XP: can I move it to a new machine?

I have a copy of XP that I bought for my old Dell (ugh) laptop a few years ago. That machine is dying. Can I install that copy on a different machine or will I get a nasty error message? I realize this question has probably been asked before, but my search yielded nothing on this topic.

I heard a rumour once that you could contact Microsoft and get some kind of permission to install on more than one machine if, say, you had a laptop and a desktop (which is exactly the situation with me).

Am I being extremely hopeful?

Cheers,

Peel

 

To which question Microsoft responds:

 

I am so not surprised. Fooey! Well, my husband needs a new machine anyway...

Thanks,

Peel

 

Try to get it with the full original CDs for everything, not RESTORE/RECOVERY CDs. Then you can clean the HD when you get it and repartition it and put the software on it YOUR WAY, and without hidden partitions or other trash on it.
We hear about endless grief here from pre-installed OSes and suites. And getting the full installation CDs is a MUST. Companies that won't give them to you don't deserve your business.

(Okay, okay! That's just one geek's opinion.)

 

ok make that two

 

three



12345

 

as far as I know if you call them up and ask them for it, you'll get it. You pay for a licensed copy of the software, you should get your copy of it. If you format the machine and don't have cd to reinstall it with, then you are with out a copy of something you legally licensed and hence your software copy resides in the hands of the OEM vendor. I'm not sure what you would call that.. maybe illegal? but no one makes enough stink about it.

 

Wisewiz

I also was wondering though, if the original machine went caput like she is saying, and will not be fixed and is unuseable, would she then be able to get authorization to put in on another mach.

 

Also, this is a stand alone copy of XP that I purchased to replace the Win98 that came on the old machine. That should make a difference, right?

Peel

 

Not to Da Company. How would you suggest that Da Company verify that the other machine is no longer using the original copy of XP? MS doesn't want a graveyard full of dead laptops in its backyard, so that's out. How about swearing out an affidavit? Well, can you lie on an affidavit? See the problem to Da Company?

 

Absolutely. No one makes enough stink about it, and millions of people queue up to buy machines from Dell (and others, but they're the most successful of the RECOVERY-DISC vendors) and they accept the fact that there are no original discs and they get that stupid hidden partition that 90% of them don't even know is there until they install another disc drive and have problems and SURPRISE! there's the hidden partition! And ... oh, never mind.
Blech!

 

I would think that as long as you have it uninstalled from your old machine, you should be able to install your copy of XP on a new machine. You should at least try calling them to see if they will activate it. Tell them the truth, your old machine died and you bought a new one. Worst thing that could happen is that they would say no.

From here: http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/basics/activation/mpafaq.asp

What happens when you try to install and activate on more PCs then the end user license agreement (EULA) allows?

Per the EULA, installing on more PCs then the EULA allows would be in violation of the EULA. Technically, product activation does not limit the number of PCs the software can be installed on. It would be possible technically to install the software on, for example, 100 PCs. Activation would fail though on 99 (98 for Office XP or Office 2003) of those 100 PCs thereby limiting the usefulness of the illegal installation. Outside of an activation attempt, Microsoft does not know how many PCs Windows XP, Office XP family product, or Office 2003 System product have been installed on.

Is it possible to transfer a license to another computer?

Consumers should refer to the terms of their license agreement to determine whether or not it is legal to transfer a license to another computer. But in those cases where it is allowed, the product must first be removed from the previous computer. Users may be required to complete the activation on the new computer by placing a call to the Microsoft Activation Center.

I just found this too:

If I try to activate a Windows XP SP1 installation with a Product Key that has been used on another computer, I get an error message that prompts me to buy an additional Windows XP license. Is this new?

Yes. Beginning with Windows XP SP1, Microsoft is offering the ability for users in certain locations to purchase an additional Windows XP license for a second computer at a discount. If you completely remove Windows XP from the computer that it was first installed on, no additional license is required.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;302878

 

I think that you might have to read the scope of the phrase "in certain locations" as applying to all of the rest of that answer. In Thailand, for instance, MS does a lot of things it won't do in the US or Canada or the UK, because the economy of Thailand can't play the game the way we play it.

But you are definitely right, Jamiko: It can't hurt to make the call and make the effort.

 

Good point WW, reading it that way I can see the possibility for conflict.

