Reactivating W7 Ultimate

I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.

Thanks for any tips.

Al.

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 14:30:09 +0100, Alias
<> wrote:

>On 12/24/2011 02:25 PM, Allen Drake wrote:
>>
>> I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
>> to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
>> everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
>> full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
>> adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.
>>
>> Thanks for any tips.
>>
>> Al.
>
>Updating your CPU won't affect activation. The MB, OTOH, may not only
>require reactivating but may also require reinstalling Windows. In any
>and all events, the worst that could happen is that you need to make a
>five minute phone call.

A phone call is worse then reinstalling Windows? Do I have to speak
to Peggy?

In message <4ef5d3ec$>, Alias
<> writes:
>On 12/24/2011 02:25 PM, Allen Drake wrote:
>>
>> I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
>> to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
>> everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
>> full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
>> adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.
>>
>> Thanks for any tips.
>>
>> Al.
>
>Updating your CPU won't affect activation. The MB, OTOH, may not only
>require reactivating but may also require reinstalling Windows. In any
>and all events, the worst that could happen is that you need to make a
>five minute phone call.
>
Doesn't that depend on what he means by a "full version"? If he means
full retail (costs a ridiculous price, at least here in UK), fine, but
if he just means it's Ultimate (or whatever the "top" version is
called), don't OEM ones come tied - in effect - to a motherboard?

Or is Ultimate (or whatever) not available as an OEM-only version?

(Or are MS being lenient at the moment whatever the situation, as I've
heard they are being with XP activation?)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

If you want to make people angry, lie to them. If you want to make them
absolutely livid, then tell 'em the truth.

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 14:29:52 +0000, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
<> wrote:

>In message <4ef5d3ec$>, Alias
><> writes:
>>On 12/24/2011 02:25 PM, Allen Drake wrote:
>>>
>>> I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
>>> to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
>>> everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
>>> full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
>>> adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.
>>>
>>> Thanks for any tips.
>>>
>>> Al.
>>
>>Updating your CPU won't affect activation. The MB, OTOH, may not only
>>require reactivating but may also require reinstalling Windows. In any
>>and all events, the worst that could happen is that you need to make a
>>five minute phone call.
>>
>Doesn't that depend on what he means by a "full version"? If he means
>full retail (costs a ridiculous price, at least here in UK), fine, but
>if he just means it's Ultimate (or whatever the "top" version is
>called), don't OEM ones come tied - in effect - to a motherboard?
>
>Or is Ultimate (or whatever) not available as an OEM-only version?
>
>(Or are MS being lenient at the moment whatever the situation, as I've
>heard they are being with XP activation?)

If I am not mistaken OEM is the version that is installed when you
purchase a computer. I have been building my own and purchasing the
full version for every system for at least a decade. It might not be
the cheapest way out but who cares about money?

In message <>, Allen Drake
<> writes:
[]
> If I am not mistaken OEM is the version that is installed when you
>purchase a computer. I have been building my own and purchasing the
>full version for every system for at least a decade. It might not be
>the cheapest way out but who cares about money?

Not quite (unless it has changed with 7, and I haven't heard that that
is the case): you can buy OEM versions - quite legally - without buying
a computer. They're a lot cheaper. One main difference is that there's
virtually no support available, either from the vendors or Microsoft:
you're very much on your own; I think the other main difference, though
I'm hazy about the details, is that it's a lot more restricted what it
can be installed on. A full retail version can in theory be transferred
between machines, as long as you uninstall it from one when you install
it on another; I think an OEM one is designed really only to be
installed on one machine.

Because people do upgrade (more RAM, bigger HD, other enhancements) and
replace faulty parts, it allows the system it finds itself on to change,
gradually - at least, that's the case for XP; I _assume_ 7 has something
similar. There are "points" attached to various aspects - the amount of
RAM changing is so many points, the HD serial number changing is so
many, and so on; if the points clock up above a certain level within a
certain time, it decides that it might have been moved to a different
system, and tells you to reactivate. I think a mobo change carries the
most points, for obvious reasons. Sometimes the reactivation can be
automatic, sometimes you have to convince someone at MS that you
_haven't_ moved it beyond what the EULA - which is more restrictive for
OEM versions - allows. I'm pretty sure even a full retail version does
something similar, though presumably the thresholds are higher, and the
people at MS more tolerant.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

If you want to make people angry, lie to them. If you want to make them
absolutely livid, then tell 'em the truth.

