CD Key question/problem

[marvin888]

I got a laptop from a friend who said it was broke and i could have it. I fixed it bad HD and dirty CPU cooler (made it overheat and shut down). Anyway He didn't have any CDs with it but it has a CD key sticker on the bottom of the laptop. I have a windows XP upgrade CD (very old no Service packs). Is there any way to install Windows with that CD and use the CD key on the laptop? Is this legit? He bought a new laptop so I know he is not using that CD key. If not how do I go about installing windows on this laptop, cheaply and legit?

[dbwillis]

That XP sticker is most likely for an OEM XP, so your Upgrade XP CD wont work with it, youd need to find an OEM XP CD to use that sticker.

[bbz_Ghost]

Well let's look at what you stated:

You have a laptop with a Certificate of Authenticity attached (COA), that's a good thing.

The laptop wasn't yours originally, so when it was activated it was by a previous owner - this is an assumption that it was activated, and if so, that's a bad thing now for you.

To install Windows cheaply and legit, in this situation, it would literally mean going out and buying a copy of Windows XP for the laptop since you're now the new owner. Sorry to tell you that, but it's true.

And just owning a CD, even a real hologram CD provided by Microsoft itself, doesn't make the situation legit: the CD is just part of it, the stick is what's really important. That's the legal proof of ownership, the COA sticker.

[Catweazle]

Wow! This thread is a great example of how to get it wrong. The OEM license is tied to the PC it was installed on, not to the previous owner. The alptop can be sold and the OEM Windows license goes with it!

The Upgrade version XP CD can be used to perform a fresh, clean install. You only need to have an earlier version Windows CD ready to pop in the drive when prompted for verification. (Any old Win98 CD or similar is fine for that.)

So there are two options available here:

* Use the Upgrade CD to perform a fresh, clean install and use the license for that installation.
* Use the Upgrade CD to perform a fresh, clean install and then activate by telephone, changing the CD code to that of the OEM license in the process, and use the laptop's Windows license on it.

The second option is the better one, because it leaves the Upgrade CD to be used on a different system!

[dbwillis]

From what I understand, the install process wont go past the CDKey page if the CDKey being input isnt the correct one for the media type.

ie typing in the OEM key during the fresh install using the upgrade CD, wont work..

[Catweazle]

Nope it won't work that way.

That's why you install using the CD key for the media being used, and then change the CD key code later, when you activate by telephone. It's an allowable circumstance, so it only needs to be explained honestly to the Activation centre staff.

[marvin888]

That's why you install using the CD key for the media being used, and then change the CD key code later, when you activate by telephone. It's an allowable circumstance, so it only needs to be explained honestly to the Activation centre staff.
Is this true? The disk is upgrade and the CD key is from a OEM the two don't match. From my understanding there are three types of CD/keys. Full, upgrade, and OEM, and the keys only work with there CD type. If i call Microsoft and explain this can they alow this to happen? If i Find a freind with anther Toshiba laptop can I us his CD and my Key? This is a long shot as I don't know if anyone hase a Toshiba or if toshiba laptops come with Windows install CDs or that stupid restore CD.

[w1retap]

I own all three types of legit copies of windows.. OEM full, upgrade, and full version. (all xp pro originals with no service packs) I have wiped all my machines clean, and have tried in the past to use the cd keys interchangably. The only ones I could get to interchange were full/upgrade. The OEM seemed to only work with its own special key. I don't know if it was the way I went about it, or if they have changed it since they added service packs to them. I just couldn't get my OEM key to work with a full/upgrade, or vise versa.

[PaHick]

Correct me if im wrong, but what your failing to remember is not OEM, upgrade, and full...but OEM, RETAIL, and VLK. From my understanding the upgrade is RETAIL, and the key on the laptop is OEM ....shouldnt work.

[SJConsultant]

Correct me if im wrong, but what your failing to remember is not OEM, upgrade, and full...but OEM, RETAIL, and VLK. From my understanding the upgrade is RETAIL, and the key on the laptop is OEM ....shouldnt work.

