re-installing 2000, COA and licence issues ? 1

[ghost123uk]

If I buy a PC with a wiped hard, drive and it has a genuine Windows 2000 pro COA sticker on it's base, with, of course the pruduct licence key displayed on it, can I install Windows 2000 pro from my CD legally ?
JB


JB - N.W. - UK....
If at first you don't succeed, keep at it until you can't even think straight !

 

[scottew]

I think that would depend if you were sold just the PC or the PC with the operating system.

If you bought just the PC from another person, they might have already registered the OS and plan on using it on another system. Therefore, it would not be legal for you to also use it.

Then again, the old saying is that possession is 9/10th's of the law. And you possess the actual license which is on the PC.

 

[ghost123uk]

Umm - this is (of course) just a hypothetical situation.
I suppose that if the number on the COA has already been registered with MS then it cannot be used again as there is no g/tee that it is not in use on another PC.

I wonder if one can check to see if the number on the COA is OK to use ?

A bit of a minefield but I need to find out

JB

JB - N.W. - UK....
If at first you don't succeed, keep at it until you can't even think straight !

 

[rislejay]

OEM licenses are not transferable from one pc to another. They live and die on the original machine. So you are able to use it. If the old user is still using the license they would be in violation of the OEM license. You can visit

http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/oslicensing/

for more information.