XP License on old Laptop...

[Pete]

I bought an XP laptop. It has a license but no disks. I bought on ebay. If
I have to reinstall, am I out of luck?? If so, I'll put Linux ubuntu on it
like my other machines.
-Pete

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I bought an XP laptop. It has a license but no disks. I bought on
ebay. If I have to reinstall, am I out of luck?? If so, I'll put
Linux ubuntu on it like my other machines.

Well - just thinking logically - if you have no way of installing your OS
(in this case Windows XP) because you have no installation media - then
yeah - I guess you are just out of luck.

 

[philo]

I bought an XP laptop. It has a license but no disks. I bought on ebay. If
I have to reinstall, am I out of luck?? If so, I'll put Linux ubuntu on it
like my other machines.
-Pete

Make a full backup now using 3rd party software

 

[Malke]

I bought an XP laptop. It has a license but no disks. I bought on ebay. If
I have to reinstall, am I out of luck?? If so, I'll put Linux ubuntu on it
like my other machines.
-Pete

You will need to have an XP operating system disk to install, but a
generic OEM one (if you don't have a branded one) will work with the
Product Key on the bottom of the laptop. If you don't have one, then you
can either get one from an online store like NewEgg or check with the
local professionals in your area. It might be cheaper to see if your
laptop mftr. still offers the restore disks for that model.

Or else go ahead and put Linux on the laptop. Whatever floats your boat.
I'm a SUSE fan myself but Kubuntu is nice, too.


Malke

 

[Rick]

You could even borrow a disc to install it as long as oyu have the CD Key,
that is what is important.
When people buy software, they are buying the license anyway.

 

[Hertz_Donut]

This is usually not possible. Most laptops come with OEM keys that are tied
to that particular machine and version of the OS, and another Windows XP
disk will not accept the license key.


One other thought..many manufacturers put a hidden restore partition on the
hard drive...you could use that to reinstall provided that the hard drive
itself does not fail or become corrupted.

Honu

 

[Malke]

This is usually not possible. Most laptops come with OEM keys that are tied
to that particular machine and version of the OS, and another Windows XP
disk will not accept the license key.

This is incorrect. You may be thinking of the opposite situation, where
an XP OEM disk received from a particular OEM will not work on another
computer. This is the case with Dell XP install disks, for example.

However, a generic (or same-brand) OEM will work with the laptop's OEM
key. It may be necessary to call in the activation; my experience with
activation in these situations runs about 75/25 (call/not call).


Malke

 

[Pete]

You will need to have an XP operating system disk to install, but a
generic OEM one (if you don't have a branded one) will work with the
Product Key on the bottom of the laptop. If you don't have one, then you
can either get one from an online store like NewEgg or check with the
local professionals in your area. It might be cheaper to see if your
laptop mftr. still offers the restore disks for that model.

Or else go ahead and put Linux on the laptop. Whatever floats your boat.
I'm a SUSE fan myself but Kubuntu is nice, too.


Malke

Yup, I'm an ubuntu fan.