Options for 'Fixing' A Pirated Copy of Windows

PunkOfLinux writes "My parents are running a pirated copy of windows that my mom received from a teacher at school. My parents want to go legit, and buy a copy of Windows, but they are afraid of deleting everything and having to reinstall all their programs. Seeing as I know you guys will have an answer, I'm going to ask you: What would you do in this situation?"

First of all...

[Anonymous Coward]

I would post as anonymous coward...

Call microsoft

[Data Link Layer]

Call their help support line and you can buy a copy from them. They will tell you how to replace the cd-key, if they can't you can download a cd-key changer from the internet.

Re:Call microsoft

[phoebus1553]

Microsoft actually makes a key change tool, although I'm sure it obeys some restrictions while the ones from don't. If you've ever had to deal with the volume licensing support folks, they can occasionally be real people and give you all sorts of tricks and such to make your life easier when dealing with license compliance.

Re:Call microsoft

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, the Microsoft 'KeyChangeTool' is quite leaps and bounds ahead of any ... third-party ... key changing tools. The Microsoft tool has the ability to transform a Corporate install into a Professional Non-Corporate install. No key changers can do this.

If you try any of the registry tricks to 'update' your product key, Windows XP Professional Corporate's Activation Wizard will not accept a non-corporate key. The non-Microsoft key changers I ever saw couldn't get around this because there are very specific differences (file based) between corporate and non-corporate versions of Windows.

In any case, my recommendation to poster is to do what I did: Run the WGA tool, click the link to buy a license online, buy the license, and use the MS keychanger. Takes about 5-10 minutes overall, and you get the creamy goodness of running your very own legit copy of Windows XP.

Do Complete Backups *First*

[billstewart]

If they're running a new enough version of Windows to care about the problem, but are afraid of reinstalling all their software, they probably aren't the type of people to do good backups, but their system should support external USB drives. So they should go spend $100-150 to get an external hard drive, drag&drop all their data onto it, and see if there's a good backup program that'll do something useful with installed programs (any recommendations?).

*Then* they can think about doing a Windows key update or if necessary reinstalling.

Re:Call microsoft

[Aeomer]

Be very careful when downloading key changes - Most if not all contain some kind of malware. Even ones you think you can trust (and there were a few) are loaded up with malware, spyware, viri, trojans etc etc and then re-released. Go with the MS one. In-fact it can be run from the command line and is already built into Windows XP since before even SP1 was available. It's msoobe - and oh yes, there are malware apps that pretend to be msoobe ;-(

Change your product key

[complete loony]

You can change your product key [microsoft.com].

Re:Change your product key

[NixLuver]

From the article you linked to, on Microsoft's KB (Do they still call it technet?):

"Warning The steps in the article are effective only on Volume License media. If you try these steps on OEM media or on retail media, you will not change the product key."

AFAIK, this will only work with another volume licensed key. I occasionally have to install windows to test something for one of my moonlighting clients, and no, I don't buy a discrete license for a machine that's only going to have my copy of XP on it for two hours; I've been around the particular treadmill described here. (I own a "legit" XP license for my virtual PC instance; and I rarely start it up, so usually I'm not in violation anyway - one license, one running instance. *shrug*).

But if the author of the parent post buys his parents a licensed copy of XP from a vendor, it won't be volume licensed, and this trick may not work.

Microsoft does not know the alphabet.

[students]

In a VB (eww!) script in parent's link:

Wscript.echo "Correct usage: Cscript ChangeVLKey.vbs ABCDE-FGHIJ-KLMNO-PRSTU-WYQZX"

Back to kindergarten, Microsoft.

Buy a copy of windows

[Anonymous Coward]

and just use this tool

http://download.microsoft.com/download/e/9/c/e9c73 b60-bff1-4f03-b06f-d3cbe8f8d9f4/KeyUpdateTool.exe [microsoft.com]

enter in your new key, reboot and you are legit

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[Anonymous Coward]

Is it just me, or does that application SERIOUSLY lack nice MIDI music?

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[rivetgeek]

You've obviously not pirated much. Most program cracks and keygens are, for some inexplicable reason, created with obnoxious midi loops that auto play when you run them.

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[Anonymous Coward]

It's a "tradition" dating back to late '80s / early '90s, when crackers (back then mostly on Amiga and to lesser extent, Atari) routinely added colourful "crack intros" to every game they released, complete with simple demo effects, text scroller and catchy music.

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[ameoba]

It predates this and goes back to 8-bit machines, such as the Commodore 64. The sound hardware of the C=64, the SID chip, with both it's limitations and unheard of features (it was only 3 voices and could only do a few basic digital waveforms but it also had analog filters and flexible voice arpegiation), is the basis of the "chip tune" style of music that is still very much popular in the Demo Scene.

