windows XP locked down after 30 day period

i have an old hand me down dell right now and i had to do a repair instillation of XP, since its old and i didnt have my own software, i just installed a pirated copy and got a key off the internet. but since i didnt crack it in time the computers locked up and i cant sign on. i didnt think this would happen bc i thought ive known other ppl who installed it like so and never activated it w/o problems.

i was wrong and i even got a corporate copy of xp from my friend that needs no key and is legal and tried doing another repair installation with that but now it just reboots shortly after it creates a registry of the existing files.

is there anyway around this? im thinking that now im gonna have to install a copy of ubuntu and uninstall this windows completely if i wanna have any windows at all

im aware windows is shit but i need it for compatibility issues, so dont give me any useless anti windows comments

thanks

 

Do you have another machine (or a friend who could) install your drive into as slave?
If so, use Disk Management to delete the partition on your drive, do a FULL (not quick) format. Remove your drive, replace into your machine and start with a clean drive.

 

" i just installed a pirated copy and got a key off the internet. but since i didnt crack it in time"

I may be wrong...I've only been around here for a few years, but...

MG...pirate....crack...doesn't compute!

Is it just me that sees an epic fail here?

I'll get my coat ;-)

 

I agree hrlow2.....clean install is the way forward :cool

 

Using a product key downloaded from the internet won't work because it has been blacklisted by MS. The corporate copy your friend gave you likely isn't legal either unless he owns the volume license. I'm not going to get into activation cracks and such because MG has a policy against software piracy and I will respect their wishes.

Does this Dell PC have a Certificate of Authenticity on the case?(see below)
http://www.microsoft.com/howtotell/static/images/prepurchase_coas.jpg

 

"http://forums.majorgeeks.com/image.php?u=12877&dateline=1097390060 Just Playin http://forums.majorgeeks.com/images/statusicon/user_online.gif
Major Geek
"




We're being quite nice here, don't you think

 

Ease up Sgt.
Can't you see he's Just Playin?:-D

Even if that avatar is a bit psychotic and spooky.

 

my bad, i dont come here often. soo installing ubuntu wont work?? after i get rid of this windows ill have a legit copy

 

yes, i thought that i wouldnt be able to use that because i already entered a cd key that doesnt match. and furthermore when i boot for install it doesnt even prompt me for a cd key cuz i haev a preactivated corporate copy from a friend

edit:yea hes got a volume license i believe, he got a full volume of microsoft software or somthin like that

 

It would be best if you start over with a clean install. Get a Microsoft OEM installation disc for the version listed on your COA. You can then use the product key on the COA to activate legally.

 

yea, i actually just did a disk format full instillation of the corporate copy and it worked. which i really didnt wanna do but im pressed for time and i need my pc to work. any way i can go into the system registry or somtihn to retireve the data that got formatted without crazy measures

 

Everything's gone Axle, I hope you have back-ups.

 

oh well

do you work for IBM??

 

Doesn't need to.
Formatting wipes EVERYTHING from the drive.

 

May I add a question to this thread?

If so, here you go:

Is it OK by Microsoft to repair or reinstall someone else's Windows installation with your own disc, assuming they don't have one? They have a valid license and product key, of course.

 

That's OK, but the tough part is finding the exact disc version that one needs. Ya know, was it OEM or retail and which flavour of the OS has to match exactly especially for machines like Dell etc. which have their own versions.

 

Black Dahlia asked: Is it OK by Microsoft to repair or reinstall someone else's Windows installation with your own disc, assuming they don't have one? They have a valid license and product key, of course.

Very true - and having the right OEM, etc. disk makes it much easier.

However, I was able to restore a friend's PC with a windows CD and their unique key that was on their commercial computer (eMachines, I believe), but I didn't have the exact OEM disk. I had to do an online activation with Microsoft. It was a long, drawn out process, but I was given a very, very long number to input that validated the install. That was four years ago and it's running fine last I heard. So even if you don't have the exact disk it is possible to get it activated legally.

As to corporate copies of software, even if your friend has a volume license it is still more than likely a violation of the license terms for him to allow you to use it like that . . . just a heads up, since it seems you want to get legal.