XP KEY Will not work

[Guest]

I have a valid XP Home sticker that came on the IBM laptop I am trying to
reload, I have tried this key with Home OEM, Home Retail and Home VLM. It
doesn't work with any of them. Am I missing a version?

Thanks

 

[Rock]

I have a valid XP Home sticker that came on the IBM laptop I am trying to
reload, I have tried this key with Home OEM, Home Retail and Home VLM. It
doesn't work with any of them. Am I missing a version?

Usually that product key will work with a generic OEM version of the same
kind, ie OEM Home. Surprising it's not working for you. It could be that
it only works with the recovery CD supplied by the OEM.

 

[Guest]

I tried it with a Dell recovery cd and a Key changer, That almost worked but
it wouldn't validate. Driving me nuts, Thanks for the reply.

T

 

[Mistoffolees]

I tried it with a Dell recovery cd and a Key changer, That almost worked but
it wouldn't validate. Driving me nuts, Thanks for the reply.

T

If it is a IBM laptop, then the recovery disc has to be from IBM and
not Dell. These recovery discs are brand-specific in more than name
only; they are usually locked to the make of bios that is installed.

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

I tried it with a Dell recovery cd and a Key changer, That almost worked but
it wouldn't validate.

You're toast.

 

[Guest]

That was a last ditch effort, I also tried a normal OEM cd. That didn't work
either. I have loaded many laptops with ordinary OEM cd's and have only ran
into this twice.

T

 

[Guest]

Nah, I'll figure it out.

T

You're toast.

 

[GateKeeper]

I have a valid XP Home sticker that came on the IBM laptop I am trying to
reload, I have tried this key with Home OEM, Home Retail and Home VLM. It
doesn't work with any of them. Am I missing a version?

Thanks

Stupid question: did you check the system clock time? I have a Volume
License Key, which worked on all my compters, until I tried to install
it (XP Pro) on a laptop. Suddenly, the Key would not validate. Then I
noticed that the clock was off. When I reset the time, the Key problem
disappeared.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I have a valid XP Home sticker that came on the IBM laptop I am trying to
reload, I have tried this key with Home OEM, Home Retail and Home VLM. It
doesn't work with any of them. Am I missing a version?

Thanks

First of all, are you absolutely sure that the Product Key you have is
for WinXP Home, and not WinXP Pro? If it were, it would have worked
with the WinXP Home OEM CD (provided it's an unbranded, generic OEM CD
or an IBM-branded one). There is, of course, no such thing as "Home
VLM," so we know you didn't really try that, not that it would have
mattered.

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 types cannot be mixed & matched.

You need to examine the Product Key very carefully. It's awfully
easy to mistake a "B" for an "8," a "G" for a "6," an "S" for a "5," or
a "Q" for a "0" or "O." Fortunately, Microsoft had the good sense to
leave the "1's," "I's," "O's," and "0's" out of the equation. Also, be
sure that your <CapsLock> is _off_ while entering the Product Key --
this isn't supposed to make a difference, but I've seen it do so, on
rare occasions.

Troubleshooting Invalid CD Key Error Message During Windows XP Setup
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;310637


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I tried it with a Dell recovery cd and a Key changer, That almost worked but
it wouldn't validate.

Well, no, it wouldn't. The Dell Recovery CD would have been
BIOS-locked to the Dell motherboard with which it was sold.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell

 

[Guest]

Yes, it is XP Home (the sticker is labled)and no it did not work with the
OEM cd. According to the paperwork the CD I referred to as VLM is
VLM(irrelevant as it did not work). I am not trying a pro code with a home cd
or vice versa. I have examined this sticker at length looking for marks or
blemishes that could have altered the way a character looks, there are none.


T

 

[Guest]

As stated in an earlier reply, that was a last ditch nothing else had worked
attempt.

 

[Guest]

Yeah, tried that. Good Idea though.

Stupid question: did you check the system clock time? I have a Volume
License Key, which worked on all my compters, until I tried to install
it (XP Pro) on a laptop. Suddenly, the Key would not validate. Then I
noticed that the clock was off. When I reset the time, the Key problem
disappeared.

