Associate
- Joined
- 30 Dec 2003
- Posts
- 2,254
Hi,
I'd like to format my (very old) Acer Travelmate 2410 laptop. I've checked and it did not come with a Windows XP disk. Reading the user guide it appears the system contains a hidden system partition containing restore data, accessible by selecting Alt + F10 on system boot.
I've yet to try this, but I'd imagine it will simply revert it to the state when I first purchased the system - Including lots of unwanted software.
The laptop has a license sticker on the underside, quoting:
"Windows XP Home Edition
Acer Incorporated"
Can I format the disk and remove all partitions (including the system partition) and install using an alternative Windows XP disk and use the license key on the underside of the laptop?
Is removing the system partition likely to cause any problems, above and beyond requiring me to find relevant drivers from the Acer website (found previously)? And if not, is there any limitation as to what Windows XP disk I can use? I have a Windows XP Home Service Pack 2 disk available, would this be suitable with the laptop license key?
Finally, are there any legal ramifications to this in terms of using a Windows XP disk supplied for use with another computer but using the license key from the Acer laptop?
Thank you!
I'd like to format my (very old) Acer Travelmate 2410 laptop. I've checked and it did not come with a Windows XP disk. Reading the user guide it appears the system contains a hidden system partition containing restore data, accessible by selecting Alt + F10 on system boot.
I've yet to try this, but I'd imagine it will simply revert it to the state when I first purchased the system - Including lots of unwanted software.
The laptop has a license sticker on the underside, quoting:
"Windows XP Home Edition
Acer Incorporated"
Can I format the disk and remove all partitions (including the system partition) and install using an alternative Windows XP disk and use the license key on the underside of the laptop?
Is removing the system partition likely to cause any problems, above and beyond requiring me to find relevant drivers from the Acer website (found previously)? And if not, is there any limitation as to what Windows XP disk I can use? I have a Windows XP Home Service Pack 2 disk available, would this be suitable with the laptop license key?
Finally, are there any legal ramifications to this in terms of using a Windows XP disk supplied for use with another computer but using the license key from the Acer laptop?
Thank you!
