Windows CD Key

[BobtheCkroach]

Hey, I have a copy of Windows XP Professional that I haven't used in a year. I'd like to use it now, but I have lost the CD key for it. I dont' want to get into illegal territory and use someone else's key, or a key gen...does microsoft provide a way for you to get a new CD key in this event? I have the order # from the Gateway order when I bought it...

[ME BIGGD01]

hers the deal....

if it is a gateway or any other oem computer, they have to put the key on a sticker on the pc. look on the computer itself and you may fing what you are looking law. it has to be there under the ms agreement for oems.

[BobtheCkroach]

:thumbs: :wootrock: Big you frickin' ROCK! Thank you SO much! :jammin:

[ME BIGGD01]

:thumbs:

[MR. SLiK]

just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.

[Fantum309]

Originally posted by MR. SLiK@Jun 18 2004, 06:59 PM
just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.
What do you mean by "max out"?

[MR. SLiK]

Originally posted by Fantum309+Jun 19 2004, 08:11 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Fantum309 @ Jun 19 2004, 08:11 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-MR. SLiK@Jun 18 2004, 06:59 PM
just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.
What do you mean by "max out"? [/b][/quote]
it is a retarded thing that microsoft did, you can max out the number of times you activate your XP key. After that, you have to get a new one.

[Fantum309]

Originally posted by MR. SLiK+Jun 19 2004, 01:15 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (MR. SLiK @ Jun 19 2004, 01:15 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
Originally posted by Fantum309@Jun 19 2004, 08:11 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-MR. SLiK@Jun 18 2004, 06:59 PM
just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.
What do you mean by "max out"?
it is a retarded thing that microsoft did, you can max out the number of times you activate your XP key. After that, you have to get a new one. [/b][/quote]
I don&#39;t believe that&#33; It&#39;s like Ford or Chrysler giving you a limit on how many miles you can drive one of their products. If it is true, then all it will take is one lawsuit to get it straightend out&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; Hell, I had to reactivate my OS just by changing the RAM.

[LaSH]

And what was the reason my post was deleted? Kinda chickensh&#33;t of doing it and not even telling a person why.

[EXEcution]

Originally posted by LaSH@Jun 19 2004, 11:18 PM
And what was the reason my post was deleted? Kinda chickensh&#33;t of doing it and not even telling a person why.
lol happens to me all the time, mods or admins go around deleting my posts if i write dirty stuff and/or highly classified info, or a mix of both :oooo:
So since this would be considered spam i will now write somethig that relates to the topic.
If one happens to lose a CD key to any particular program or Operating System, one should always consult the back of his computer or call up the company that made the software. Kaz.....err :online2long:

[FUS1ON]

Lash if you want to know, I deleted your post and I will continue to delete all posts that consist of just a smilie (Which your&#39;s consisted of just a :rofl: ) and post with no comments that pertain to or add to the original conversation and post that are off-topic.

The hardware & software sections are spam free zones and the admins have ask me to keep it that way. The thread is gone now but Sal had a pinned thread here at one time explaining that. You must have missed reading it or you would have understood.

Exe maybe you should take a hint if that is really happening to you here in these sections as well as in other parts of GM. BTW Since you and I had our talk, I&#39;ve had no problem with you so stop whining about the past. :rolleyes:

Sorry guys & Have a nice day :wave:

EDIT I found it and re-pinned it LINK (http://www.gamemecca.net/forums/index.php?act=ST&f=8&t=28724&st=0)

[LaSH]

Well EXCUSES me,i thought he was joking. Thats the reason i put the smiley their. Like Fantum309 i never heard of that so their for i took it as a joke. It was by far not meant as spam. If we have become this strict in these threads then maybe i need to keep my a55 in the basement.


And yes i read it and no i didnt misunderstand it.

[MR. SLiK]

Originally posted by Fantum309+Jun 19 2004, 07:22 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Fantum309 @ Jun 19 2004, 07:22 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
Originally posted by MR. SLiK@Jun 19 2004, 01:15 PM

Originally posted by Fantum309@Jun 19 2004, 08:11 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-MR. SLiK@Jun 18 2004, 06:59 PM
just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.
What do you mean by "max out"?
it is a retarded thing that microsoft did, you can max out the number of times you activate your XP key. After that, you have to get a new one.
I don&#39;t believe that&#33; It&#39;s like Ford or Chrysler giving you a limit on how many miles you can drive one of their products. If it is true, then all it will take is one lawsuit to get it straightend out&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; Hell, I had to reactivate my OS just by changing the RAM. [/b][/quote]
Its true, its happened to me, twice.

[ME BIGGD01]

Originally posted by MR. SLiK+Jun 23 2004, 01:41 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (MR. SLiK @ Jun 23 2004, 01:41 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>
Originally posted by Fantum309@Jun 19 2004, 07:22 PM

Originally posted by MR. SLiK@Jun 19 2004, 01:15 PM

Originally posted by Fantum309@Jun 19 2004, 08:11 AM
<!--QuoteBegin-MR. SLiK@Jun 18 2004, 06:59 PM
just as a reminder, if you max out or lose your key, call up microsoft and tell them what happened and they will give you a replacement key.
What do you mean by "max out"?
it is a retarded thing that microsoft did, you can max out the number of times you activate your XP key. After that, you have to get a new one.
I don&#39;t believe that&#33; It&#39;s like Ford or Chrysler giving you a limit on how many miles you can drive one of their products. If it is true, then all it will take is one lawsuit to get it straightend out&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33; Hell, I had to reactivate my OS just by changing the RAM.
Its true, its happened to me, twice. [/b][/quote]
not entirely true if i understand you. yes, you will have to call microsoft if you have activated the key already (which is bs and the deserve the consequence)you need to get another long key to enter before the new activation. but you do not have to pay for it.


the best way around this is to ghost an image of your drive the way it is afater all your software is on. this is the best way to backup your system. it also saves you time instead of doing a long clean install along with updates. ghost is the best product that symantecs pus out and well worth the price. (sometimes it comes free with your motherboard cd.)

what i use is a corporate edition of xp pro due to the nonsense. i own the actual cd and with that i do not need any headaches because of the amount of upgrades i do.

