XP Home activation problem

[Guest]

Hi all,

Evidently this is complicated, so I will try to give all the details possible.

My in-laws purchased an Emachines pc about 18 months ago, with a
pre-installed OEM version of Windows XP home. This machine suited them well
until now, but they have a new all-in-one office machine, and a Sony CLIE
handheld organizer that require them to upgrade. Neither machine's software
will install because the Emachines system doesn't meet the minimum
requirements.

So, I am donating a Dell system to them that I have rebuilt many times over
the years. I purchased this Dell at a corporate auction with no OS, and have
upgraded almost every component in the system. The Emachines system has a
utility, much like OEM Dells do, to create a copy of an XP installation CD.
I used this utility to burn a copy of XP Home. I was under the impression
that I could use this CD to "transfer" their copy of XP Home to the new Dell.

I have spent 3 days installing XP, re-installing all of their applications,
transferring their data files, and configuring the Windows settings for them.
The only thing I have left to do is to activate the Windows XP operating
system and then connect to the internet to apply all necessary updates.

The problem is, it won't let me activate the operating system. The
activation wizard tells me that my Product Key is invalid. After talking to
the activation team, they informed me that the OEM version of XP Home is
bound to the Emachines pc, and I cannot transfer it to the new Dell that I am
building for them. This makes sense to me, so I went out and purchased an XP
Home Upgrade version, thinking I could just use the product key from the
retail version to activate my software. The problem is, even after going
through the activation wizard, and clicking the "change product key" button,
I enter my new, legal product key, and it still says the product key is
invalid.

The activation team won't help me any more. They keep telling me I must
call Micro$oft's support line and shell out money to speak with a technical
support representative.

Is there some way I can use my legal product key to activate this software?
I know I can wipe out everything and start all over by installing XP Home
from the retail CD, but I don't want to invest 3 more days getting this done.
There must be some way to avoid this. Can I use the retail CD to perform an
XP repair install and change the product key? Any other ideas?

Thanks,
Richard

 

[Guest]

Sabre,

The problem is you went out and bought an UPGRADE cd not an OEM cd. Your
operating system was installed via a OEM xp cd so you need to have an oem
keycode not an upgrade keycode. You can get an OEM version from Newegg.com
which will have to be sold to you with non peripheral hardware which
newegg.com throws in with the deal for free. I would pack up my upgrade that
I bought and go on to newegg and get an oem version. But even with this you
will have to do a repair install of XP and enter the oem keycode that comes
with this cd. Good luck with that. Anyone correct me if I am wrong but I
think I am right here.

Joe

Kemco IT Professional

 

[Guest]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the reply. Buying another version of XP Home is not an option,
because I cannot return the retail upgrade version. If there is no way to
activate Windows with my retail product key, then I guess my only recourse is
to wipe the drive clean and start over with my retail upgrade, not the OEM cd
I originally used.

I guess I don't understand the difference. If I want to use a new product
key, why would the software care?

 

[Vanguard \(NPI\)]

Hi all,

Evidently this is complicated, so I will try to give all the details
possible.

My in-laws purchased an Emachines pc about 18 months ago, with a
pre-installed OEM version of Windows XP home. This machine suited them
well
until now, but they have a new all-in-one office machine, and a Sony CLIE
handheld organizer that require them to upgrade. Neither machine's
software
will install because the Emachines system doesn't meet the minimum
requirements.

So, I am donating a Dell system to them that I have rebuilt many times
over
the years. I purchased this Dell at a corporate auction with no OS, and
have
upgraded almost every component in the system. The Emachines system has a
utility, much like OEM Dells do, to create a copy of an XP installation
CD.
I used this utility to burn a copy of XP Home. I was under the impression
that I could use this CD to "transfer" their copy of XP Home to the new
Dell.

I have spent 3 days installing XP, re-installing all of their
applications,
transferring their data files, and configuring the Windows settings for
them.
The only thing I have left to do is to activate the Windows XP operating
system and then connect to the internet to apply all necessary updates.

The problem is, it won't let me activate the operating system. The
activation wizard tells me that my Product Key is invalid. After talking
to
the activation team, they informed me that the OEM version of XP Home is
bound to the Emachines pc, and I cannot transfer it to the new Dell that I
am
building for them. This makes sense to me, so I went out and purchased an
XP
Home Upgrade version, thinking I could just use the product key from the
retail version to activate my software. The problem is, even after going
through the activation wizard, and clicking the "change product key"
button,
I enter my new, legal product key, and it still says the product key is
invalid.

The activation team won't help me any more. They keep telling me I must
call Micro$oft's support line and shell out money to speak with a
technical
support representative.