Re:So tell me...

[CaptainAvatar]

What is this [leekspin.com] a crack for? :-)

My sanity.

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[Spokehedz]

They are not MIDI loops, they are MOD/C64 Music--as a nod to the demo programmers of decades past.

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[StikyPad]

I think he meant MODs or C64 music. The "C64 music," was SID files [c64.org], cleverly named after the SID chip [wikipedia.org]. IIRC, the later SID players supported lyrics complete with a little bouncing ball, and I vaguely remember downloading these files from Q-Link back in my early double digits.

Anyway, MODs [wikipedia.org] came out in 1987, which is the same decade as 1982 -- the year the C64 was released.

Re:Buy a copy of windows

[kennygraham]

Do such programs normally have a soundtrack?

CD key generators by several popular groups tend to have midi files that repeat over and over again. Some are supprisingly nice.

This is Microsoft, just call us

[TrekCycling]

We'll handle it from here, crimin.., I mean Sir. Just call us. Nothing to worry about.

Seriously, though, I would think one big problem is that to to get legal you're Windows install is going to have to send a new registration message off to Microsoft. Not sure how you do that without a reinstall.

Maybe if they're on XP Home, buy them an OEM version of XP Pro?

TweakXP

[Tinfoil]

TweakXP should do that for ya. Buy a new copy and key the serial number you get over the old one. Unless, of course, your parents have a volume license copy right now, and they buy a home version. Then you have to do a repair install.

http://www.tweakxp.com/tweakutility/ [tweakxp.com]

Why bother?

[DbZeroOne]

Are they losing sleep at night feeling like they're taking food out of the mouths of those in Redmond? Do they think their system will run better? Perhaps they feel it's a sin because technically it's stealing? My advice... don't even bother with it. Buy Vista if and when it's released or wait until you get a new computer.

Re:Why bother?

[kripkenstein]

More specifically: why now? Is it just because the WGA notice started popping up? I'm curious.

Re:Why bother?

[neo8750]

Do they think their system will run better?

I think that it makes a difference. My friend had a AMD 2200 and had a gig of ram. His system ran fine and dandy till the wga started popping up. Once it started showing up his system slowed to a slow crawl. (Once he applied a wga fix it was up and running just like before the wga ever showed its face) My copy is legit so i couldn't compare results on my system. Did any one else have a problems like this just out of curiosity?

Re:Why bother?

[cliffski]

I see, so as microsoft have made a lot of money, that means its ok to pirate their software? Google have made lots of cash too, is it ok if i use click fraud to screw up adwords?
These people are obviously happy with their OS, as they want to stick with it, I dont understand why you think they shouldnt pay for a product they clearly use probably every day, or is this just normal slashdot microsoft bashing?
What is it about products that can be encoded digitally that some people think that their creators dont

Re:Why bother?

[bit01]

What is it about products that can be encoded digitally that some people think that their creators dont need to eat?

Grow up, child.

---

It's wrong that an intellectual property creator should not be rewarded for their work.
It's equally wrong that an IP creator should be rewarded too many times for the one piece of work, for exactly the same reasons.
Reform IP law and stop the M$/RIAA abuse.

Re:Why bother?

[cliffski]

interesting idea. So is it just you and your friends who get to take the product for free under this system, whilst laughing at the poor schmucks who paid for it and made your actions possible?
You seem to be arguing in favour of a change in copyright terms, or higher corporate taxes. But rather than lobby for change, you've decided just to take stuff without paying.
Interesting.

Re:Why bother?

[bzipitidoo]

I'm in favor of changes to intellectual property law. You talk as if the law is holy or something. But we all know very well there are many bad laws on the books thanks to selfish interests who got rich off the masses and then used that wealth to buy laws. They're the ones laughing at the poor schmucks who waste time lobbying. Can't lobby effectively without a lot of money. The ultimate message that the whole idea of "intellectual property" is seriously broken has yet to sink in. How to get that message across? Don't buy or license their "property" and make sure they understand why! Whether that means pirating, boycotting, or finding alternatives is up to the individuals.

It'd be a poor world where everything, tangible or not, has to be owned, where it's considered treason against Capitalism to not play the game and haggle, scratch and claw, and account for every penny. I know what such a world is like because I was in one in miniature. I was once in a private school attractive to wealthy and powerful people. I wonder if you know how those people think? Think of the movies Titanic and Dead Poets' Society. Everything has a price. Save a lady from drowning herself? Worth at least a $20 and a dinner invitation, thank you and go away when dinner is over, you've been paid. No, that was not typical Hollywood bashing of the rich, that's really how those people are. One of the crazier things at the school was the system the students had going for software piracy. You had to have a stake. At that school, these children of the wealthy were not going to give away a copy of some computer game, it had to be "paid" for with a copy of something the "owner" didn't have. A copy for a copy. Strange how fussy those students were about "something for something" all while blissfully ignoring the copyrights of the game makers. But they were always two-faced like that. They were as much and probably more into piracy as everyone else. Intellectual property rights are for little people to obey?

