Microsoft says i have an illegal copy of Windows 7...

I have Windows Vista 32-bit OEM and want to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

I brought a copy (Full version) on Amazon via a third party seller but when i put in the installation disc a message pops up basically telling me that i have the wrong disc.

I contacted Microsoft, gave them my product key - and was told that I had been sold an illegal copy.

I asked how this was and they told me that the OS was sold for business PC's only. The disc knows from boot up that my PC is not suitable...

How is this? It doesn't even allow me to enter the product key. The disc won't even boot.

Anyone else had or heard about this problem?

You can't do an upgrade from x86 to x64, so it would make sense that you'd get a message if you tried running it in Windows. I don't know why people try installing the OS from within an OS...but I digress.

The fact that the DVD won't boot is what's troubling. Is the disc real, with the Microsoft holograph? If it definitely doesn't boot, yet other discs boot fine on your system, I'd go back to amazon for a refund. Too many people are getting burned by buying discs from unreliable or unknown sources. I know this wouldn't apply to Amazon, but given they are selling from unknown third-parties...it is no better than Ebay.

Try and get a refund from Amazon, and then buy a legit copy from a known, valid source, such as Newegg, MicroCenter, etc.

hi CINTAM, and welcome to sevenforums,

just out of curiosity, how much did your windows 7 dvd cost?

and have you tried complaining to amazon yet? i believe they are really good with refunds etc - at least the uk branch is...

CINTAM said:

I have Windows Vista 32-bit OEM and want to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

I brought a copy (Full version) on Amazon via a third party seller but when i put in the installation disc a message pops up basically telling me that i have the wrong disc.

I contacted Microsoft, gave them my product key - and was told that I had been sold an illegal copy.

I asked how this was and they told me that the OS was sold for business PC's only. The disc knows from boot up that my PC is not suitable...

How is this? It doesn't even allow me to enter the product key. The disc won't even boot.

Anyone else had or heard about this problem?

I've read this over, and the responses, but I'm still not clear on what you have.

Did you buy an OEM copy? I'd expect Microsoft to give you a hard time over that:

Is it OK to use OEM Windows on your own PC? Don't ask Microsoft | ZDNet

(In short: OEM licenses are intended for use only by system builders, on PCs that are for sale to third parties.) However, I imagine that many people buy and use OEM licenses on machines that they intend for personal use. I know of nothing physical that prevents that.

If you wish to install the 64 bit version, you'll have to boot from the DVD. Can you do that? (You may need to change the device boot order in the BIOS, or use a hotkey during startup. On Asus motherboards, that often was the F8 key. Other makers use different hotkeys.)

At a guess, you have an OEM license. You should be able to use that, although you'll receive no support from Microsoft.

DeaconFrost said:

You can't do an upgrade from x86 to x64, so it would make sense that you'd get a message if you tried running it in Windows. I don't know why people try installing the OS from within an OS...but I digress.

The fact that the DVD won't boot is what's troubling. Is the disc real, with the Microsoft holograph? If it definitely doesn't boot, yet other discs boot fine on your system, I'd go back to amazon for a refund. Too many people are getting burned by buying discs from unreliable or unknown sources. I know this wouldn't apply to Amazon, but given they are selling from unknown third-parties...it is no better than Ebay.

Try and get a refund from Amazon, and then buy a legit copy from a known, valid source, such as Newegg, MicroCenter, etc.

The disc is real and authentic. Microsoft said they sold the OS to the Amazon seller for use with his business PC. They said to me that because i was trying to use it on my home PC, that is why it wasn't working.

What i don't understand is how the installation disc knows my PC is not his, and not a PC used for business purposes...

bobkn said:

CINTAM said:

I have Windows Vista 32-bit OEM and want to upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit.

I brought a copy (Full version) on Amazon via a third party seller but when i put in the installation disc a message pops up basically telling me that i have the wrong disc.

I contacted Microsoft, gave them my product key - and was told that I had been sold an illegal copy.

I asked how this was and they told me that the OS was sold for business PC's only. The disc knows from boot up that my PC is not suitable...

How is this? It doesn't even allow me to enter the product key. The disc won't even boot.

Anyone else had or heard about this problem?

I've read this over, and the responses, but I'm still not clear on what you have.

Did you buy an OEM copy? I'd expect Microsoft to give you a hard time over that:

Is it OK to use OEM Windows on your own PC? Don't ask Microsoft | ZDNet

(In short: OEM licenses are intended for use only by system builders, on PCs that are for sale to third parties.) However, I imagine that many people buy and use OEM licenses on machines that they intend for personal use. I know of nothing physical that prevents that.

If you wish to install the 64 bit version, you'll have to boot from the DVD. Can you do that? (You may need to change the device boot order in the BIOS, or use a hotkey during startup. On Asus motherboards, that often was the F8 key. Other makers use different hotkeys.)

At a guess, you have an OEM license. You should be able to use that, although you'll receive no support from Microsoft.

The OEM copy came with the new custom PC i brought 4 years ago on ebay.
The new Windows 7 installation disc will not boot. It starts to, but stops quickly with a warning message telling me i have the wrong disc.

What version did you buy? What does it say on the disk and sales receipt?

If you bought Enterprise which is KMS-activated by a server then it shouldn't reject the disk, certainly not at bootup, unless the issue is actually that it is failing to boot and detects a 64 bit install upon a 32 bit OS or vice versa.

How to Boot your Computer from a Bootable CD or DVD

gregrocker said:

What version did you buy? What does it say on the disk and sales receipt?

If you bought Enterprise which is KMS-activated by a server then it shouldn't reject the disk, certainly not at bootup, unless the issue is actually that it is failing to boot and detects a 64 bit install upon a 32 bit OS or vice versa.

How to Boot your Computer from a Bootable CD or DVD

I have vista OEM home premium 32-bit and i'm trying to install Windows 7 64-bit full upgrade.

So i should remove the vista OS before i try to install 7 64? How can i do that? I thought they only way to remove vista was to replace it with something...