Is there some way I can use my legal product key to activate this
software?
I know I can wipe out everything and start all over by installing XP Home
from the retail CD, but I don't want to invest 3 more days getting this
done.
There must be some way to avoid this. Can I use the retail CD to perform
an
XP repair install and change the product key? Any other ideas?

So, if I get this right, you are trying *upgrade* to a legitimate version by
using an illegal OEM copy as the base or prior OS. You cannot UPGRADE from
illegal software.

In your case, the *upgrade* version of Windows XP Home wants a legal OS that
it can actually upgrade. What you need to do is REPLACE the existing
illegal E-machine specific version of Windows XP Home that you put on the
Dell host.

Do you have a NON-upgrade version of Windows XP Home? If so, and if it is
not also an OEM version (which always does a full install and blow away the
existing registry to do a clean install), a Repair (aka in-place upgrade)
might work. That is, if you have a FULL version (rather than an upgrade
version) then doing what you tried might work because you would be laying
down a legal copy of the OS atop the illegal copy instead of trying to
upgrade that illegal copy. I haven't tried a Repair using a *full*
version to step atop an illegal OEM version (to perform a migration rather
than an upgrade) so I can't promise that it works.

At this point, my guess is that you need to get a full retail version (*not*
an upgrade retail version) to attempt the in-place upgrade or Repair. That
means you'll be stuck with the cost for the retail upgrade version and the
retail full version. So maybe it would be cheaper to just wipe and do the
install of the retail upgrade version that you already have - provided you
actually have some other legal version to upgrade against, like the install
CD for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000. Do your parents (or you) want to absorb the
cost of getting two retail versions, one an upgrade version and another the
full version? Of course, if you really don't have a legitimate prior
version from which you can upgrade, you'll need the full version, anyway.
To me, 3 days (which is probably more like three 4-hour nightly sessions)
doesn't sound like a lot of work to redo.

I bet you won't be moving around those OEM versions anymore.

 

[Richard Urban]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the reply. Buying another version of XP Home is not an option,
because I cannot return the retail upgrade version. If there is no way to
activate Windows with my retail product key, then I guess my only recourse
is
to wipe the drive clean and start over with my retail upgrade, not the OEM
cd
I originally used.

I guess I don't understand the difference. If I want to use a new product
key, why would the software care?

********************************

Because Microsoft "makes" it care.

--
Regards,

Richard Urban
Microsoft MVP Windows Shell/User

Quote from George Ankner:
If you knew as much as you think you know,
You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!

 

[Vanguard \(NPI\)]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the reply. Buying another version of XP Home is not an option,
because I cannot return the retail upgrade version. If there is no way to
activate Windows with my retail product key, then I guess my only recourse
is
to wipe the drive clean and start over with my retail upgrade, not the OEM
cd
I originally used.

I guess I don't understand the difference. If I want to use a new product
key, why would the software care?

Because a software vendor does not want you buying an *upgrade* version at a
reduced cost and then trying to use it to upgrade from an illegal version.
They require that the chain of upgrades requires a legal version along each
link and that the chain started with a legal full version. You don't get to
*start* your chain of legal upgrades by starting from a pirated version.
You start by getting a legal full version and then upgrading thereafter.

 

[XO]

On Thu, 27 Oct 2005 11:59:41 -0500, "Vanguard \(NPI\)"

Jeez, I'd buy one of those $400-$500 computers with OEM version
installed and with an one year on-site repair warranty and be done
with it!
------

 

[Guest]

Buying the "upgrade" version of XP Home is perfectly warranted in my case. I
made a sincere error in trying to transfer the OEM version of XP from the
Emachines to the Dell, which I fully disclosed and have now corrected by
purchasing a legal copy of the software. The reason the upgrade is warranted
is because I have a fully licensed, legal copy of Windows 98 SE that I would
have put on this machine if I had no other OS to choose from.

I realize now that OEM versions are non-transferrable, and never intended to
"pirate" anything. I simply wanted to save myself the hours of reinstalling
all the applications and updates that I have already put in the time for.
And yes, you are all right that it's worth the duplicated time to be 100%
compliant legally, and not be sneered upon by you all as some common thief
and software pirate.

With all of your "opinions" in hand now, I will install the Windows 98 SE
onto the Dell, then legally perform an upgrade to XP Home using the retail
upgrade software that I purchased.

In fact, just for you information... when I tried to call the 888 number to
get help with my activation originally, I was transferred to customer
service. When I explained my situation to them, they are actually the ones
that recommended the upgrade version to me, as I had originally told them I
had a legal copy of Windows 98 SE to use as a last resort.

I was not trying to circumvent anything, despite what you all seem to have
concluded.

