Question about Windows product keys

Lately I have worked on several PCs (mainly laptops and netbooks) where the product key sticker (aka COA or Certificate Of Authenticity) has been damaged, or the print has been worn to the point of being illegible. How can the owner of the the PC "reclaim" or "renew" the COA/product key sticker? There have been several instances where a satisfactory repair was not possible, and a format and OS re-install was the only way to get the PC running again, in a few instances, the hard drive had crashed preventing the use of a factory-loaded restore partition. In the scenarios where the HD had not crashed, sometimes there is no restore partition (and sometimes it simply doesn't work for whatever reason). If the COA/product key sticker is damaged or missing, how can the system be reloaded and activated as required by Microsoft? Many times the sticker is NOT physically damaged. There was a period where MS used cheap paper stickers for Vista COAs and for XP COAs on netbooks, and the ink on these wears off VERY easily. The average home user does understand the importance of these stickers and therefore they do not write down the info, and frequently they remove the sticker because "they don't want a bunch of lame sticker all over their brand new laptop". Yes, it happens, and it happens a lot more often than you might think. If anyone reading this is in the PC repair industry, you know what I'm talking about. So - to make this a bit shorter - how can the owner of a PC that has a completely legal and legitimate installation of Windows (any version), get a new or replacement product key in the event that the original has been removed, damaged, or (like I see ALL THE TIME with Vista product stickers on the bottom of laptops) the printing has been worn off???

Before everyone says "use a key finder like the 'Jellybean' or 'Produkey'", these work fine IF the product key on the original sticker was used at some point to reload Windows. Otherwise, the product key that comes with a pre-installed Windows on a new system does NOT match the product key sticker. The pre-installed keys are "OEM keys". If you bought 5 different Dell PCs (some laptops, some towers) and they all have WinXP Home SP2 installed, the pre-installed key on each PC will be identical, but their individual product key stickers will be totally different. This is where the problem comes when extracting a key with a key-finder program: these pre-installed product keys WILL NOT activate! They work to install the OS, but they will not activate, therefore the user will be locked out in 30 days after the installation. I have tried to activate "OEM keys" via the telephone with a Microsoft licensing agent, and they simply will not recognize the key as legitimate.

So, now that I have thoroughly explained the problem, how can this be legally solved? The folks at Microsoft must know that the majority of Vista COA stickers on laptops were printed on weak paper using weaker ink (the XP COA stickers were printed on a type of vinyl or plastic and the ink had a clear coating over the top which GREATLY reduced the chance of normal use causing the product key to simply wear off). After less than a year of use, the printing on the COAs can (and will) wear off; the sticker will still be there, but anything printed on it will be illegible.

Without describing this issue in any more detail (at this point, that may not be possible), how can a law abiding citizen re-install and (more importantly) re-activate their legal Windows when the product key sticker has been deemed useless through no fault of their own, other than simply using the laptop? If the sticker has been intentionally removed or destroyed, that's on the user, even though 95% of PC owners have no idea just how important the COA/product key sticker really is.....

Phew. That was a workout typing this, and probably more of a workout to read, but I feel this is very important. As a full time PC tech, I see this all the time and the general public has no concept of licensing issues with Windows, and they simply do not understand that w/o their unique product key, their OS is useless and will lock out in 30 days unless they purchase a new license, which is totally unfair if they already purchased the PC with Windows pre-installed, which means they purchased the license for Windows too. Just because a little sticker (a poorly manufactured sticker in many cases) has been worn out (or intentionally removed) should not negate ownership of the Windows license. How can this be straightened out?

THANKS!

 

I have a suggestion but I really don't know whether it will work; it's just a thought that came up as I read your post.

If you can decipher a serial number on the computer, try calling the manufacturer and see whether a system recovery disc can be ordered from them. I worked on a Compaq laptop last winter and the computer simply would not bootup to Windows and it also would not restore the system from the recovery partition on the hard drive. The owner mentioned having dropped the laptop, so I suspected bad sectors on the hard drive might be the problem. I could run Linux Ubuntu from a live CD on it and it ran fine. Anyway, I called HP and they said they could send a recovery disc. The cost would have been about $17, which included shipping cost, as I recall. I don't remember what info I needed to give them regarding the computer, whether it was model #, serial #, or what, but I think serial # may have been involved.

 

You know out there are some re-sellers that erase the OS from the HD's and at the moment of re-selling they say that you can use the Key printed on the stiker... and I know for experience that it is not true!!! How do you fix that???

