Another "is this legal?" question

[CondorMan]

Hi everyone

I have two laptops, each with XP Pro and they came with recovery discs which will take the laptops back to the "out of the box" state. I purchased an XP Pro OEM and installed it onto one of the laptops. I used the activation code which came with the CD.

I'd like to install XP Pro on the second laptop so would I have to purchase a second XP Pro OEM installation disc, along with the sticky label to go on the laptop case, or can I use the activation code which is on one of the laptops?

It strikes me that I have purchased a licence for three copies of XP Pro and have only two laptops. I know that MS have introduced a validation mechanism for pirated software and none of the software that I have is pirated.

A related question is about reinstallation of the OS. I've activated the XP Pro OEM that I've installed on the first laptop but what happens if, and when, I decide to do a full backup of the data and then reinstall that OS onto the laptop. Will MS somehow realise that the OS has been installed back onto the same laptop or will it "whinge", believing that I've tried to install it on two separate computers. I know that this is illegal and wouldn't contemplate it.

 

[smah]

Here's a good explanation of WPA

http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php

Now, if both laptops had XP Pro already, why did you need to by the additional OEM version? Was it just for the CD? If the laptops already have (had) XP Pro licenses, you should be able to use the original product keys during a re-install [using the new cd].

 

[CondorMan]

I wanted access to Recovery Console and Security Tools and I was under the impression that they could only be obtained from an original installation disc. The manufacturer of my laptops has refused point blank to allow access. It's not their policy.

It's reassuring to know that I can use the XP Pro activation key from one of the laptops to use with the OEM XP Pro installation disc that I have. I thought that there may be something on the disc which would allow it to be used ONLY in conjunction with the activation code on the self-adhesive label that came with it.

 

[smah]

You should be able to, but you won't know for certain until you try it. OEM's sometimes do things to lock the OS to the hardware in ways that are beyond my comprehension. With that said though, the fact that you've already used this different OEM cd for installation makes it seem very likely that it will work with the original product key for the laptops. There are several FAQ's that you might want to read including Should you purchase an OEM license version of XP? faq779-4004

 

[gargoyle47]

One more point not broth up here.
The operating system disks are produced to inculde a range of Product Key codes. Therefore the Product Key from the manufacture of your laptops may not work because they are not in the range of your OEM disk.

But you can install with the OEM key then change it to the to the one offered by the laptop manufacture.



Never Say Never (Romeio Void)

Homebuilt MSI MD5000MD-5000 M-ATX, 2.4Gig, 393mb, WinXp Pro
Homebuilt Iwill KK266R-Plus, 768mb, WinXp Pro

 

[linney]

Miss Your OS CDs? Me, Too!

http://langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-01-15.htm#4

Creating a Windows CD from a Recovery Disk

http://langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-11-19.htm#2

Wiping Out Special "Recovery" Partitions

http://langa.com/newsletters/2003/2003-02-06.htm#1