Determine Product Key From Unbootable Hard Drive

Yes, as you said if 4GB memory 64 bit otherwise 32 bit.

@boweasel, Thank you for the rep. I am happy to see happy faces. Now Greg is there to help you with a clean install. Even if that key is OEM System Builder Key - which I think it can be - the activation will go through on the original PC. And take a screenshot of the key and keep it.

Looking at the imaging screenshot, I see something is mentioned as MFT corrupt. We may try MFT repair on it with TestDisk. But that is all secondary. Go ahead with the clean install on a new HDD as Greg suggested without wiping the old HDD.

Have a good day.

Crystal Disk flags it as Bad HD but I think I'd want confirmation from HD Diagnostic
scan either from boot disk or Windows just to be sure.

Absent confirmed bad diagnostics, MFT corruption also can be overcome as far as I know by reinstall with wiping.

I've got 2 Microsoft Windows 7 disks - one is 32 and the other 64. But they're Windows 7 Professional and I sort of remember getting an indication somewhere that the bad HDD was Home Premium. I also have a Dell 64 bit W7HP, as well as 2 unbranded disks I created from somewhere. One of those is labelled W7HP and the other W7HP 64. I have no idea how much memory is in the original tower. Since the case is already open I suppose I can yank out the memory and read what it says on the sticks. Or maybe just go with the unbranded W7HP.... I'm starting to wonder just how much I like my brother...

Use the latest 32 bit installer for home Premium in Reinstall tutorial which you should be following.

SOB.... After jumping through all these hoops to determine the product key, wiping, partitioning, formatting a new drive, and using my unbranded Windows 7 Home Premium disk to install Windows.... I ultimately get a message 'The product key does not match current Windows SKU'. See my previous Microsoft product key rant because I'm having a hard time not dropping the F-bomb.

It may be Upgrade. If you can't find out with certainty the version go ahead and install anyway and afterwards do the quick registry workaround to activate Upgrade on a clean drive.

Si probably thinks its Basic since 32 bit. Ask user if he at least remembers transparent borders. Basic has solid powder blue ones

You can also call MS Customer Service to confirm the key. Better to use SIW2's checker.

SIW2 said:

It might be Home Basic ? Check the product key with this:

The Ultimate PID Checker

And the frustration level continues to ratchet even higher.... This is a RAR file and although this computer seems to be able to handle zip files with a right click followed by extract all, right clicking this puppy does nothing. I downloaded the 32 bit exe 7-Zip from Source Forge, installed it to the Program File and still nothing. Downloaded the 64 bit msi file to Program Files (x86) and still nothing happens on a right click.

Have they changed 7-Zip?

Had to open 7-zip from all programs, then navigate to the pidgen.rar file to get it to work. That ain't the way it USED to work.....

Success! It actually worked. Of course I have no drivers. Can they be pulled of the old drive, or should I just go to the ASUS site?