 

@ usafveteran: there has been a few instances -primarily with HP/Compaq systems- where we could order a full set of recovery discs for a very reasonable fee; I think the last time we did this (about 18 months ago), it was only $30 or $35. The discs included the full OS and drivers, and an applications disc with trial versions of Norton and other stuff. This works fine because these CDs do not require activation or even the input of a product key; it's all "built in" to the installation. However it takes 7-10 days to receive the discs (most of my client don't want to wait 7-10 hours let alone 7-10 days for their PC), and I haven't had luck with any of the other manufacturers except Toshiba. In the instance with Toshiba, the customer had to contact them directly; luckily, she still had the original purchase recpt which had the model number and the serial number on it; all the stickers on the bottom of the laptop were completely worn and illegible, including the product key sticker, the serial number sticker, the model number sticker, ALL of them. Once the folks at Toshiba verified that she was the legal owner, they mailed out some restore discs. I believe they were free except for shipping which was under $20.00, and it took less than 7 days to receive them.....

But for the majority of PCs that I've seen with worn out product key stickers, the owners have almost no recourse, and many times they get mad at ME because I'm "supposed to fix it; it's not fixed if it's gonna lock me out in 30 days". Yes, I have been told these exact words, more than once. I tried to explain MS licensing, and even provided web links, but the clients don't want to hear it, and they refuse to even try to understand most of the time, and they refuse to purchase another license (which I agree with) because they already paid for it once (and many people do not want to wait for recovery discs from the manufacturer, nor do they want to pay for these discs even if it's just a small shipping charge), and through no fault of their own (most of the time; sometimes they intentionally remove the sticker not realizing its importance) the sticker has been rendered useless. There must be some course of action here. Microsoft distributed hundreds of thousands of these poorly made stickers (if not millions), and I believe they still use them on laptops/netbooks with Windows pre-installed. I almost think MS knows the stickers will wear out, thereby forcing users to purchase a second license.

@ chapincito: I'm not clear on what it is you're asking, but it's a bit off topic.... maybe you can start a new thread with this question....

 

From what I understand from research into this subject, the only product ID key that can *legally* be installed to that computer is the one that is embedded in the recovery media. The COA sticker on the laptop is only there to prove that the copy of Windows preinstalled by the factory is legitimate. Putting it there is a requirement of Microsoft. While it *may* be legal to use, seeing that the number is unique and is most likely a Microsoft retail product key, it technically may not be, as it is not supported by either the OEM or Microsoft. Microsoft will not replace the sticker, and neither will the OEM. Both will claim that the number on the sticker is incidental to the sticker's existence, which is merely to comply with Microsoft's policy of proving that the original installation of Windows is genuine. In other words, it is only by accident that the number allows you to install a clean, fresh copy of Windows; it is not by right. The OEM does not recognize any installation of Windows to their machine other than the one that they gave you preinstalled.

 

From what I understand from research into this subject, it may be that the only product ID key that can *legally* be installed to that computer is the one that is embedded in the recovery media. The COA sticker on the laptop is only there to prove that the copy of Windows preinstalled by the factory is legitimate. Putting it there is a requirement imposed on the OEM by Microsoft. While it *may* be legal to use the Product ID key on the sticker, being that the number is unique, it may not be, as the key is not supported by either the OEM or Microsoft. Microsoft will not replace the sticker, and neither will the OEM. Both will claim that the number on the sticker is incidental to the sticker's existence, which is merely to comply with Microsoft's policy of proving that the original installation of Windows is genuine.

In other words, it is only by accident that the number on the COA allows you to install a clean, fresh copy of Windows; it is not by right. The OEM does not recognize any installation of Windows to their machine other than the one they gave you preinstalled.

 

The OEM Key for Win7 on my Dell Inspiron, under the battery is nothing like the Key that Belarc shows. Not sure which one I may need to use if I ever have to use the Dell Recovery Disks that I made when I first bought it. Or will I not need to enter one :confused
I emailed dell soon after purchase about the different keys but did not get a satisfactory answer from them.
dave

 

Hello,
When Dell puts the OS on their computers, it is through an image. They sell tons of computers, so every Dell with that OS will have the same key. They all work because the computers are pre-activated via a SLIC BIOS. Hackers have been able to bypass activation by using these OEM keys and certificates with a Modded BIOS that makes Microsoft think they are looking at an OEM machine.

From Wiki:

Edit: As long as you have those restore disks, you do not have to worry about the key. But, it is probably a good idea just to mark it down.

 

It's a great piece of rhetoric dlb, but the only real answer of course is to image the system before trouble strikes. Win 7 users have no excuse for not doing so as Win 7 is the first MS OS to have true imaging capability built-in. Others need to set up imaging for themselves but sadly, only a small minority ever do so - generally the same ones that don't get the significance of the COA.

 

Sorry,
I forgot to mention to @pronco that the post of dlb is almost a year old and to dave.m, it would have been a good idea to start a new thread.

 

Aaaah, I hadn't noticed that either :-o

 

Yea, I know how you feel. I sometimes get caught up in these necro-posts. :-D