 

Of interest (?), this is in my EULA: (c:\winnt\system32\eula.txt) I am assuming this is the EULA for XP. Do I assume correctly? Everything I've ever heard is that you will have no problems activating your retail copy (OEM installs are a different animal) on the new computer, provided you remove it from the old machine. You may need to give them some documentation, maybe a fax of a photocopy of the CDROM or something. Regardless, it is very clear that you *cannot* install one licensed copy of XP on two different machines. You must remove it from one before putting it on the other, because once you activate it on the 2nd machine, the first will start demanding to be activated.

13. SOFTWARE TRANSFER. Internal. You may move the Software
to a different Workstation Computer. After the transfer,
you must completely remove the Software from the former
Workstation Computer. Transfer to Third Party. The
initial user of the Software may make a one-time
permanent transfer of this EULA and Software to another
end user, provided the initial user retains no copies of
the Software. This transfer must include all of the
Software (including all component parts, the media and
printed materials, any upgrades, this EULA, and, if
applicable, the Certificate of Authenticity). The
transfer may not be an indirect transfer, such as a
consignment. Prior to the transfer, the end user
receiving the Software must agree to all the EULA terms.

 

Hate to use this but (nothing ventured, nothing gained.)

 

And oh, this begs to be said, too. If and when you get tired enough of ALL of this RUN-AROUND and want to just buy (or download) an OS to use it no-hassle,

You can move to a truly multi-tasking open source computing environment:


http://fedora.redhat.com/

Note: this thing worked "out of the box" for me. Printer, hardware modem, etc...

Everything auto-configured, nothing but PnP.

Saying goodbye to Micro$oft is only the BEGINNING of the fun you'll have, though, you'll see. Just a thought.

 

How do you

get an "original" CD? I run ME on a Compaq ( I know, I know...one day I will buy/build a REAL computer). I called the Redmond office last year and inquired about this issue and they gave me a $12.00 run-around on my phone bill to tell me that my recovery disc is sufficient, and that I was not entitled to an "original" OS CD. Who/where do you call? I would be very interested in getting one. As luck would have it, I have not yet had to do a re-install..but it's coming, isn't it?

 

I know three people who had same situation. When they called the MS Number in the activization window and explained their situation, they were given new activation numbers.
Some people say they only maintain the old activations for a limited time, so try installing on the new machine and if the activation isn't accepted, call the phone number listed in the message.
Good Luck

 

the OEMS will ship you the software, for a price.

What they do is, have a cd creator built in. If you don't use it, then you don't have recovery cds. They are not required to give you an OS CD so long as recovery media can be provided or acquired.

 

I don't understand...

QUOTE: "the OEMS will ship you the software, for a price.

What they do is, have a cd creator built in. If you don't use it, then you don't have recovery cds"

Am I to understand that I have to have a CD creator installed and download??

 

OEM computers like SOny, Compaq and HP have a recovery disk creator built in, it can only be run once.

 

Right. I think, though, that the point Kodo and I were making is that smart consumers should just say NO to vendors who want to go that route.

You wanna sell me a machine? Full install discs, please. No original full-system discs? Ok, no sale.

Buy? Bye!

My position, anyway. ...

 

i know that i bought a new HD cuz i had a crash on a winXP based computer's hard drive, and the activation code no longer worked upon reinstalling XP, so we phoned MS and they gave us a new activation code.

also i definitly agree with the policy of not buying from companies that dont give full install discs, although i tend to build my own computers anyway.

 

I purchased a bunch of dell gx270's last year and they came with the XP CD. So I think dell got the idea anyway and there is no crud on it. It's a clean disk. I was amazed!!

 

Dell is one of the few. Gateway used to as well, but I don't think they do now.

 

Dell used to have annoying ones. Compaq is a killer for it! they make you THINK youve got a CD because its a package that says "OS CD" on it, but actually its just the i386 folder which it tell you to insert while its doing its "restore" thing

 

Not anymore they don't.

They have a CD creator, which runs once, and requires 6 CDs, or 1 DVD, out of your own pocket.

Lame.

 

ok, I'm skipping half the thread cause I'm lazy and don't feel like reading. As a system builder I've become familiar with MS licensing.
If you have indeed bought a full retail copy then yes, you can install it on another machine, provided that it's the only one it's installed on. if the activation part of windows freaks out because you've already activated then call them up, talk to a person and explain the situation, they'll give you another number. I've done it before.
If you have an OEM copy of windows then technically that copy is mated to the machine you bought it with. you cannot move it, even if the machine dies. This is why the product code is affixed to the side of the machine with a sticker.
and adrynalyne is correct about the copy of windows, as long as there is a way to recover the unit then they don't have to give you a real disc. Whether that recovery is on the HDD or cd's is simply up to the manufacturer.

 

You are about 2 months late