Microsoft won't activate OEM WinXP...

[earthman]

Last weekend I installed an upgrade package on the old system I keep at my mom's house to look at e-mail and stuff while I'm there. New CPU and mainboard, the usual...I wanted to be able to do a little gaming on it as well. This machine had a legal OEM full version of WinXP that I got when I put it together not long ago. When I called MS to activate it, they wouldn't do it. The guy said because I changed the mainboard it was a new computer and I had to buy a new version of Windows for it. Anyone else have this experience? I bought this CD less than 6 months ago...I don't get it...you could buy a new mainboard one day after you installed a bad one and be told you had to get a new Windows CD even though you just got it.

 

[fredtam]

Have you tried activating it online. MS has a database that creates a fingerprint of the components in your system and stores it. As long as four or more of these components are not changed within a 120 day period you shouldn't even have to call. I have changed mobos with an oem xp and haven't had a problem. Try activating online and if it doesn't work call again and ask for someone who isn't an idiot.

 

[InlineFive]

Was the OEM copy installed on a factory built computer? If so Microsoft won't activate it since they say it's license has been used up.

 

[earthman]

Its not a "factory" computer, I built it. And I tried to activate it online, no go. I'm surprised you could change out a motherboard and not have to reactivate, I changed a couple hard drives once and had to reactivate. The guy claimed that OEM versions cannot be reactivated on new hardware, even if it's the same computer. I'll probably use a different version of windows next time I go out there, I didn't have time to sort it out last weekend...it's just an amazingly F U attitude on their part.

 

[kamper]

Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

 

[dnuggett]

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

 

[kamper]

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

No, it connects to the MS activation site and activates it... or you call into MS, and they'll give you a proper key to enter.

And yes, after 30 days, without registration your OS will lock up.

 

[kamper]

Originally posted by: Moralpanic

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

No, it connects to the MS activation site and activates it... or you call into MS, and they'll give you a proper key to enter.

And yes, after 30 days, without registration your OS will lock up.

wow, that's the gayest thing I've ever heard. but if its just a key then you should be able to find a few on kazaa or maybe even a keygen, no? If you feel you're being screwed then maybe it's time to play a little robin hood (ms being the rich and your mom being the poor, earthman).
hmm, I hope there's no ms reps browsing these forums :frown:

 

[John]

Call the MS Activation queue back and tell them you had to replace the motherboard because the current one had leaking capacitors. If they still refuse to give you the activation code ask for a supervisor, or hang up and call back.

 

[earthman]

I prefer to be on the up and up with software. Besides, I've never seen a keygen that actually works as advertised.

 

[Sunner]

Wow, that's screwed up.

Of course somewhere in that phonebook they call EULA there's probably a clause about them having the right to do pretty much whatever they want.

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: Moralpanic

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

No, it connects to the MS activation site and activates it... or you call into MS, and they'll give you a proper key to enter.

And yes, after 30 days, without registration your OS will lock up.

wow, that's the gayest thing I've ever heard. but if its just a key then you should be able to find a few on kazaa or maybe even a keygen, no? If you feel you're being screwed then maybe it's time to play a little robin hood (ms being the rich and your mom being the poor, earthman).
hmm, I hope there's no ms reps browsing these forums :frown:

No, it's impossible to find a key on kazaa or anywhere else. The activation key is created when you install Windows XP for the first time with the original registration key... once this is entered and activated the first time, certain information of how your system is configured and your original Windows XP registration key is combined to create a UNIQUE activation key... so that if you change too many hardware around, the key will no longer work because you've had too many hardware changes. Or i believe that's how it works....

 

[Looney]

How does Microsoft Product Activation work?

Product Activation works by validating that the software's product key, required as part of product installation, has not been used on more PCs than is allowed by the software's end user license agreement (EULA). In general, Windows XP can be installed on one PC and Office 2003 or Office XP can be installed on one PC and the laptop computer used by the user of the one PC. (For specifics, please see the EULA accompanying your product.) Product key information, in the form of the product ID, is sent along with a "hardware hash" (a non-unique number generated from the PC's hardware configuration) to Microsoft's activation system during activation. In Windows XP SP1, the product key itself is sent in addition to the product ID. Activation is completed either directly via the Internet or by a telephone call to a customer service representative. Activations on the same PC using the same product key are unlimited. Product Activation discourages piracy by limiting the number of times a product key can be activated on different PCs.

http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/basics/activation/mpafaq.asp

 

[dnuggett]

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: Moralpanic

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

No, it connects to the MS activation site and activates it... or you call into MS, and they'll give you a proper key to enter.

And yes, after 30 days, without registration your OS will lock up.

wow, that's the gayest thing I've ever heard. but if its just a key then you should be able to find a few on kazaa or maybe even a keygen, no? If you feel you're being screwed then maybe it's time to play a little robin hood (ms being the rich and your mom being the poor, earthman).
hmm, I hope there's no ms reps browsing these forums :frown:

What you just said was the gayest thing I've ever heard. Quit trolling...