You are correct :D

The "upgrade" edition of Windows XP is slightly modified in that the EULA is different and it prompts for a prior version disk.

[marvin888]

Correct me if im wrong, but what your failing to remember is not OEM, upgrade, and full...but OEM, RETAIL, and VLK. From my understanding the upgrade is RETAIL, and the key on the laptop is OEM ....shouldnt work.
So if I had a XP home OEM CD and used the key on the bottom of the laptop it should work and be legal?

[SJConsultant]

So if I had a XP home OEM CD and used the key on the bottom of the laptop it should work and be legal?

As long as the key is for XP Home. ;)

[Catweazle]

The EULA for XP Professional OEM ties the license to the machine. It prohibits you from selling the copy of Windows to a third party as an usused, standalone item, but does not prohibit you from selling the machine, together with its license, to a third party. So the transfer of ownership is legitimate so long as that license continues to be used with that machine.

The CD key listed on the official sticker on bottom of the laptop will only 'work' with an OEM install CD (or other media). If you use a retail CD, and enter the OEM CD key during the install key code during installation, it'll be rejected. So you do the following:

* Install with your retail CD, using the ley code printed on it.
* Set your system up and get it working, leaving activation until after you've got it all working correctly (as is the sensible approach).
* Then choose to activate via telephone (which is a toll-free phone call.)
* Explain the situation to the technician at the activation centre, including the reason you are using a different CD to install with. (Obviously you are doing this because either the original CD is unusable or because the recovery partition has been rendered unusable.) Indicate that you wish to use the 'Change CD key' feature to alter the CD key to the one for the laptop's Windows license.
* At the bottom of the Activate by telephone activation screen there is a 'Change CD key' link. It's there for the purpose we're talking about here. The activation centre staff will walk you through its use if need be.
* When completed, you will have an activated Windows license which is the one originally provided for the laptop.

This is a legitimate scenario. Unless it's been changed since I last looked there is nothing in the EULA which stipulates that the license expires when the laptop is sold. The original owner of the laptop is prohibited from continuing to use that Windows license on a different PC after the laptop is sold. The laptop can continue to be used, along with its OEM Windows license, by a subsequent owner.

It's up to you to explain the situation convincingly, of course, and honesty is the best approach.

[marvin888]

Well I got it activated though Microsoft but I don't think it is right.
I used the steps above and called MS to activate explained the situation. She asked "Is this software installed on more than one computer?" witch I responded "YES" and explained again. I asked about the change CD key button and she told me it is not for me to use. :confused: She then told me to get with the previous owner to get the original install CD incase I need to ever reinstall Windows and started telling me the activation code. Now I have two computers with the same windows CD key installed. I tried to do this legally and MS just had me brake there EULA. :eek: If I connect both computers to the internet at the same time will I have FBI agents knocking down my door? :D
Real questions
Should I be worried? Should I contact MS again? Will both computers still update? I'm very confused right now.

[fireluxx]

The only problem you will face is that one only computer can be activated after you make 4 hardware changes to your current configuration. As for WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage), I couldn't tell you.

[Catweazle]

marvin888, you introduced confusion by stating that the software was installed on more than one PC. The OEM license tied to the laptop is NOT installed on a different PC, and that's the license you were trying to activate. By making the statement you did I suspect you gave the impression that you were trying to install the retail license for XP to more than one PC.

Try Windows update to see if it functions correctly, on both the laptop and on the system which uses the retail license for XP which is tied to the media you used to install XP on the laptop.

Remember, you were NOT trying to activate the retail license on the laptop. You were trying to activate the OEM license which exists for the laptop itself. If there are any problems, call the activation centre again, and you can point them to this discussion topic for clarification if there are any difficulties with communication. If there are any stumbling blocks in communication with the call centre assistant you are talking to, insist on talking to his or her supervisor. What you are trying to do is a legitimate activity, and you have a right to do it.


And yes. Definitely contact the original owner and track down the original installation media if it physical media exists. It should have been provided with the laptop if the laptop was sold with Windows installed or an OEM license sticker attached.