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:42:44 +0000, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
<> wrote:

>In message <>, Allen Drake
><> writes:
>[]
>> If I am not mistaken OEM is the version that is installed when you
>>purchase a computer. I have been building my own and purchasing the
>>full version for every system for at least a decade. It might not be
>>the cheapest way out but who cares about money?
>
>Not quite (unless it has changed with 7, and I haven't heard that that
>is the case): you can buy OEM versions - quite legally - without buying
>a computer. They're a lot cheaper. One main difference is that there's
>virtually no support available, either from the vendors or Microsoft:
>you're very much on your own; I think the other main difference, though
>I'm hazy about the details, is that it's a lot more restricted what it
>can be installed on. A full retail version can in theory be transferred
>between machines, as long as you uninstall it from one when you install
>it on another; I think an OEM one is designed really only to be
>installed on one machine.
>
>Because people do upgrade (more RAM, bigger HD, other enhancements) and
>replace faulty parts, it allows the system it finds itself on to change,
>gradually - at least, that's the case for XP; I _assume_ 7 has something
>similar. There are "points" attached to various aspects - the amount of
>RAM changing is so many points, the HD serial number changing is so
>many, and so on; if the points clock up above a certain level within a
>certain time, it decides that it might have been moved to a different
>system, and tells you to reactivate. I think a mobo change carries the
>most points, for obvious reasons. Sometimes the reactivation can be
>automatic, sometimes you have to convince someone at MS that you
>_haven't_ moved it beyond what the EULA - which is more restrictive for
>OEM versions - allows. I'm pretty sure even a full retail version does
>something similar, though presumably the thresholds are higher, and the
>people at MS more tolerant.


Thanks for that. I will copy this to a text file for future
reference. The CPU change went well as I am again up and running. It
didn't take all that long and I didn't even have to remove the MB. I
do hate these large fingers though. It took several times to get that
chip seated right. I wish there was some sort of tool that could be
used to hold it and release it when it was perfectly aligned. Now I
will be removing all the hardware and installing everything in a new
case. All this is totally unnecessary and only done out of boredom of
coarse.

Al.

Hi, Allen.

> If I am not mistaken OEM is the version that is installed when you
> purchase a computer.

OEM means "Original Equipment Manufacturer". This can mean one of the Big
Boys like HP or Dell, or a "System Builder" like your friendly local Mom &
Pop computer shop. The Big Boys buy in quantity at steep discounts from
Microsoft and revise Windows - sometimes extensively - for compatibility
with their own hardware, plus any other hardware or software they might
include in the "bundle" as they deliver it for retail sale. Mom & Pop will
buy the System Builder version in smaller quantities at wholesale prices;
they might customize the operating system, but they usually don't.

In either case, the lower price comes at a cost: the OEM assumes all
obligation to support the Windows they sell. So, if your Dell printer
doesn't work with your Dell-branded Windows, call Dell, not Microsoft. If
the computer you got from M&P with OEM Win7 pre-installed doesn't work with
the printer you got from M&P - or elsewhere - complain to M&P, not
Microsoft.

> I have been building my own and purchasing the full version for every
> system for at least a decade. It might not be the cheapest way out but who
> cares about money?

The System Builder version of OEM Windows is SUPPOSED to be sold only with a
computer, or with a significant part such as a CPU or hard disk drive. Over
the years, that got stretched to the point that M&P might sell a copy with
just a disk cable; my understanding is that the "with hardware" requirement
is no longer enforced. But the OEM is still obligated to support that copy
of Windows - and the OEM is YOU, the buyer/installer. Again, don't call
Microsoft for support.

That OEM copy of Windows, whether the branded version or the System Builder
version, is forever licensed to THAT computer and cannot be installed and
activated on any other. If that computer is stolen, sold or junked, the
license is gone, too.

