i own two laptops ones got xp pre instaled or partitioned,the other has no os sytem ,,,i got hold of sp2 home cd ,can i use the same code from your other laptop ,or do i have to buy a another key. and if i buy a copy cani enter the key on different pc,s and how many times if any one knows
2007-03-21 11:12:02 · 6 answers · asked by daps don 2 in Computers & Internet ➔ Hardware ➔ Laptops & Notebooks
xp requires registration and the key on the side of your oem (preinstalled) machine is and oem key that probably means that the microsoft server will reject registration with that key, meaning u will only have 30 days before it says goodbye, and its illegal. u shud buy a new key from micrsoft, or an entire new disk.
2007-03-21 11:19:27 · answer #1 · answered by skd27fnn 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
by "got a hold of" a windows xp cd do you mean you copied a friends or downloaded it? If so... the key from your other computer would never work anyway. The key for your laptop that had it pre-installed will only ever work with that copy of xp.
How do you have a laptop with no OS? something must have come on it. No manufacturer sells laptops with nothing on them. Flip it over and see if you can find a windows license. and install a copy of the version of windows it says. If its an older version of windows (98 or 2000) then that laptop might not even be able to run xp very well anyway.
In any case. One product key is only good for ONE computer. If you want to install with the same xp CD on more than one computer you have to call up microsoft and buy another license key.
2007-03-21 11:19:55 · answer #2 · answered by mattorodinku 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
this is a question i asked a while ago and although i theory you should only be able to use 1 key > 1 computer,this isnt allways the way
windows xp is a unpredictable os at the best of times so my advice is,give it a go,what can go wrong,one p.c may get updates one may not,the only way to find out is to try it and if it refuses to activate the 2nd p.c then you will have 30 days to get a product key
however i know of people who look for old p.c,s running xp and then strip the product key off as this is worth its weight in gold,the cd itself is worthless ,its the key you are paying for so next time you se a skip on the side of the road with a p.c sticking out of it take a closer look,if its got a key on the case it may as well be a £50 note left in a skip
give it a go mate
good luck
2007-03-21 11:53:02 · answer #3 · answered by brianthesnail123 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
service pack 2 is not an operating system...yes you can enter the product key from a different disc as long as its the same operating system.;;;you can use the product key as many times as you like.but once you register with microsoft you can only use it for up to 3 PCs;;;;registration,and activation are 2 different processes.
2007-03-21 11:27:33 · answer #4 · answered by tee_rone2008 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To begin with, you probably got an OEM xp disk with the original PC and it wont run on anything but that PC.
2007-03-21 11:17:05 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
one machine, one copy
2007-03-21 11:19:17 · answer #6 · answered by flowerpet56 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