So tell us, where's your righteous outrage on behalf of those people who got screwed into paying for Windows twice, thanks to WGA? To compensate, maybe it's okay for them to pirate Vista when it comes out? Yes, yes, it'd be a lot of fun to drag MS into court and win a lawsuit over this, but it's a lot quicker to just pirate, or pay for Windows again. Saves time, and time is money. Saves on court costs too. 2 wrongs don't make a right, but often a wrong for a wrong is a lot more efficient and cost effective. Admit it, lobbying isn't in the same league as piracy for time, effort, and effectiveness.

Re:Why bother?

[Jah-Wren Ryel]

Haha.

The guy was an idiot and your were congratulating him on it.

He did the equivalent of saying that only druggies complain about drug laws, or only speeders think speed enforcement laws are often abusive, or only gun-nuts dislike gun-restriction laws, etc, etc.

In his self-righteousness, he couldn't even conceive of the possibility that one might make a rational argument criticisizing the state of copyright law without himself being a copyright violator. That's worse than attacking the messenger and ignor

Re:Why bother?

[pilkul]

It's not *technically* stealing - it IS stealing, and it makes you a criminal. The law is not at all ambiguous in regards to this.

Oh is it? Show me a passage in any lawbook that equates copyright infringement with theft.

Also, in many jurisdictions copyright infringement is a tort [wikipedia.org], not a crime.

Re:Why bother?

[Dausha]

"Oh is it? Show me a passage in any lawbook that equates copyright infringement with theft."

17 U.S.C.A. 506(a) - Criminal infringement of copyright - Any person who willfully infringes a copyright shall be punished as provided under section 2319 of title 18, if the infringement was committed for commercial gain, of copyrighted works up to $1000, OR making available a work in production (including movies, music and software) on a computer network against the copyright holder's wishes. There are a total of f

Re:Why bother?

[Yahweh Doesn't Exist]

you showed copyright infringement is a crime, but where did you show it was *theft*?

nowhere.

because it isn't.

gg.

Re:Why bother?

[Mr. Hankey]

I wouldn't - copyright controls copying, not removing property such that the original owner will no longer have. It involves potential profits as opposed to physical objects. They're completely different things.

Re:Why bother?

[Mr2001]

your example of one scientist making one copy is a little questionable if you really want to say something like "not at your expense" and still have this story have any relation to the state of copyright in the world today. More people making copies or perhaps a mad scientist making alot more than one copy? Might make you rethink your expense when it comes time to trade in your car or just use your car in what now is a highway thick with copied cars and virtually no value associated with them.

No economic va

Re:Why bother?

[stonecypher]

Show me a passage in any lawbook that equates copyright infringement with theft.

That's a bit like saying that home invasion isn't assault, and then demanding to see a law book that equates home invasion with assault, with one exception: using unlicensed software isn't copyright infringement. Just because there's a more specific version that uses a name involving different words doesn't mean that it's anything different.

Now, as to why using unlicensed software isn't copyright infringement, let's review, s

Re: Why bother?

[OldManAndTheC++]

Go find one of those stories about a big warezer bust. Follow it through to the indictment; they're all freely available online in the US since 1998..2001, depending on what state you're in. Then, look at what crime the warezers are being convicted of.

I Googled "warez indictment" and found a number of press releases from the federal government. This one, about the RISCISO bust, is typical:

All 19 defendants were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit copyright
infringement, and 15 of the 19 wer

Re:Why bother?

[Jah-Wren Ryel]

All property is protected artificially.

He said artificial scarcity. Not "protected artificially."

The difference is that real property is naturally scarce, or more technically it is rivalrous, and thus inherently "protectable" since there is only one instance to keep track of, either you have it or you don't.

that recognition works just fine as long as everyone plays by the same rules.

However, it is both many orders of magnitude more difficult to enforce the rules for information than it is for real propert

Re:Copyright is a useful compromise

[Anonymous Brave Guy]

Sorry, typo: that should obviously have read "such a system could never work without Big Brother-scale surveillance of any use of copyright materials".

Buy an OEM copy

[(H)elix1]

From a *trusted* on-line vendor. XP home will go for ~80-90 USD, Pro ~140. http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductList.jsp?Thir dCategoryCode=071002 [zipzoomfly.com] for example. You see it offered for much less, odds are it is a "student" version or "replacement media". OEM it typically what system builders use, so if you use that version in theory it is tied to that system. The $300 retail version can be moved from system to system, but costs a boatload more.

