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Windows XP DOS Key Viewer

A

athayer187

n00b
Joined
Dec 13, 2003
Messages
38
Alright, so I've got a doosey here. My friends computer won't boot into windows, it just hangs and then restarts. So she just wants to reformat, easy enough. The real kicker is that she has a legit copy of XP, but she doesn't have a CD or a key. I have a CD I can use for the install, but I don't have another legit key for her. Is there a way to get the key of the current installation from DOS?
 
I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest something(keep in mind I've never done this).

Download BartPE, google the Windows xp key recovery tool or whatever it's called. Burn BartPE ISO, save recovery tool to floppy.

Boot into pre-installed environment, run recovery tool.


I have no idea if this will work.
 
athayer187 said:
Alright, so I've got a doosey here. My friends computer won't boot into windows, it just hangs and then restarts. So she just wants to reformat, easy enough. The real kicker is that she has a legit copy of XP, but she doesn't have a CD or a key. I have a CD I can use for the install, but I don't have another legit key for her. Is there a way to get the key of the current installation from DOS?
Click to expand...
There is a nunmber considerations for this...

1) was the initial install oem or was the copy bought from a retail store. (most probably the first...)
2) if it is oem, unless your CD is the oem version of windows xp, the retrieved cd-key wont work...

Now that i think about this, read up the sticky on OEM licensing for more...


3) now if the os was preinstalled (Dell, Toshiba, etc... ) there is a chance that the cd-key wont work at all..
 
If the computer would have been purchased from HP, Dell, BB, etc the COA would be on the side of the box which would have the key on it. They must have installed the OS separately and not hung on to the COA. Moral of the story: Put your COA in a safe place.
 
yeah - she didn't hang onto it - previous boyfriend did the install.....oh well - guess she's dropping another couple bucks on a new copy
 
Couldn't you take that harddrive,hook it up to another computer as a slave.
I'm assuming the files are intact and must be a way to view the key somewhere in the files? :confused:
 
MentallyNormal said:
Couldn't you take that harddrive,hook it up to another computer as a slave.
I'm assuming the files are intact and must be a way to view the key somewhere in the files? :confused:
Click to expand...
Nope, it's not viewable from inside of Windows without 3rd Party software.
 
So could you just get risky with a crappy machine, and backup the registry hive that contains the key (I'm making the assumption it's in there) and then try and run the crap machine with that hive, run 3rd party software, get key and go from there...

I give that about a 2% chance of working
 
Do a repair install of Windows, then run magical jelleybean finder on it once you're back in Windows. Repairing that install so you can boot into it is your only prayer now.
 
You can call up the oem companys and tell them the series on the laptop and they will send you the disks. :)

I have done it twice soo far because my brother-in-law throws them out.

EDIT: I think it takes about a week to ship...
 
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