Windows XP product key issue

Joined
Feb 23, 2006
Messages
11
hi all,

Ive installed some computers lately with windows xp.in all cases they have the genuine key attached to the bottom of the pc.when i install it with my universal xp disc it comes up with wrong product ID entered.could this be because my copy is a volume license one.And if so is there a work around.

Thanks
 
Yes, it'll be because you have a volume license CD. Yes, there is a workaround. No, I'm not sure if posting details of the workaround is permissible here.

Basically it involves altering a value in one file on the CD, and then burning a new copy with the altered value. That indicates the license type, version and installation type, and with the correct value used your key would work with the altered install CD.

But it's without question an illegal act in breach of agreements and license terms, so I'm not prepared to post any further detail than that unless given indication that it's allowable to do so.
 
Easyest thing is to get the kind of install cd you're supposed to use for your box. You can use any cd or anyones cd if you have the shticker in the box.
 
yep, you need to get the correct version CD to match the cdkey thats on the PC
 
so if you install a lot of computers that have genuine stickers on them you have to have the right cd for each one.There must be a better solution than that.no wonder there are so many cracked versions available.If they made it a little easier for the genuine person....well you know the rest

catweazle are you able to PM me with the details then.

Thanks
 
so if you install a lot of computers that have genuine stickers on them you have to have the right cd for each one.There must be a better solution than that.no wonder there are so many cracked versions available.If they made it a little easier for the genuine person....well you know the rest

You wouldn't have that problem if you were properly preinstalling an OEM version of Windows. ;)
 
I have several flavors of each on hand .. retail/oem/vl copies of home and pro so it dont matter what type of liscense a customer has ... I have a disc that will take their key should I have to reinstall windows for them.

source really dont matter ..its the key that counts as far as being legal or not

I keep the different iso's of the different flavors of xp on my linux box :)

oem setups like dell and the like give you a restore disc ... instead of actual os install disc which I feel is pretty lame ..first thing I do with OEM setups is wipe the drive and reinstall OS from scratch and then load up what I want on it ..not what "they" think I want/need on my computer... hence the collection of different xp flavors over the years.
 
so if you install a lot of computers that have genuine stickers on them you have to have the right cd for each one.There must be a better solution than that.no wonder there are so many cracked versions available.If they made it a little easier for the genuine person....well you know the rest

catweazle are you able to PM me with the details then.

Thanks

As far as I've noticed you can't install a volume license cd with regular key and vice versa. Other than that it's enough to have a cd with correct version (home/pro/mce).
 
so if you install a lot of computers that have genuine stickers on them you have to have the right cd for each one.

No, you just need one CD and it will work for any XP Pro installation on a PC with an OEM license CD Key sticker on it.
 
oem setups like dell and the like give you a restore disc ... instead of actual os install disc which I feel is pretty lame ..
Dell's recovery is on a separate partition like HP. Dell hasn't shipped a recovery CD in years. When you do pay Dell $10 for the XP/Vista media, it's an OEM installation disc. HP will ship one for a nominal fee too. I've had no prblem using the Dell XP CD with an HP (or cheap-o GQ) OEM key to clean off a system.
 
You wouldn't have that problem if you were properly preinstalling an OEM version of Windows. ;)

I get awfully sick of the 'morality police'. There are valid reasons why somebody at home might want to create a 'roll your own' install disk. Should somebody have to pay out again just because junior was playing ball in the lounge and knocked over the CD rack? Because he'd picked up some old PCs cheap at an auction and wants to get their legitimate OS installs cleaned up and sorted out? etc etc etc....


dfwcomputer, I haven't done this for ages, and would have to find the instructions again. Like others I have just about every different XP CD imaginable here myself. The 'how-to' can be found with google. I'm on my way out at present, but I'll have a look tomorrow when I get back.
 
You wouldn't have that problem if you were properly preinstalling an OEM version of Windows. ;)

in my book a genuine key is a genuine key.And im not pre-installing it was already pre-installed by asus in most cases.The fact remians if microsoft cut the crap and made it a little easier there would be half as many pirated copies available ;)

and thanks catweazle that would be very much appreciated i have searched google after your original post but didnt have much luck.
 
I get awfully sick of the 'morality police'. There are valid reasons why somebody at home might want to create a 'roll your own' install disk. Should somebody have to pay out again just because junior was playing ball in the lounge and knocked over the CD rack? Because he'd picked up some old PCs cheap at an auction and wants to get their legitimate OS installs cleaned up and sorted out? etc etc etc..

Your entitled to your opinion, but I get awfully sick of explaining to people that the copy of XP they have on their computer isn't legit because someone decided to use a hacked or VLK version and I have to charge them for a copy of XP and my time to reformat and reinstall the OS.

