XP Activation

[Guest]

A friend of mine had some files on their computer corrupted and they couldn't
find their copy of XP that came with their computer, so I used mine to just
do a system repair. I've done repairs before on my own system and it didn't
ask me to activate it, so I thought this would help solve the problem.
Unfortunatly, it is asking for an activation and we still can't find my
friends copy. Is all hope lost? or is there something else I should try
first? Both of us have valid copies of XP, so I didn't expect to have this
many problems by just doing a system repair. Thanks in advance

 

[Alias]

What happens if you try to activate it online?

Alias

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Only way you are going to solve the problem is to
contact the manufacturer of your friend's computer
and order the correct reinstallation or restore CD
and use it with the Product Key that came with
the computer.

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User
Microsoft Newsgroups

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

:

|A friend of mine had some files on their computer corrupted and they couldn't
| find their copy of XP that came with their computer, so I used mine to just
| do a system repair. I've done repairs before on my own system and it didn't
| ask me to activate it, so I thought this would help solve the problem.
| Unfortunatly, it is asking for an activation and we still can't find my
| friends copy. Is all hope lost? or is there something else I should try
| first? Both of us have valid copies of XP, so I didn't expect to have this
| many problems by just doing a system repair. Thanks in advance

 

[Guest]

The person tells me that it is not a valid activation number.

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

That's because you used the incorrect CD to reinstall with.

 

[kurttrail]

The person tells me that it is not a valid activation number.

What person?

--
Peace!
Kurt
Self-anointed Moderator
microscum.pubic.windowsexp.gonorrhea
http://microscum.com/mscommunity
"Trustworthy Computing" is only another example of an Oxymoron!
"Produkt-Aktivierung macht frei"

 

[Guest]

I didn't think that for a simple repair you needed the original disk. I
thought that since there was a valid copy of XP already on the system that
the disk that I used didn't matter. I thought you only needed the original
disk for a fresh install, not a repair of a system with some corrupt files.

 

[Yves Leclerc]

There are two versions of XP. XP Home and XP Pro. Each have three
different sets of CD Keys: OEM, Full Retail and Upgrade Retail. You can
not use OEM with Retail CD Keys and you can not use Retail software with OEM
key.

I know that there is a special file that contain a code where it tells the
"Setup.exe" process what type of installation (OEM or Retail). If you mix
this up, you may get what you got now.

 

[R. McCarty]

That file is Setupp.Ini, located in the i386 folder and uses a Pid string
with a value that identifies the disk. You'll find a few websites that
discuss modifying it for Windows 2000. But with XP changing the
values will cause issues with Key validation and Activation, so it's
best to leave it alone.

 

[Ron Martell]

A friend of mine had some files on their computer corrupted and they couldn't
find their copy of XP that came with their computer, so I used mine to just
do a system repair. I've done repairs before on my own system and it didn't
ask me to activate it, so I thought this would help solve the problem.
Unfortunatly, it is asking for an activation and we still can't find my
friends copy. Is all hope lost? or is there something else I should try
first? Both of us have valid copies of XP, so I didn't expect to have this
many problems by just doing a system repair. Thanks in advance

Were both copies the same version (Home or Pro)?
Were both copies the same type (OEM, Retail, Volume License,
Academic)?

Which product key did you use when doing the Repair Install - yours or
his?

If your CD worked with his product key then both were from the same
version and type of Windows XP. However if your OEM CD was for an SLP
(BIOS Locked) version that does not require activation when installed
on a motherboard from that specific OEM then the situation you have
encountered will result.

The only fix is to redo the repair install using his product key and
his CD.

Good luck

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

In memory of a dear friend Alex Nichol MVP
http://aumha.org/alex.htm