 

[Bob I]

If you had DONE WHAT YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING TO DO, this thread would
not exist. Boot from the upgrade CD and insert the 98 CD when asked for
qualifying media.

 

[Tim Slattery]

Hi all,

Evidently this is complicated, so I will try to give all the details possible.

My in-laws purchased an Emachines pc about 18 months ago, with a
pre-installed OEM version of Windows XP home. This machine suited them well
until now, but they have a new all-in-one office machine, and a Sony CLIE
handheld organizer that require them to upgrade. Neither machine's software
will install because the Emachines system doesn't meet the minimum
requirements.

So, I am donating a Dell system to them that I have rebuilt many times over
the years. I purchased this Dell at a corporate auction with no OS, and have
upgraded almost every component in the system. The Emachines system has a
utility, much like OEM Dells do, to create a copy of an XP installation CD.
I used this utility to burn a copy of XP Home. I was under the impression
that I could use this CD to "transfer" their copy of XP Home to the new Dell.

Nope, you're wrong right there.

The copy of XP that came with the eMachines computer is an OEM copy,
it's valid *only* for the original computer it's installed on. In
fact, in this case, it's BIOS-locked to the eMachines computer. You
cannot use it anywhere else, even if that computer is destroyed.

 

[Guest]

Well Bob, the problem with your statement is you are ignoring the fact that I
started this whole process with the incorrect assumption that I could install
their OEM copy of the software onto a new machine and activate it using the
OEM product key. I don't deal with OEM's often, as I build my own pc's. I
did not realize that when you buy an OEM computer you don't actually buy a
license for the operating system. You are only renting a license as long as
that computer is still functional. When the pc bites the dust, so does your
license.

Since I wasn't aware that was impossible until all of my reconfiguration was
done, I had no reason to believe I needed to go out and purchase the retail
copy of the software before I started.

It's a lesson learned, and I'm in full compliance now.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

So, I am donating a Dell system to them that I have rebuilt many times over
the years. I purchased this Dell at a corporate auction with no OS, and have
upgraded almost every component in the system.

And now all you (or the in-laws) need to purchase is an operating
system and applications to install on this computer.

The Emachines system has a
utility, much like OEM Dells do, to create a copy of an XP installation CD.
I used this utility to burn a copy of XP Home. I was under the impression
that I could use this CD to "transfer" their copy of XP Home to the new Dell.

You were under a very wrong impression. The eMachine's OEM WinXP
license is *permanently* bound to that eMachines computer, and may not
be legitimately transferred to any other computer, under any
circumstances. Your in-laws should have known this, as they agreed to
be bound by the terms of the OEM license the first time they booted that
computer.

I have spent 3 days installing XP, re-installing all of their applications,
transferring their data files, and configuring the Windows settings for them.
The only thing I have left to do is to activate the Windows XP operating
system and then connect to the internet to apply all necessary updates.

And all for nothing, until you (or the in-laws) purchase a legitimate
license for the Dell.\

The problem is, it won't let me activate the operating system.

When a copy-protection/anti-theft mechanism works as it was designed,
that's not really a "problem." (Unless software piracy is your goal,
that is.)

The
activation wizard tells me that my Product Key is invalid.

And that's correct. That Product Key is not valid when used on any
computer other than the one with which it was purchased.

After talking to
the activation team, they informed me that the OEM version of XP Home is
bound to the Emachines pc, and I cannot transfer it to the new Dell that I am
building for them. This makes sense to me, so I went out and purchased an XP
Home Upgrade version, thinking I could just use the product key from the
retail version to activate my software. The problem is, even after going
through the activation wizard, and clicking the "change product key" button,
I enter my new, legal product key, and it still says the product key is
invalid.

Again, this is the way it should work. Product Keys are bound to the
specific type and language of CD/license (OEM, Volume, retail, full, or
Upgrade) with which they are purchased. For example, a WinXP Home OEM
Product Key won't work for any retail version of WinXP Home, or for any
version of WinXP Pro, and vice versa. An upgrade's Product Key cannot
be used with a full version CD, and vice versa. An OEM Product Key will
not work to install a retail product. An Italian Product Key will not
work with an English CD. Bottom line: Product Keys and CD/license types
cannot be mixed & matched.

The activation team won't help me any more. They keep telling me I must
call Micro$oft's support line and shell out money to speak with a technical
support representative.

That would be because it's not the role of the Activation Center to
provide technical support.

Is there some way I can use my legal product key to activate this software?
I know I can wipe out everything and start all over by installing XP Home
from the retail CD, but I don't want to invest 3 more days getting this done.
There must be some way to avoid this. Can I use the retail CD to perform an
XP repair install and change the product key?