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[numatrix]

That's a great idea, except for one thing. It's not any more legal than running the pirate version.

OEM copies may only be sold with a new PC. If they're not buying a new PC, installing an OEM copy is against the license agreement. Of course, most folks don't pay attention to that, but poster did say they were trying to be legal, not aiming for "almost, but not quite" legal.

You can't even transfer your OEM license [microsoft.com] from one machine to another. Again, nobody pays attention to that, but that doesn't cha

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[Lehk228]

OEM copies can be sold with things like computer mice or ethernet cards

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[technothrasher]

OEM copies can be sold with things like computer mice or ethernet cards

Judging from Microsoft's 'System Builder' documentation, I don't think you even need to bother doing that. Buying and installing an OEM version of Windows onto your PC is perfectly fine and legal. But by doing so, you've now created a 'new PC' in Microsoft's eyes and so you no longer have access to any support from them, as support for OEM software is to be obtained from your system builder (namely, you, in this case). So you're legal but completely on your own. At least this is the way I read it.

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[qaz2]

As an individual, how much less on your own are you if you have a retail version?

I do think one should buy the software one uses (I know I do), but I don't expect
any personal support from Microsoft; I'm already glad if they fix known (security)
bugs in a decent time frame.

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[tomhudson]

... or a power cable, or a dead motherboard+cpu ...

But first, why not try a livecd of ubuntu or suse. If it does what they need, save the money, and spend some of it on hardware upgrades.

Re:Buy an OEM copy

[(H)elix1]

The legit vendors meet the letter of the law by shipping a cable or some other trinket that qualifies the media as OEM. That part is not a grey area. Yup, the transfer issue is why I mentioned the retail version - but you would have to transfer from three machines to break even. If you have more than three machines, odds are the volume pricing is for you...

Over-under

[mj01nir]

Over-under on the number of "install Linux over it" posts: 36.

Do NOT fear the Windows Reinstall.

[mikelieman]

IF your folks are worried about a reinstall, they're NOT ready to survive a catastropic harddrive crash.

Much less full reload to clear an infection.

Re:Do NOT fear the Windows Reinstall.

[carpe_noctem]

Yeah, surrrrre, "my parents".

Looks like somebody accidentally installed the WGA update.

Re:Do NOT fear the Windows Reinstall.

[Goo.cc]

That was my very first thought as well. In general, it is amazing how little some people value their data.

I fear the re-install

[RebornData]

Sorry to go on an off-topic rant here, but...

I'm a consultant who helps small business and home users. I can't tell you how many times I have talked to customers who (in the past) have had another tech come along and do a re-install without understanding all of the implications.

There is value in a machine's configuration! The customizations, tweaks, and even icon arrangements people create to make their systems work and lives easier are time-consuming to recreate, and there can be a major loss of productivity if they have to re-do it all from scratch. I'm a professional, and it's not uncommon for it to take me 3-5 hours to do a good job of getting all of the software, utilities, and configuration changes done for a typical business machine. Just because you can rebuild your own gaming rig from scratch in two hours (because you do it once a month) doesn't meant that this is a course of action that makes sense for everyone.

This is why I always recommend *full* backups of the entire system... not just "important" documents. And it's why I do a full re-install as an absolute last resort. I can count the number of re-installs I've been forced into in the last *year* on one hand.

The good news is that if you know what you're doing (unfortunately many techs don't) VERY few problems require a rebuild. It's very possible to clean off even the "worst" infections fairly quickly, with high confidence that everything is gone. I charge a two-hour flat rate for *any* infection cleanup (including kernel rootkits), and that usually works out to my advantage. Hard drives often have only failed in a few sectors... I commonly am able to image the failed drive to a new one, and repair the windows install using a combination of sfc, system restore, misc subsystem fixes, and (in the worst cases) a repair re-install.

The benefit to the user is that they get their machine back *exactly the way it was*, the same day, without a large repair bill. The benefit to me is that the customer is happy and calls me back the next time they have a problem... instead of cursing me the whole time they are trying to rebuild their system the way they had it.

If you are a tech and haven't learned this stuff, you are doing your customers and yourself a disservice.

-R

Re:I fear the re-install

[Baricom]

I'm a professional, and it's not uncommon for it to take me 3-5 hours to do a good job of getting all of the software, utilities, and configuration changes done for a typical business machine.

But a typical business machine is precisely the kind of machine that you should be able to re-image. The advantages of roaming profiles are enormous, and machines should be set up to use them. If they are, then repairing a virus or spyware infection would be a simple matter of rebooting with the image CD in the drive.

You should look before you leap...

[RebornData]

Actually, I really do know what I'm talking about. The theory is simple: all malware has to get launched. There are a limited number of places in windows something can stick itself to get launched at boot time. This is what tools like HijackThis and autoruns allow you to look at. If you use them frequently enough, it's pretty easy to pick out what doesn't below.