 

[Bill Sharpe]

Yes, it is XP Home (the sticker is labled)and no it did not work with the
OEM cd. According to the paperwork the CD I referred to as VLM is
VLM(irrelevant as it did not work). I am not trying a pro code with a home cd
or vice versa. I have examined this sticker at length looking for marks or
blemishes that could have altered the way a character looks, there are none.

Have you called IBM/Lenovo about this problem?

Bill

 

[Daave]

According to the paperwork the CD I referred to as VLM is VLM
(irrelevant as it did not work).

Never heard of VLM. Are you sure you don't mean VLK?

And if so, does anybody know definitively whether or not there is indeed
a legit version of a VLK XP Home CD/license? A cursory Google search
turned up:

http://www.tacktech.com/display.cfm?ttid=312
Windows XP Home (SP1a) VLK/Corporate/Volume - X1AHVOL_EN

and
http://www.magiciso.com/FAQ/FAQ0004.htm
English Windows XP Home (SP2) VLK/Corporate/Volume VRMHVOL_EN

What's up with these?

 

[Guest]

Not too sure about those, What I was referring to is a cd I dug out of one of
the Microsoft Binders we received a few years ago. VLM is how the
accompanying paperwork referred to it.

 

[Guest]

Not yet, I will do it during the week.

Have you called IBM/Lenovo about this problem?

Bill

 

[Daave]

Not too sure about those, What I was referring to is a cd I dug out
of one of the Microsoft Binders we received a few years ago. VLM is
how the accompanying paperwork referred to it.

You mentioned you had three discs altogether: "Home OEM, Home Retail and
Home VLM." I assume VLM stands for Volume License Media and that it uses
a volume license key (which often doesn't need to be manually activated,
by the way), but I still need more information.

You also mentioned that you used "a Dell recovery cd and a Key changer."
I wonder if that last step is what permanently messed things up.

That OEM disc is useless (as you now know), so don't use it again
(unless you want to reinstall XP Home on whichever Dell PC this
particular OEM license is tied to).

What kind of retail disc do you have? Is it Full or Upgrade? What
Service Pack is it and what Service Pack do you have on your IBM laptop?
And what model is this laptop? Did it come with XP installed, or was it
upgrade along the way?

Describe this "Home VLM" disc you mentioned. Is it OEM or retail? Full
or upgrade? Is this what came with your IBM laptop? If not, did you get
an installation (or other) disc along with your laptop, or might you
have the installation files on a hidden partition.
What are you trying to do: a clean install or a repair install?

If your retail disc is Full, your easiest solution might be to format
the hard drive and perform a clean install. However, you will need the
key that came with that particular disc!

 

[Guest]

I have formatted the drive and done a new install everytime I try it with
each cd. The Dell restore thing was an experiment, nothing more. The retail
CD is a full install not an upgrade and SP2, I also borrowed a friends CD
which is an early version pre sp2 and it does not work either.

The Laptop came with XP, I don't have the original cd. The HDD was wiped
long before I received it. The VLM is a full install, I only take the install
as far as it asking for the KEY.

This is a R41 Thinkpad, I have reloaded others using an OEM cd and the
factory code.

T

 

[Daave]

I have formatted the drive and done a new install everytime I try it
with each cd. The Dell restore thing was an experiment, nothing
more. The retail CD is a full install not an upgrade and SP2,

[snip]

The full retail CD came with a key. Where is it? That's the key that you
need.

I also borrowed a friends CD which is an early version pre sp2 and it
does not work either.

A fourth disc!

What kind of CD is it? OEM or retail? Full or upgrade? The only way an
OEM disc should work with your key from the sticker on the laptop is if
it's a *generic* OEM disc. If it's a royalty OEM disc (like Dell, HP,
etc.), then you're out of luck. If it's full, then again you will need
the key associated with it (not the OEM one on your laptop). And still,
according to the license it cannot be installed on more than one machine
at the same time.

The Laptop came with XP, I don't have the original cd. The HDD was
wiped long before I received it.

So for all intents and pruposes, your laptop *didn't* come with XP!
You'll need to obtain a copy and license. Or you could try one of the
many Linux distos.

The VLM is a full install, I only
take the install as far as it asking for the KEY.

Again, what is this "VLM" disc associated with? Is it OEM or retail?
Full or upgrade?

This is a R41 Thinkpad, I have reloaded others using an OEM cd and the
factory code.

What do you mean by "others?" And when you did this, what disc or discs
did you use?