windows reinstall on new pc without cd's

G

G33N!-D

New Member
Hello there,
I'm planning on updating my pc with a new CPU, motherboard en GPU. Now I've got windows with my pc when i bought it a year ago, but I got no cd's... there's a recovery partition in my pc but thats kinda useless when I trow my harddisk into the new hardware.

Now my friends says that I can use my serial wich is written on a sticker on the computer, to install windows XP with his cd's. We are not sure though if this will work because the sticker also says "Windows XP Home Edition HP"... my pc is a compaq pressario, but is this some kind of special version, or will our idea work?...greetz, G33N!-D
 
Certain OEM builds of windows xp including Dell are for one computer only. HP is probably another that are not to be re-activated. Your install therefore will last for 3 days and thats it. Of course you might get lucky.
 
Certain OEM builds of windows xp including Dell are for one computer only. HP is probably another that are not to be re-activated.
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you can re-activate as many times as you want on the same machine. And with a little conversation to microsoft you can activate on any upgraded machine

you can pick up a new working copy from ebay for about £5 ($14)
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illegal, and not to be discussed on this forum. Read the rules

This should work fine. HP and Compaq are one in the same.
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the activation packet sent the MS contains somewhat more information than the make of the computer.

@G33N!-D
he is what you need to do:
firstly if you install xp using your friend cd and use your serial it will install fine. However you will need to activate the xp version. XP does this by reading lots of info about the machine it is one, like cpu type, motherboard, hdd, ram and so on and forms what i will call a "profile". It then connects to a database sitting in bill gates front room that has a record of every computer "profile" against the cd key used during the install.
Now if you had never upgraded your machine there would be a match between your cd key and your profile already on the database from that first time you activated. XP will say "oh... i have been reinstalled on the same machine as i was on before... thats ok.... i'll activate myself"
Now if you change substantial components in your box XP the profile will change and xp will say "hold on.... the cd key used to install me has already been used with a different looking 'profile' i smell piracy, bill! bill! help come quick! a filthy stinking pirate arrr mee laddy"... and so on.
Now dont panic there is a solution, its called a telephone. Ring microsoft and say:
"I have recently upgrade my machine with X, Y, Z. As a result I had to reinstall XP. However dispite using my original cd key i am unable to activate the OS, could you please help"
and they will (in all likelyhood) say yes
At the end of the day you did legally pay for a copy of the OS when you bought your system. You just need to proove that you not trying to install it on another machine.

Simple really.
 
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