Yes, you should be able to use the Upgrade CD to perform a repair
installation, entering the correct Product Key. You do need to have the
installation CD for the qualifying OS on hand to insert when the Upgrade
installation asks for proof of ownership.





--

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

 

[Vanguard \(NPI\)]

Buying the "upgrade" version of XP Home is perfectly warranted in my case.
I
made a sincere error in trying to transfer the OEM version of XP from the
Emachines to the Dell, which I fully disclosed and have now corrected by
purchasing a legal copy of the software. The reason the upgrade is
warranted
is because I have a fully licensed, legal copy of Windows 98 SE that I
would
have put on this machine if I had no other OS to choose from.

But you did NOT upgrade from Windows 98, did you? You waving around a
Windows 98 CD, or claiming to have one somewhere, doesn't let the setup.exe
program know that you really do have one. Hey, I really do have a pile of
gold bars on hold at my bank that are worth billions, so let my "buy" that
fleet of BMWs today and I promise to come in tomorrow with the money after
converting my gold bars.

I realize now that OEM versions are non-transferrable, and never intended
to
"pirate" anything. I simply wanted to save myself the hours of
reinstalling
all the applications and updates that I have already put in the time for.
And yes, you are all right that it's worth the duplicated time to be 100%
compliant legally, and not be sneered upon by you all as some common thief
and software pirate.

But it certainly appears that you knew what you did was not kosher. And you
got nailed by it.

With all of your "opinions" in hand now, I will install the Windows 98 SE
onto the Dell, then legally perform an upgrade to XP Home using the retail
upgrade software that I purchased.

You do NOT need to *install* Windows 98 (as the prior version to qualify for
installing the upgrade version of Windows XP). Just have the Windows 98
installation CD available. When asked where is your prior qualifying
version of Windows, swap the CDs to put the Windows 98 one in the CD-ROM
drive, tell the setup program to look there, and go (later you will be told
when to swap the CDs again).

In fact, just for you information... when I tried to call the 888 number
to
get help with my activation originally, I was transferred to customer
service. When I explained my situation to them, they are actually the
ones
that recommended the upgrade version to me, as I had originally told them
I
had a legal copy of Windows 98 SE to use as a last resort.

Yeah, but that is NOT from what you attempted to upgrade, was it?

 

[Vanguard \(NPI\)]

Well Bob, the problem with your statement is you are ignoring the fact
that I
started this whole process with the incorrect assumption that I could
install
their OEM copy of the software onto a new machine and activate it using
the
OEM product key. I don't deal with OEM's often, as I build my own pc's.
I
did not realize that when you buy an OEM computer you don't actually buy a
license for the operating system. You are only renting a license as long
as
that computer is still functional. When the pc bites the dust, so does
your
license.

Read the EULA. I did. I have always built my computers from parts so I get
good quality, know what's inside, and what I'm getting. I always buy OEM
versions of Windows. Yep, you can get *retail* Microsoft-branded OEM
versions of Windows. Does Windows support them? No, because they are
reduced cost versions that don't include the value of providing support.
However, 2 included support phone calls (yep, that's all you get) isn't
worth the cost differential between the Microsoft-branded retail full
version and a Microsoft-branded OEM full version. Since I'm building the
PC, and since I don't buy in volume, I just buy a single copy of a
Microsoft-branded OEM version. All you have to do is buy it with
"qualifying hardware".

Read the EULA and you will see that "qualifying hardware" is a very loose
definition. You can buy an IDE or SATA data cable (that you use for your
existing hard drive). The EULA does *not* have the license usurped by the
greater hardware in which the qualifying hardware is used. All you have to
do is track the license and qualifying hardware together, so when you move
that OEM license then also move the cable that was the qualifying hardware.

Too many folks read way too much into the EULA. Microsoft does require
qualifying hardware but says nothing about any other hardware usurping the
OEM license away from that qualifying hardware. Just read the EULA and see
what it actually says. In your case, the OEM built the entire computer and
it is the computer in total that is the qualifying hardware. When I build
my own PCs, I use a Microsoft-branded retail OEM version so that I can move
that license to a new computer (along with the qualifying hardware). It
might not work if you try to move a vendor-specific or bastardized OEM
version because it may be BIOS-locked: it only installs on that vendor's
brand of computer and probably only on a specific model in their product
line. Since you didn't have a problem installing the E-machine OEM version
on the Dell host, it wasn't BIOS-locked. However, it was NOT a
Microsoft-branded OEM version but an E-machine branded and bastardized
version, and that is why the Microsoft-branded upgrade wouldn't upgrade a
non-Microsoft OEM version.