Windows XP Licensing Question

  • Thread starter Thread starter Bill Evans
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Bill Evans

What's the big difference between the full versions at the top of this list,
and the OEM versions at the bottom:

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=508417

http://tinyurl.com/6mztr

I have a computer running Windows XP with a illegal Product Activation Code.
If I purchase a Windows XP OEM version, will the code with it always work
with my puter?

Or do I need to make sure it has an OEM version of XP installed first,
before ordering an OEM CD and license and it being not what I need?


--
bill evans
(e-mail address removed)
Hartselle, AL

Freeman Dyson: "It's best not to limit our thinking. We can always
air-condition the Earth."
 
Bill said:
What's the big difference between the full versions at the top of this list,
and the OEM versions at the bottom:

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=508417

http://tinyurl.com/6mztr

I have a computer running Windows XP with a illegal Product Activation Code.
If I purchase a Windows XP OEM version, will the code with it always work
with my puter?

Or do I need to make sure it has an OEM version of XP installed first,
before ordering an OEM CD and license and it being not what I need?
Click to expand...

Illegal Product Activation Code? I guess you mean when you try to
activate with the Product ID, activation fails with a message about
invalid Product ID. Product ID is a 25 character ID that comes with a
legal WinXP CD.

If you buy an OEM WinXP CD with the minimum hardware required for the
OEM purchase, it will not be physically tied to any computer. But the
OEM license restricts the installation to one computer. But, if you wait
four months, you could install it on another computer and activate
without any problems. (Of course that installation would be illegal.)

As for using the OEM Product ID to get your WinXP installation
activated, I think it will work. If I remember, when you activate, you
enter the Product ID and your computer is not scanned for Product ID. So
it should work. The Product ID for your current installation is stored
somewhere in the Registry so you would have a mismatch, but I don't
think MS will know and your computer won't know. At the worst, you might
have to do a repair installation.

Differences between OEM and Retail? OEM restricted to only one computer,
even if that computer is destroyed. No MS support, you are supposed to
get support from the OEM supplier.

Good luck, jimbo
 
In
Bill Evans said:
What's the big difference between the full versions at the top
of
this list, and the OEM versions at the bottom:
Click to expand...


The OEM version can only legally be sold with hardware, although
these days, any piece of hardware, even a power cord, qualifies.
Although if you get a complete generic OEM version, it contains
the same software, it has the following disadvantages as compared
with the retail version:

1. Its license ties it permanently to the first computer it's
installed on. It can never legally be moved to another computer,
sold, or given away.

2. It can only do a clean installation, not an upgrade.

3. Microsoft provides no support for OEM versions. You can't call
them with a problem, but instead have to get any needed support
from your OEM; that support may range anywhere between good and
non-existent. Or you can get support elsewhere, such as in these
newsgroups.

I have a computer running Windows XP with a illegal Product
Activation Code. If I purchase a Windows XP OEM version, will
the
code with it always work with my puter?

Or do I need to make sure it has an OEM version of XP installed
first,
before ordering an OEM CD and license and it being not what I
need?
Click to expand...


An OEM product key will work only on an OEM version.
 
The following article describes how to make your system legal, if it was
installed using a "leaked" product key for a Volume Licensing installation.

Note that the article is silent regarding the type (OEM or Retail) of product
key used in this procedure to get legal . Maybe it doesn't matter at this point
since the OS is already installed (just a guess on my part).

How to change the Volume Licensing product key on a Windows XP SP1-based
computer
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=328874

This is a companion article that describes which Product IDs are generated and
considered illegal:

You receive a "The product key used to install Windows is invalid" error message
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/326904
 
There are some very important reasons that an OEM license costs so
much less than a retail license. OEM licenses are very limited:

1) OEM versions must be sold with a piece of hardware (normally
a motherboard or hard drive, if not an entire PC, although Microsoft
has greatly relaxed the hardware criteria for WinXP) and are
_permanently_ bound to the first PC on which they are installed. An
OEM license, once installed, is not legally transferable to another
computer under any circumstances. This is the main reason some people
avoid OEM versions; if the PC dies or is otherwise disposed of (even
stolen), you cannot re-use your OEM license on a new PC. The only
legitimate way to transfer the ownership of an OEM license is to
transfer ownership of the entire PC.

2) Microsoft provides no free support for OEM versions. If you
have any problems that require outside assistance, your only recourse
is to contact the manufacturer/builder of the PC or the vendor of the
OEM license. This would include such issues as lost a Product Key or
replacing damaged installation media. (Microsoft does make allowances
for those instances when you can prove that the OEM has gone out of
business.) This doesn't mean that you can't download patches and
service packs from Microsoft -- just no free telephone or email
support for problems with the OS.

3) An OEM CD cannot be used to perform an upgrade of an earlier
OS, as it was designed to be installed _only_ upon an empty hard
drive. It can still be used to perform a repair installation (a.k.a.
an in-place upgrade) of an existing WinXP installation.

4) If the OEM CD was designed by a specific manufacturer, such as
eMachines, Sony, Dell, Gateway, etc., it will most likely only install
on the same brand of PC, as an additional anti-piracy feature.
Further, such CDs are severely customized to contain only the minimum
of device drivers, and a lot of extra nonsense, that the manufacturer
feels necessary for the specific model of PC for which the CD was
designed. (To be honest, such CDs should _not_ be available on the
open market; but, if you're shopping someplace on-line like eBay, swap
meets, or computer fairs, there's often no telling what you're buying
until it's too late.) The "generic" OEM CDs, such as are manufactured
by Microsoft and sold to small systems builders, don't have this
particular problem, though, and are pretty much the same as their
retail counterparts, apart from the licensing, support, and upgrading
restrictions.


--

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
 
Bill said:
What's the big difference between the full versions at the top of
this list, and the OEM versions at the bottom:

http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=508417

http://tinyurl.com/6mztr

I have a computer running Windows XP with a illegal Product
Activation Code. If I purchase a Windows XP OEM version, will the
code with it always work with my puter?

Or do I need to make sure it has an OEM version of XP installed first,
before ordering an OEM CD and license and it being not what I need?
Click to expand...

Click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into the address box
if using the web based newsgroup.
Change Product key.
http://michaelstevenstech.com/xpfaq.html#need2
--
Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
 
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