Kernel rootkits made this a bit more challenging, since you can't trust what Windows is telling you about what you see through these tools. The

Careful before you buy

[insecuritiez]

For all the people saying just buy Windows and change the key - there is a good chance this *wont* work. In principle changing the key does work - the trick is getting a legal key for the version installed.

Your parents probably installed a Corporate copy of XP. This doesn't take the same keys as Home so they can't just walk down to Best Buy and get a key that is going to work.

In fact, there are a number of different key types including:

* XP Home
* XP Home OEM
* XP Pro
* XP Pro OEM
* XP Corporate
(and more)

Assuming your parents installed Corporate, they still need to buy a legal copy of Windows, yes, but they won't be able to pop the key in and go on their merry way. They will need to do what is knows an a "In place install". This isn't the cleanest way to do things but will make sure all their files are left intact (all settings including the entire registry are lost). Boot off the new disk:

The first menu is going to ask you to install, go to the recovery console, or quit. Choose install by hitting enter.

The second menu is a license agreement, hit F8.

The third menu is going to show the existing Windows installation, choose to install on top of it. You will be warned about an existing Windows install there and be given the option of deleting the existing %systemroot% folder and continuing.

Choosing this option will not delete anything on the drive other that what is in the windows folder. All of their files will still be available by navigating to the "Documents and Settings" folder.

I know it is a dirty mess but it is the only way to go from one version of Windows to another while still retaining the contents of the hard drive.

Re:Careful before you buy

[Barny]

Also theres windows XP Pro "Update" version...

The easy way around most of this is to get the OEM version for the windows you have installed, do a software repair (boot from cd, enter at first screen, f8 then "R" to repair) and then it will take the OEM CD key as normal :)

Re:Careful before you buy

[insecuritiez]

A "repair" will often fail when repairing between different versions of Windows (Home/Pro, Media Center/Pro, etc). I agree that a repair is a lot cleaner than what I suggested but it is less likely to get the job done. Between the different versions, (home, pro, media center) and the different sub versions (upgrade, full, OEM, corp) the number of Windows CDs needed for people who do this daily is ridiculous.

Re:Careful before you buy

[gte910h]

I've done this sort of install before

CAVEAT: Make *sure* you copy all data out of user directories before doing this. You will *not* be able to access them sometimes.

                                --Michael

If it's a pirated version of XP

[Khyber]

Turn that pirated version in to Microsoft and give them some info on how you obtained it, and they'll get you a legit copy of Windows in return, plus a small nominal charge, of course.

Vista

[jdbartlett]

Upgrading XP? Why not just wait for Vista?

See you in a few years.

Re:Vista

[jdbartlett]

Whereas XP is king of the OSes, right? Especially with all that SP2 added security! That solved everything! Microsoft may as well stop right there and call it good - I think they've made the operating system we'll all be using for the next 100 years!

I don't think technically-savvy XP users have delusions of OS superiority. The reason they still use Windows is compatibility phobia/lock-in. Why invest in a system that's in the process of being superseded? Microsoft support will continue for a long time, but n

Windows Genuine Advantage Talkback

[tsvk]

Now that Windows Update and certain Windows downloads require you to validate your copy of Windows before accessing the services (the Windows Genuine [microsoft.com] program), people have of course started having troubles with invalid product keys, etc.

To help people sort out their Windows license problems, Microsoft have put online the Windows Genuine Advantage Talkback [microsoft.com] bulletin board, where Microsoft offers advice for people with license troubles.

An interesting utility that I found mentioned there on the bulletin board is Microsoft Genuine Advantage Diagnostic Tool [microsoft.com], that shows lots of information about the license / product key of the current Windows installation.

Try windows update, they sell keys there

[stikves]

I tried to update one of my friends' laptop, but it failed the activation check. Apparantly he did not install from the original cd that came with his computer (there is a genuine sticker below the laptop so it does have a legal license), but instead used a "corporate version" he got from another friend.

Windows update offered selling a legimate key for retail price. I guess they do this for non-volume versions too.

So all you have to do is engage windows update, get the check failed and follow the correspond

Clean reinstall without loss of data

[QuantumFTL]

Digg had an article [digg.com] recently about how to perform a windows re-install without loss of information. This may be of use to you.

Move to Thailand

[aapold]

Aside from being pirate heaven, a legit copy of thai windows xp costs about $3.50.

It's simple...

[yakhan451]

... all you have to aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all.

Secret Code Here

[pipingguy]

up up down right left right right up enter

Done!

XP's No-Reformat, Nondestructive Total-Rebuild...

