Laptop Restore Discs - I want a Windows CD

Minority · 5 Mar 2006 at 12:57

Is there any way to pay a small fee to microsoft and have them send me a Windows XP disc which I can do a clean install with rather than use the restore discs that came with my laptop?

Thanks

AtreuS · 5 Mar 2006 at 13:29

Doubtful. They will just tell you to deal with the OEM maunufacturr you got the laptop off. Personally i hate companies that wont give you a full XP or whatever disc when you pay for "Windows XP".

Minority · 5 Mar 2006 at 13:35

I can download Windows XP from University, can I just use the CD Key on the bottom of my laptop with that version or is it a special volume license edition that universities give away?

Raymond Lin · 5 Mar 2006 at 13:38

Worth a try, you pay for the licence which is on the laptop, not the CD.

Jimathy · 5 Mar 2006 at 14:00

9 times out of 10 yes. so long as you have say an xp pro/home oem disk and an xp pro/home oem license sticker, it should work. retail and oem use different key sets from what i've found. i've also found (the hard way) some oems seem to have their own set of keys so you have to use their disk to make the key work. older acers of 2 or 3 years ago were like this and it's a right royal pita. especially as they want £50 to replace cd's.

most oem installs are a load of old carp anyway, acer's especially.

Minority · 5 Mar 2006 at 15:15

Jimathy said:
most oem installs are a load of old carp anyway

Exactly the reason I want a clean install, can't stand them putting a trial version of Norton on amongst other things.

wesley · 5 Mar 2006 at 15:31

think it would be OEM XP Pro/Home

download XP OEM Pro/Home from any P2P and use key from licence sticker

its safe and 100% legal

MS dont care where u got the XP disc from but as long you use the key from licence sticker on your machine

PinkPig · 5 Mar 2006 at 16:38

wesley said:
its safe and 100% legal

MS dont care where u got the XP disc from but as long you use the key from licence sticker on your machine

I'm really, really, not convinced that either of those statements are true!

Faz · 5 Mar 2006 at 16:45

If it's a Dell laptop, you might struggle, I tried the same with mine and it wouldn't activate online. Never tried ringing them so it might work via that route

leezer3 · 5 Mar 2006 at 18:43

The trouble here is that MS have 'turned-off' the activation of keys that are supplied via SPL installs.
Basically, in laymans terms what this means is that any key on a branded machine will not activate online- You will have to use the restore disks or ring MS.
Where the vendor supplied a full hologram CD, then it should activate online as long as its the same machine etc.
The quickest way to tell I believe is to look at the COA sticker- Blue OEM & it won't activate online, otherwise it should.

(Also, use something like Magical Jellybean to find the XP key from the install- It will be totally different to that printed on the bottom)

-Leezer-

crashuk · 5 Mar 2006 at 19:35

what about copying the i386 file? then use that for a clean install?

Craig321 · 5 Mar 2006 at 19:42

Minority said:
I can download Windows XP from University, can I just use the CD Key on the bottom of my laptop with that version or is it a special volume license edition that universities give away?

Tried this with my brothers, he has and Advent PC that cames with a recovery disk, but the Windows on the recovery disk is filled with all sorts of rubbish and it's very buggy.

So we tried to install Windows on his PC one of our CDs, then used the CD key on the side of the case but it wouldn't work.

Craig.