Re: Emergency Installation of XP - How to Solve Activation Problem

On Sun, 19 Oct 2008 11:50:01 -0700, VC <VC@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

We are a not-forprofit organization and work on donated computers. We had a
crash that required us to reinstall the operating system. Unfortunately, we
had not receive the operating system CD with the donated computer.

When the crash happened, we were under a severe time constraint and so used
another WINDOWS XP CD that had come with another computer. Now we cannot
activate the operating system on the computer that had crashed. I realize we
must purchase a new copy of Windows XP in order to do the activation, and we
are fine with that.

But unfortunately, we have already spent considerable time installing and
configuring software on that computer. Is there a way to somehow use the
product key from the new license we will purchase to activate the exisitng
installation?


Yes, *if* the old CD and the new one match with respect to Home vs.
Professional, Retail vs. OEM, and Full vs. Upgrade. If they don't
match, the product key will not work.


We realize and accept that that new XP CD would then be
permanently linked to the computer in question.



Sorry, but that's not necessarily correct. Only if you buy an OEM CD
is what you say true. With retail CDs, you can move the installation
from computer to computer as many times as you want to.

It's for that reason that I almost always recommend against buying OEM
copies. My view is that an OEM copy is the worst kind you can buy. It
comes with several restrictions, and the worst restriction is that the
license ties it permanently to the first computer it's installed on.
Even if the computer dies, you may not use your copy on another
computer. Retail versions do not have that restriction.

Despite what some people think, an Upgrade copy *can* do a clean
installation as long as you own a CD of a previous qualifying version
to show it as proof of ownership when prompted. Most people have a
Windows 98 CD around, but worst case, if you don't, you can buy one
inexpensively someplace like eBay.

Since the Upgrade normally costs only slightly more than an OEM copy,
I strongly recommend that you buy an Upgrade.

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
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