's earned back in about 25 minutes?

george
 
Back
Top