[Browzer]

"...how to completely rebuild, repair, or refresh an existing XP installation without losing data, and without having to reinstall user software, reformat, or otherwise destructively alter the setup."

http://www.informationweek.com/showArticle.jhtml;j sessionid=STKGFAI0KVUKAQSNDLPSKH0CJUNN2JVN?article ID=189400897&queryText=nondestructive+ [informationweek.com]

Obvious: Sysprep

[Anonymous Coward]

Use sysprep(found on the xp cd in tools/reskit/deploy.cab or just search the cd for deploy.cab)
extract sysprep.exe and run sysprep.exe -reseal.

when the machine reboots you can enter the COA from your legit copy of XP. no fuss, no muss. and your installed apps will still be there.

For the love of god....it's TOO EASY

[gx5000]

I love all these Pseudo Tech offering advice, it always boggles my mind... 0- Buy a Copy of Windows (whatever version you have installed)or buy a key from M$ 1- Reboot in safe mode 2- Do a search for WPA.* (WPA.DBL, WPA.BAK)They're in C:\windows\system32 3- Delete these file 4- Reboot into normal mode, you will warned that you have blabla time to activate 5- Click to activate, select by phone, select change key (bottom of form) 6- Enter new legit key 7- You are returned to activation screen, click Activate online 8- Do a search and backup the wpa files for future needs 9- Done

If you need/want to do a full reinstall

[ralf1]

This may be of value http://www.informationweek.com/shared/printableArt icle.jhtml?articleID=189400897 [informationweek.com]

call microsoft

[Planesdragon]

No, really, call Microsoft. They will give you all of the legit, legal options. I've seen them sell media-less CD-keys for Windows for as low as $50.

Mod parent up.

[Anonymous Freak]

This is the answer. I have also seen that if you install the new 'check if my copy is legal' tool that MS wants to auto-download through Windows Update, if it detects a pirated version, it will offer to let you buy a legal key for a decent price. ($150 for my [legal] full copy of XP Pro that it incorrectly thought was pirated.)

Also, if you need to go through re-activation, and it doesn't like your key, it will offer to sell you one.

And, if they bought the computer from a store and the store sold them a pi

do the dirty work...

[spiritraveller]

What would you do in this situation?

Whenever I have to reinstall windows (or more often, linux since my main computer runs a different distro about every week), I do an audit of all my data.

First, write down what you need to keep: emails? accounting data from Quicken? config info from other applications? bookmarks? Get it all down and back up everything to an external drive or a CDR.

Second, reinstall the OS and all applications. If you went through the whole harddrive, directory by directory, you should have saved all the config files and data files that you needed. If you didn't, then you should have gone more slowly and carefully.

It is best to do a reinstall anyway, because if they've been running Windows for a long time, they probably have a lot of cruft... left-over services and other junk from programs they don't run anymore that are slowing down their machine... and there's always the possibility of malware lurking in the shadows.

A reinstall takes care of all those things. Tell them not to be afraid, just patient and careful.

Product Key Update Tool

[dtfinch]

I think if you own a valid product key the exact same edition that you pirated, you can download a product key changer from MS that'll let you substitute your valid product key in place of the pirated one. They offer it in the WGA support forums to people who's systems came with XP, but later reinstalled the same exact edition with a pirated key. http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=50346&clcid =0x409 [microsoft.com]

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[LoonyMike]

Yes, it's easy to google for it, provided you already know that the solution relies in a key changer.

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[Slackwise]

7/31/2006,0:18:32 [WARNING] Contains signature of the dropper DR/PSW.RAS.A!
C:\Documents and Settings\Lance\Desktop\RockXP.exe
[INFO] The file will be moved to quarantine.

Dipshit.

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[Ned_Network]

http://www.google.com/search?q=Windows+XP+Key+Ch anger

This was the first thing I tried when a customer approached me with this problem. And it didn't work. Repeatedly.

I guess that "+5 informative" needs some "-1 overrated" side-salad, huh?

I'm pretty sure the reason it doesn't work is that the version of Windows supplied under the genuine advantage program is different from the version that my customer's nephew installed. I believe it was Windows XP Professional Corporate Edition that was installed, and I'd guess that the CD supplied by Microsoft when she clicked on the "Get Genuine" link was either OEM or retail (it was certainly Windows XP Professional, and was a hologrammed CD).

The way I fixed this was to do a "repair install" of Windows XP. [michaelstevenstech.com] This worked perfectly & retained all the user's settings and documents, although I was pretty nervous about doing it and a number of drivers did require reinstall. Honestly, if you're undertaking this, be prepared to back everything up with a Knoppix CD & a portable hard-drive and to do a format-reinstall if necessary.

Ned.

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[jdbartlett]

Since he may need to reinstall anyway, might as well put it off until Vista is released and use its beta in the meantime:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/windowsvista/downloads/p roducts/getthebeta/ [microsoft.com]

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[jdbartlett]

Oh wait, the beta's not available any more. D'oh!

