The Official OcUK Vista Licencing Questions FAQ Thread

lordedmond · 18 Jan 2007 at 09:01

i will try

you are correct as to OEM/retail regards up grading

your xp licence will cease when you upgrade from it

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 12:28

lordedmond said:
your xp licence will cease when you upgrade from it

No it won't.

Burnsy

stealthgeek · 18 Jan 2007 at 12:38

burnsy2023 said:
No it won't.

Burnsy

Burnsy, you seem to be the de-facto Vista Licensing guru here, can you help at all with any of the questions?

thanks

1dmf · 18 Jan 2007 at 13:16

Can someone tell what hapens if I buy an Upgrade OEM version of Vista (i've just built a new computer so am entitled to OEM) , but currently have a retail version of XP.

what licence do I get and surely I can then use my Win XP on another machine as it is a retail version and this machine will be running Vista which is a separate OS under OEM license.

This is a little confusing to me, thanks 1DMF.

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 14:05

1dmf said:
Can someone tell what hapens if I buy an Upgrade OEM version of Vista (i've just built a new computer so am entitled to OEM) , but currently have a retail version of XP.

what licence do I get and surely I can then use my Win XP on another machine as it is a retail version and this machine will be running Vista which is a separate OS under OEM license.

This is a little confusing to me, thanks 1DMF.

Yes, buy OEM Vista for the new machine and as long as you have totally removed XP from the old PC you are entitled to install it on another as you have the retail edition.

Burnsy

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 14:31

stealthgeek said:
OK, I understand that with the OEM version of Vista Ultimate, you can install on your PC, but if you upgrade the motherboard, the license expires with the old motherboard, meaning that a new license is required. Correct? Conversely, does Vista Ultimate retail allow you to install multiple times (I am referring to multiple upgrades over the next few years! Im not interested in putting it onto multiple PCs)?

Vista retail entitles you to upgrade you machine as much as you wish, or even transfer machine (as long as you only have it on one at a time), but OEM will live an dies with the first machine it's installed on.

stealthgeek said:
Firstly, If I upgrade from an OEM OS, does that make my Vista license OEM? If so, does that mean I am restricted to one motherboard?

No, the upgrade in an extension not a replacement of the OEM licence. If you install an upgrade on a machine with an OEM version of XP you still have the restrictions you have with the qualifying product (XP). So if you replace the motherboard, you invalidate the OEM licence, but not the Vista upgrade. So to continue to use it legally, you'd need to get another retail or OEM copy of XP.

stealthgeek said:
Secondly, how will Vista know I am licensed to use my copy of XP? Will it just request the disc, or will it check the hard drive ffor an activated copy of XP? Or will it even need to contact Microsoft to validate?

Apparently, and I've not confirmed this yet, you need to have an installed and activated version of either 2000 or XP to upgrade.

stealthgeek said:
Thirdly, I understand that after you upgrade to Vista, your license to use XP dies - is this correct? If so, how does that leave me if I wanted to dual boot from an OEM version of XP and an upgrade version of Vista?

No, when you upgrade, the two licences stay separate although they have dependancies, however, you can't dual boot. The reason being is that the OEM licence only allows one install and as the upgrade is an extension to the OEM licence, it's already used. You could however, dual boot if you bought a copy of the retail edition or Vista OEM licence.

stealthgeek said:
Basically, I want to be able to dual boot with XP and Vista to begin with, and further down the line move completely to Vista. I would also like to be able to upgrade at least 2/3 times without having to buy another vista license, if possible?

My advice is to buy a Vista OEM licence and then you can dual boot with no hassle.

Burnsy

andyr · 18 Jan 2007 at 14:51

Hi if i buy home premium retail version and load 32bit version and then re format can i then choose to load 64bit or am i stuck to 32bit , thanks

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 14:52

andyr said:
Hi if i buy home premium retail version and load 32bit version and then re format can i then choose to load 64bit or am i stuck to 32bit , thanks

Yes, I'm pretty sure you can do that.

Burnsy

FatRakoon · 18 Jan 2007 at 14:57

andyr said:
Hi if i buy home premium retail version and load 32bit version and then re format can i then choose to load 64bit or am i stuck to 32bit , thanks

At last... A Question that hasnt been asked 400 times so far.

Yes, I think you can install any one or the other at any time too.

You cannot of course use them both, on either 2 PCs or, im sure, nor can you dual boot either, although if burnsy could clear this one up?