 

[kamper]

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper


wow, that's the gayest thing I've ever heard. but if its just a key then you should be able to find a few on kazaa or maybe even a keygen, no? If you feel you're being screwed then maybe it's time to play a little robin hood (ms being the rich and your mom being the poor, earthman).
hmm, I hope there's no ms reps browsing these forums :frown:

What you just said was the gayest thing I've ever heard. Quit trolling...

Hey just trying to help a dude out when he feels like he's being screwed over. Did you catch some of the sarcasm?

Anyways, I know I shouldn't recommend piracy, I just get pissed off when I think about companies reaching into your home and making it so that you can't use their product even though its perfectly capable of functioning. I know all companies need to make their money somehow and that software licensing is a particularly difficult thing to enforce but sometimes there's cruddy results (like this one). I mean, when he installed his new board the old hard drive didn't say "oh, I was already connected to a different board so I won't work with this new one". The point is the product is perfectly capable of functioning for him and it should, since this is effectively the same computer. As long as he doesn't install on two machines at the same time he should only ever need one license.

Of course all I say is in vain because that would be even more invasive to try to enforce and I suppose I'm proof to myself that the honour system won't work well enough. This is why I like open source/free software, but that is a whole other can of worms that doesn't need opening here. So props to all who are doing there best to do this honestly, I will just try harder at using Linux as my desktop os.

 

[ZephryKai]

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: Moralpanic

Originally posted by: kamper

Originally posted by: dnuggett

Originally posted by: kamper
Forgive me for asking but what's this "activating" windows all about? I thought you could just install and go regardless of what microsoft knows about you. Does the os not work properly if you don't get it activated?

After 30 days XP will lock up until it is activated.

And what do you do to activate it? Plug in a password key or something?

No, it connects to the MS activation site and activates it... or you call into MS, and they'll give you a proper key to enter.

And yes, after 30 days, without registration your OS will lock up.

wow, that's the gayest thing I've ever heard. but if its just a key then you should be able to find a few on kazaa or maybe even a keygen, no? If you feel you're being screwed then maybe it's time to play a little robin hood (ms being the rich and your mom being the poor, earthman).
hmm, I hope there's no ms reps browsing these forums :frown:

What you just said was the gayest thing I've ever heard. Quit trolling...

He's proably not trolling just stating what most normal people would think as MS software isn't cheap and for games theres not much of an alternative.
As for activation I think you should keep trying as I've changed out all of the hardware that I first had when I activated windows(except my cdrw) and MS has never given me any problems.

 

[Anubis]

they shoudl do it I just called and re activated mine i have a OEm version. they asked why I said because i had to reformat because the HD went bad. then then asked how many coomps i had it installed on. I said just this 1. its actually on 3 or 4. they saiud 1 sec and came back with my number thingie

 

[dnuggett]

Hey just trying to help a dude out when he feels like he's being screwed over. Did you catch some of the sarcasm?

No I didn't catch the sarcasm. What I caught was you suggesting an illegal way to activate his software, when the simple legal way to fix the problem would be to call them back.

If you were being sarcastic, and do not mean that he should illegally obtain a product key then my apologies, but that is not at all what your first post said.

 

[bsobel]

Originally posted by: Anubis
they shoudl do it I just called and re activated mine i have a OEm version. they asked why I said because i had to reformat because the HD went bad. then then asked how many coomps i had it installed on. I said just this 1. its actually on 3 or 4. they saiud 1 sec and came back with my number thingie

Stop bragging about your theft. A lifer should know better.

Bill

 

[LesPaul]

how gay.. if MS won't reactivate that for you they are the gayest company ever.. I don't even feel bad about using a "corporate" key for my copy of XP after hearing this.

 

[screw3d]

Originally posted by: LesPaul

The word "gay" used in your context is banned. Edit or the mod squads will come bearing down on ya.

 

[dnuggett]

Originally posted by: screw3d

Originally posted by: LesPaul

The word "gay" used in your context is banned. Edit or the mod squads will come bearing down on ya.

Wish they would, damn troll.

 

[xSauronx]

without reading anything other than the op

ive used my oem copy on at least 4 different boards in the last 18 months, never a problem. in fact, between changing 4 mobos, 4 hard drives, at least 6 video cards and 2 or 3 cpus, ive only had to call twice (all the above mounting to 8 or 10 installs at least, on MY computer, with my license)

i think the guy is bsing you or something, its not a new computer, just call and talk to someone who isnt a dick, and tell them your hard drive crashed or something...they usually dont care, and its probably some sort of survey or something silly, and then your copy will work fine

 

[Carrot44]

When my hd's failed and I reinstalled oem xp it would not take and gave me a # to call. Did that and the lady gave me a zillion digit # to type in and away I went.
When I changed out my MB all I had to do was put the original key in and off I went. If they don't give it to you and you can give them a valid oem key then talk to a supervisor.

Ken

P.S. Both hd where IBM and they both went poof at the same time