A retail copy of Windows - any consumer version, whether upgrade package or
"full" version - comes with Microsoft support, of course. That copy of
Windows can be re-installed on the same computer an unlimited number of
times. And it can be installed on an unlimited number of computers - so
long as it is removed from every other computer first.

But don't rely on some guy in a newsgroup - like me - when it is so easy to
get the official word:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/w.../products/home

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2011 (Build 15.4.3538.0513) in Win7 Ultimate x64 SP1


"Allen Drake" wrote in message
news:...

On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 14:29:52 +0000, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
<> wrote:

>In message <4ef5d3ec$>, Alias
><> writes:
>>On 12/24/2011 02:25 PM, Allen Drake wrote:
>>>
>>> I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
>>> to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
>>> everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
>>> full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
>>> adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.
>>>
>>> Thanks for any tips.
>>>
>>> Al.
>>
>>Updating your CPU won't affect activation. The MB, OTOH, may not only
>>require reactivating but may also require reinstalling Windows. In any
>>and all events, the worst that could happen is that you need to make a
>>five minute phone call.
>>
>Doesn't that depend on what he means by a "full version"? If he means
>full retail (costs a ridiculous price, at least here in UK), fine, but
>if he just means it's Ultimate (or whatever the "top" version is
>called), don't OEM ones come tied - in effect - to a motherboard?
>
>Or is Ultimate (or whatever) not available as an OEM-only version?
>
>(Or are MS being lenient at the moment whatever the situation, as I've
>heard they are being with XP activation?)

If I am not mistaken OEM is the version that is installed when you
purchase a computer. I have been building my own and purchasing the
full version for every system for at least a decade. It might not be
the cheapest way out but who cares about money?

> That OEM copy of Windows, whether the branded version or the System
> Builder version, is forever licensed to THAT computer and cannot be
> installed and activated on any other. If that computer is stolen, sold
> or junked, the license is gone, too.
>

My experience has been different.

I did post something to that effect.

I recently bought 2 computers..

1) A small form factor Acer which came with win 7 professional 64 bit to use
in a lab. My lab equipment requires windows XP.

2) Mom and Pop computer with modern processor (intel g620) and no
operarting system.
This was to replace and old XP computer .

I installed windows 7 with a 32 OEM dvd on the mom and pop computer and used
the keys from Acer. I had to call Microsoft and got it activated with
the computer
voice.

I used an xp keys from a 7 year old discarded Compaq computer and
installed an OEM version of XP professional on the Acer It got
activated automatically.

FD

In message <>, Allen Drake
<> writes:
>On Sat, 24 Dec 2011 15:42:44 +0000, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
><> wrote:
[]
>>Not quite (unless it has changed with 7, and I haven't heard that that
[]
>>most points, for obvious reasons. Sometimes the reactivation can be
>>automatic, sometimes you have to convince someone at MS that you
>>_haven't_ moved it beyond what the EULA - which is more restrictive for
>>OEM versions - allows. I'm pretty sure even a full retail version does
>>something similar, though presumably the thresholds are higher, and the
>>people at MS more tolerant.
>
>
> Thanks for that. I will copy this to a text file for future

I had a quick Google, and this http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/wpa.php looks
like it might be relevant - though it's written for XP. For XP,
according to the above page:

You get 30 days after installation to activate.
If you've got at least SP1, you get 30 days for something, or 120 for
others ... oh, read the page (-: [or preferably a Windows 7 equivalent
one].
[]
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

I'm sometimes a bit bewildered by that, really - there are no young people in
it, there's no sex, there's no violence, no car chases and there's no action
and no vampires. - Colin Firth on the success of the film "The King's Speech".
Radio Times 10-16 September 2011

On 12/24/2011 7:25 AM, Allen Drake wrote:
>
> I am wondering if this is the same and as easy as WinXP. I am going
> to upgrade my CPU and wanted to know what to expect before I start if
> everything is basically the same. I have several installations all
> full versions that have been upgraded to Ultimate and probably will be
> adding other hardware like Mother Boards to some.

Just as with XP you can upgrade a few components without having to
reactivate a Windows 7 PC. Now just how much of a change that triggers
a reactivation your guess is as good as mine.


--

Roy Smith
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
Thunderbird 8.0
Saturday, December 24, 2011 6:33:50 PM