XP Pro Corp to Home = No Repair

[Eddy Da KillaBee]

There's one small problem I've run into at my job when we sell customers an XP Home license to get them off of Corp: you can't do a repair installation from Windows XP Pro to Home. That's a problem because most of the customers we deal with want to save money and don't want the Pro license, although the Pro license gives us the option to Repair, and therefore keep their files, settings, etc.

Anyone know of a possible way to get around this, other than having to reinstall Windows XP Home from scratch?

Re:XP Pro Corp to Home = No Repair

[Tekzel]

Only way I can think of is using "Aloha Bob PC Relocator". You clone the pro drive to another system, and do a repair install on it to get that one up and running and use that one as the "old pc" in the relocation, then install the new windows on the customer's system and use that as the new pc, then do a network relocation. Pain in the ass, but it would work.

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[Tim C]

a number of drivers did require reinstall

It's actually alluded to on the page that you linked to, but it bears spelling out explicitly:

The repair install option returns Windows to the state it is in when freshly installed from the CD used

In other words, while you keep all your settings, files, etc, it wipes out any drivers, service packs or other updates that you have installed since installing from the CD. An XP SP1 install CD used to repair an up-to-date XP install is going to wipe out SP2, and a whole host of other updates.

That's why you had to reinstall the drivers - they weren't on the CD so they were nuked.

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[Jekler]

I'm absolutely amazed. When you already know the answer and derive keywords from the answer you already know, searching for the solution is trivial!

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[TheSpoom]

Contact Microsoft.

Seriously, it's pretty easy for them to change the product key / product ID of an installation, and you won't have to reinstall anything. Plus, I doubt they'll care that much that you pirated in the first place if you say you want to purchase a legal version now.

It probably doesn't apply to you, but if your mom didn't know she received an illegal copy, she could actually get a complimentary Windows license. However, she'd have to rat out said teacher, would have to have bought the counte

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[RemovableBait]

And if you know you don't qualify for their free offer, you don't even have to contact Microsoft to get your key changed.

They actually make a little tool for updating your product key, so you can avoid googling for key changers (which may lead you to potentially dodgy websites).

If you go and buy a boxed/retail copy of the Windows version you are currently running (eg, Home or Pro), you can update the product key by following these instructions [microsoft.com]. Or, instead of buying a retail version, you can buy the WGA kit

Re:Let's get the answer out of the way

[NickFitz]

The directory containing that file also has an Office 2003 key :-)

Re:Reinstall

[SpzToid]

Not true! You've got the OEM installer that can ONLY wipe out anything pre-existing, and the much more expensive RETAIL installer, which is also capable of upgrading an existing instllation. I learned this the hard way. Everyone in town had an OEM copy of XP home, for about 110 euros a licence. But only 1 or 2 had a RETAIL version, and the price was about 290 euros, which I begrudgingly paid to satisfy a client urgent requirement's, (and then became a more vocal Debian & SuSE advocate). From a busines

Re:Reinstall

[TheNetAvenger]

If the dealers are selling the OEM version without any hardware, this would still be an illegal copy. The OEM pricing is set to be lower for computer makers, and is not to be sold without hardware.

However the 290euros is also a bit high. You should be able to buy a 'upgrade' version instead of a 'full' version. They are the same, but one requires the machine to have had a version of Windows installed on it before or the CD to prove you own it. (There are two types of 'retail' versions in other words, and most people only need the upgrade version which is about the same price as the OEM version give or take 10-15 Euro.)

Stay way from people selling OEM copies of any company's software unless they are also keeping to the licensing rules and selling it with a new computer or qualifying hardware. The Windows OEM license used to allow it to be purchased if the end user was buying a new hard drive etc.

If they are just selling the OEM software, with most companies this is illegal and would not help in getting your copy to be legitimate. This is also why OEM software often requires a clean install and will not 'upgrade' as it is not ever to be sold in a circumstance to upgrade anything.

Re:Reinstall

[SpzToid]

Yes, this is also true. Thank you for the additional clarification. Still, I was struck by how common, practically unavoidable it was, to buy OEM versions on my local-dealer-research/purchase day (as I described earlier), and how difficult and expensive it was to buy a retail (full) version. And what buying the inexpensive version *really* meant, (i.e. it would wipe any existing installation, and probably cause difficulty in getting it exchanged for a more capable, expensive version later). M$ certainly d

Depends on legislation, Germany at least differs

[Lonewolf666]

A few years ago, a dealer in germany did exactly that - sold OEM copies of Windows separately from hardware. Microsoft sued him and the lawsuit went all the way to the Bundesgerichtshof (Germany's highest court for non-constitutional issues). In that court, Microsoft lost.
The court found that the EULA was not binding, and Microsoft did not have a separate contract with that dealer that explicitly barred him from selling the OEM versions without hardware (that way, they could have made their OEM rules bindin