I call it like I see it. OEM Key means installing OEM software. Using VLK because a person doesn't want to have to deal with activation is piracy plain and simple.
 
what's being discussed here is installing the same version of xp as whatever the key that is already with the computer ... :rolleyes:


[F]old|[H]ard
 
... I get awfully sick of explaining to people that the copy of XP they have on their computer isn't legit because someone decided to use a hacked or VLK version and I have to charge them for a copy of XP and my time to reformat and reinstall the OS.

Or you could swap out their pirated / illegitimate key for a valid one. Save your time and their money.

I call it like I see it. OEM Key means installing OEM software. Using VLK because a person doesn't want to have to deal with activation is piracy plain and simple.

But he's not trying to skirt activation. He's only trying to install a valid key on his machine.
 
what's being discussed here is installing the same version of xp as whatever the key that is already with the computer ... :rolleyes:
Precisely. An XP installation which uses a legally valid install key is a legally valid installation. All that's being discussed here is creating an install disk which will work with that legally valid key, and procedures to do that are 'illegal' only insofar as that you're actually editing the contents of a file to do it if you haven't got access to the correct CD to make a backup copy.


Okay. Sorry dfwcomputer, but I can't find the links to websites or the printed articles where really full and detailed discussion of the techniques can be found. But here's the 'basics' of what to do.

  • You need to ensure that you are using, as appropriate, an XP Home Edition CD or an XP Professional CD. You can't turn XP Home into XP Pro or vice versa. The disk contents are different.
  • What needs to be edited is an entry in the setupp.ini file which can be found in the \i386 folder on the Windows XP CD.
  • The best way to do the job is to use your CD/DVD burning software to create an ISO image of the CD, and save that to your hard drive. Then use a program such as ISOBuster or the like to access the relevent file and replace it with an appropriately edited copy.
  • The entry in the setupp.ini file which needs to be altered is the line "Pid=xxxxxxxx"
  • The altered ISO should then be burnt to CD, preferably using the appropriate CD label.

You'll find lots of info about the different XP install CD labels and their associated Pid values here.
 
Those keys on the stickers of Dell, HP, EMachines and others will never work with any version of XP. the actual key is embeded into the Bios of the computer. this is why you need the correct version of XP to get it to work. the Key embeded into the Bios is not the same as the Sticker, the sticker is only there because of the License agreement with Microsoft.
 
what's being discussed here is installing the same version of xp as whatever the key that is already with the computer ... :rolleyes:

Which the OP should be using an OEM version, not VLK.

Or you could swap out their pirated / illegitimate key for a valid one. Save your time and their money.

While I could do that, the installation source is questionable and can't be trusted. I don't deal with home users, I deal with businesses who fall under certain security and privacy laws like HIPAA and quite frankly it is not worth the risk. Reformat and reinstall from a trusted source is the only answer.

But he's not trying to skirt activation. He's only trying to install a valid key on his machine.

Why else would you use a VLK version if it is not to get around activation?;)

Precisely. An XP installation which uses a legally valid install key is a legally valid installation. All that's being discussed here is creating an install disk which will work with that legally valid key, and procedures to do that are 'illegal' only insofar as that you're actually editing the contents of a file to do it if you haven't got access to the correct CD to make a backup copy.

Not true if activation is bypassed and the OP isn't entitled to such.

Those keys on the stickers of Dell, HP, EMachines and others will never work with any version of XP. the actual key is embeded into the Bios of the computer. this is why you need the correct version of XP to get it to work. the Key embeded into the Bios is not the same as the Sticker, the sticker is only there because of the License agreement with Microsoft.

Wrong. The key is not embedded in the BIOs of any computer system. The stickers on OEM machines will work in that MS does not allow internet activation of those keys however you can still use telephone activation.


I only have one question for the OP:

If you have several computers with OEM stickers, why don't you have any OEM CDs?
 
Which the OP should be using an OEM version, not VLK.
<..>
Why else would you use a VLK version if it is not to get around activation?;)

<...>
Not true if activation is bypassed and the OP isn't entitled to such.


I only have one question for the OP:

If you have several computers with OEM stickers, why don't you have any OEM CDs?

There are legitimate ways to get a VLK license and disc, especially if you're a college student. Also a lot of OEM's don't supply OS install discs with their system unless your specifically ask for it now. So if he bought the systems off of ebay and just wants to resell them for some extra cash, he may not have gotten the discs he needs.


As far as the whole 8 different discs for 3 different versions of 5 different editions goes, Vista pretty much nipped that. You can take an OEM key for Vista Home Basic and use a Vista Ultimate disc to install with. It'll read the key to figure out which edition you've got and what license pertains to it. They do still ship to different discs for 32bit and 64 bit though.
 
Why else would you use a VLK version if it is not to get around activation?

I don't see anywhere in which the OP was asking how to circumvent activation in any way .. just get xp installed using the key that is already on the computer already.. hence the discussion on the various types of install discs ....

If he has a valid xp install disc already and makes an iso of it and then alters the pid .. how would that not be a "trusted" source?
 
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