EDIT: Sorry, I just noticed burnsys reply.

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 15:04

FatRakoon said:
You cannot of course use them both, on either 2 PCs or, im sure, nor can you dual boot either, although if burnsy could clear this one up?

You are indeed correct mate.

Burnsy

FatRakoon · 18 Jan 2007 at 15:09

burnsy2023 said:
You are indeed correct mate.

I had a good teacher.... You a few posts back LOL

stealthgeek · 18 Jan 2007 at 16:01

burnsy2023 said:
My advice is to buy a Vista OEM licence and then you can dual boot with no hassle.

Burnsy

But I thought this will prevent me from upgrading?

FatRakoon · 18 Jan 2007 at 16:12

I think its supposed to be RETAIL not OEM

1dmf · 18 Jan 2007 at 17:53

Yes, buy OEM Vista for the new machine and as long as you have totally removed XP from the old PC you are entitled to install it on another as you have the retail edition.

Burnsy

I see someone has posted that the upgrade version of Vista is an extension of the existing XP licence.

So if I apply an OEM upgrade to an exisiting retail version of XP , and it is actually the XP licence in force , how does that work if my XP licence is retail?

do i get a hybrid licence for Vista or is it actually a downgrade?

also if I have retail XP but it needs to be installed to apply the upgrade of Vista, and I need to wipe my hard drive or have a crash and need to re-install , but am using my retail version of XP on another machine, how can I then install XP on the machine to then use the upgrade, that would mean 2 machines running the same XP, surely I don't have to remove the XP from the other machine, just so I can load it on the crashed machine to enable me to then use the vista upgrade?

does the XP install need to be activated before the vista upgrade will install?

zero_01 · 18 Jan 2007 at 17:56

I have just Bought a new Computer just before christmas with Windows XP Home OEM and got the windows vista upgrade card. If i buy the Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 32-Bit & 64-Bit Upgrade Edition DVD - Retail. does this mean that i can install this over my copy of xp and if i wanted to change my motherboard a couple years down the line, would i need to install my old copy of xp home and then install vista.

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 20:52

stealthgeek said:
But I thought this will prevent me from upgrading?

No, you'll have an XP and Vista OEM licence and can therefore install both at the same time.

Burnsy

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 20:59

1dmf: sorry mate I just can't quite understand your last post, however many times I read it, can you explain it a bit better? I'll reply to the stuff I can understand.

1dmf said:
does the XP install need to be activated before the vista upgrade will install?

Yes.

Burnsy

Burnsy2023 · 18 Jan 2007 at 21:06

zero_01 said:
I have just Bought a new Computer just before christmas with Windows XP Home OEM and got the windows vista upgrade card. If i buy the Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 32-Bit & 64-Bit Upgrade Edition DVD - Retail. does this mean that i can install this over my copy of xp and if i wanted to change my motherboard a couple years down the line, would i need to install my old copy of xp home and then install vista.

Can I make something clear, there are four types of licences for Windows: OEM, Upgrade, FPP (Full packaged Product or RETAIL) and Volume Licenced.

If you ask a qestion, please don't mix the terms, it makes it very hard to understand.

If you have an OEM copy of XP, use a Vista UPGRADE and then upgrade your motherboard you have problems. This is because the upgrade of the motherboard wil linvalidate you OEM licence and therefore not make you eligable for the Vista UPGRADE.

Burnsy

1dmf · 19 Jan 2007 at 00:08

1dmf: sorry mate I just can't quite understand your last post,

what i'm saying is I have a full retail version of XP , can I purchase an OEM UPGRADE of VISTA as I have just built a new machine?

what licence do I end up with and seings as I have a retail version of XP , if I then put it on another machine, as my current one will then be Vista NOT XP , don't i have a problem if I need to re-install Vista?

hope that is clearer, probably not - lol

Burnsy2023 · 19 Jan 2007 at 10:02

1dmf said:
what i'm saying is I have a full retail version of XP , can I purchase an OEM UPGRADE of VISTA as I have just built a new machine?

what licence do I end up with and seings as I have a retail version of XP , if I then put it on another machine, as my current one will then be Vista NOT XP , don't i have a problem if I need to re-install Vista?

hope that is clearer, probably not - lol

There is no such product as an OEM UPGRADE, is it OEM or UPGRADE?

Burnsy