Re:Reinstall

[Bambi Dee]

Hum, not in my case. I did install a number of XP Pro OEM discs both "old" and SP2 without wiping anything at all; you don't have to install to C:\WINDOWS - or even to C:\ at all for that matter. It's hardly elegant (you've still got to take ownership of and manually remove/backup all the orphaned user profiles and such) but it won't "wipe out anything pre-existing" either. Nothing will get lost and if you're lucky most apps will still be running fine without reinstallation. Well, it's good enough for me an

Re:Reinstall

[hey!]

I'm not sure of the accuracy of what you say, but IIRC you're saying that they have to pay more for the boxed retail.

The thing is, if you really want to be legit, you have to buy retail.

That's what proprietary software is: you don't buy software you buy rights to do certain, carefully spelled out things with the software, which remains the vendor's property.

So, you may think that charging more for a retail license is unfair because the software inquestion is just the same as the OEM liceense, but technicall

Re:Reinstall

[kgruscho]

Depends on which OEM... the OEM disks are occasionally quite restrictive, in other cases they are close to the retail version..

Using a program called nlite to redo your disc still solve many problems

Re:Reinstall

[cbiltcliffe]

If you have the "name brand disk image compressed into .zip files" OEM CD, then yes, you're right. But you only get that if you have one of a few specific name brands to begin with, which probably means you've got a legit copy of Windows. Hence, it wouldn't apply to this situation.

If you've got the OEM from Microsoft version, which is what any Mom & Pop store gets, and is also included with Acer, some Dells, and I'm sure a couple of others, then you can do a repair install, upgrade install, or just re

Re:Reinstall

[Propaganda13]

They don't want to reinstall because they're don't want to reinstall their pirated copy of Office.

Re:WGA

[BigumD]

Buy a copy of Windows?

Re:Simple...

[AngryUndead]

Microsoft will be dropping retail support for XP in December 2007 or January 2008, and corporate support in December 2008

You are dead [microsoft.com] wrong [microsoft.com]. Stop spreading the FUD. What I think you meant to say is that you won't be able to buy a copy a year after the release date of Vista. According to Microsoft, mainstream support for Windows XP will end two years after Vista has been generally available. So, we're looking at the end of 2008 or beginning of 2009 at the very least (depending on how bad Vista slips),

Re:Simple...

[tomhudson]

"According to Microsoft" .... yeah, tell that to all the banks whe were GUARANTEED support for NT2K, and Microsoft cut it off prematurely because "it wasn't worth it to fix the security issues so close to the end of the products' lifetime" - 2 months.

The same policy will be applied, much more aggresively, with Vista, because of economics.

1. their first decline in revenue
2. continue to bleed money from the XBox
3. just gone through their biggest hiring expansion - more salaries to put more pressure on the bottom

Re:Simple...

[tomhudson]

Revenue will increase in the next year with new releases."

Not certain, and definitely not equating to profits, which are down.

2. Xbox will eventually kill PS3

Wii is the one to watch.

3. More workers = more products = more profits.

Total bullshit. What's happened was predicted a decade ago. Microsoft has already picked all the "low-hanging fruit", and now needs more bodies to squeeze more revenue out of marginal products.

4. Higher stock value

The current prediction is a flat stock value, beca

Re:Options...

[rylin]

Hello muppet.
Why the fuck would you take care to point out acronyms and provide correct capitalization for most products - yet spell "Windows" "'winders"?
Also, what are the "intranetz".

I hate you.

Re:"What would you do in this situation?"

[MSFanBoi2]

Buy a Mac? YOu honestly advocate going out and spending at least 600 bucks (of couse that would require at least another 512 MB of ram, a keyboard and a mouse and possibly a new monitor0, not to mention the costs of replacing software as well as the loss of all the data on the Windows based PC? Lets not even get into the costs of getting them familiar with the Mac over the PC.

Linux? Once again, they loose most, if not all their software, and probably the same with the data.

Sorry when a person asks fo

Re:Obligatory Linux Plug

[doodleboy]

Excuse me for a second. So, Ubuntu doesn't cost a dime. Does it: Play DVDs out of the box? Play MP3s out of the box? Work with Microsoft / Apple DRM music files out of the box? No. It doesn't. For something to be even considered useful, it needs to be able to do the above three things. Or else it's WORTHLESS IMO. Sure, you can bring up Ubuntu, find some site, download XMMS with the MP3 plugins.

http://easyubuntu.freecontrib.org./ [easyubuntu...ontrib.org] Takes a couple minutes to run, installs pretty much every codec out there