[MR. SLiK]

Originally posted by ME BIGGD01@Jun 22 2004, 07:29 PM
but you do not have to pay for it.
yeah I know, I meant you need to get one, but they dont charge for it. It&#39;s just a pain reading that 42 digit number so many times.

[PJ'l_Master]

i thought that you only had to reactivate when your MAC addy changed :unsure:

[Fred Bear]

it is a retarded thing that microsoft did, you can max out the number of times you activate your XP key. After that, you have to get a new one. [/b]I don't believe that! It's like Ford or Chrysler giving you a limit on how many miles you can drive one of their products. If it is true, then all it will take is one lawsuit to get it straightend out!!!! Hell, I had to reactivate my OS just by changing the RAM.[/QUOTE]
reactivate jst because you changed ram? I dont understand that

[FUS1ON]

Here's MS's explanation on reactivation. Taken from here LINK (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/evaluate/xpactiv.mspx)


Modifications to hardware and how they affect the activation status of Windows XP
Product activation rechecks the hardware it is running only to help reduce illegal hard disk cloning — another prevalent piracy method. Hard disk cloning is where a pirate copies the entire image of a hard disk from one PC to another PC. At each login, Windows XP checks to see that it is running on the same or similar hardware that it was activated on. If it detects that the hardware is "substantially different", reactivation is required. This check is performed after the SLP BIOS check discussed above, if the SLP BIOS check fails. This means that if your PC is pre-activated in the factory using the SLP pre-activation method, all the components in the PC could be swapped, including the motherboard, so long as the replacement motherboard was genuine and from the OEM with the proper BIOS. As noted above, installations of Windows XP made using volume licensing media and volume license product keys (VLKs) will not have any hardware component checking.

Microsoft defines "substantially different" hardware differently for PCs that are configured to be dockable. Additionally, the network adapter is given a superior "weighting." If the PC is not dockable and a network adapter exists and is not changed, 6 or more of the other above values would have to change before reactivation was required. If a network adapter existed but is changed or never existed at all, 4 or more changes (including the changed network adapter if it previously existed) will result in a requirement to reactivate.

Scenario A:

PC One has the full assortment of hardware components listed in Table 1 above. User swaps the motherboard and CPU chip for an upgraded one, swaps the video adapter, adds a second hard drive for additional storage, doubles the amount of RAM, and swaps the CD ROM drive for a faster one.

Result: Reactivation is NOT required.

Scenario B:

PC Two has the full assortment of hardware components listed in Table 1 except that it has no network adapter. User doubles the amount of RAM, swaps the video card and the SCSI controller.

Result: Reactivation is NOT required.

Dockable PCs are treated slightly more leniently. In a dockable PC, if a network adapter exists and is not changed, 9 or more of the other above values would have to change before reactivation was required. If no network adapter exists or the existing one is changed, 7 or more changes (including the network adapter) will result in a requirement to reactivate.

Scenario C:

Dockable PC Three has the full assortment of hardware components listed in Table 1 except that it has no network adapter. User doubles the amount of RAM, swaps to a bigger hard disk drive, and adds a network adapter.

Result: Reactivation is NOT required.

The change of a single component multiple times (e.g. from video adapter A to video adapter B to video adapter C) is treated as a single change. The addition of components to a PC, such as adding a second hard drive which did not exist during the original activation, would not trigger the need for a reactivation nor would the modification of a component not listed in the above table. Additionally, reinstallation of Windows XP on the same or similar hardware and a subsequent reactivation can be accomplished an infinite number of times. Finally, the Microsoft activation clearinghouse system will automatically allow activation to occur over the Internet four times in one year on substantially different hardware. This last feature was implemented to allow even the most savvy power users to make changes to their systems and, if they must reactivate, do so over the Internet rather than necessitating a telephone call.

[Slice]

I don't believe that! It's like Ford or Chrysler giving you a limit on how many miles you can drive one of their products. If it is true, then all it will take is one lawsuit to get it straightend out!!!! Hell, I had to reactivate my OS just by changing the RAM. [/b]Its true, its happened to me, twice.[/QUOTE]


The difference is you actually own a Ford or Chrysler you don't own your copy of Windows. You simply have paid to use and install it on your HD.

[Fred Bear]

interesting. I didnt know that.

[OUTLAWS Tip]

I've never had a problem and think I have only re-activated once. I've changed just about everything but the motherboard at one time or another. (processor, Ram, video card, Keyboard, mouse, lan card, cd-burner, hard-drive). I had a hard drive fail and after the install on a new hard drive, I think I had to activate again. I clicked a button and it was done.

A non-issue for me.
:D