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#11
Theree are 3 kinds of normal Win 7 license (+ Enterprise and Education) .
- Retail - You buy on a store or supermarket to be used by you. Transferable to another computer
- OEM - For small computer builders. Not transferable to another computer.
- SLP - Comes on big computer builders like Dell. Not transferable to another computer.
The retail and OEM you set during installation and can be retrieved with little software like show key plus or LicenseCrawler.
The SLP is activated with a small file and a BIOS code. If your computer came with SLP you can save the activation file with ABR
You retrieve and save the activation file under the original Windows and then install and apply the activation file after the clean install.
To see what kind of license you have, run MGADiag
Last edited by Megahertz07; 23 Feb 2022 at 13:35.
Sorry for being absent for all this time, I have taken a look at all your interesting replies.
Just to recap, I have a W7 OEM licensed PC and I HAVE the key, though the system didn't come with the ISO disk or whatever. Since Microsoft's download pages have been shut down, how can I get an ISO that I can activate with the OEM license key I already have to do the in-place-repair-upgrade?
If I borrow a copy of W7 like from a member of this forum, will I be able to activate it with my OEM key?
Thanks to everyone who has helped :)
Last edited by fruh; 01 Aug 2022 at 12:20. Reason: grammar
no name pre-assembled PC with off-the-shelf components (Asrock motherboard, first gen i3), of which the COA says "Windows 7 Home Premium - OEM Software"Yes.will I be able to activate it with my OEM key
Step 1
There is an easy way to backup the activation and drivers from your current system
SEE HERE
You can put them back on after a clean reinstall.
Step 2
You can use ANY official MS win7 iso because they are the same apart from a little file in the sources folder called ei.cfg.
search internet for
X17-59465.iso
OR
en_windows_7_ultimate_with_sp1_x64_dvd_u_677332.iso
OR
X17-58997.iso
OR
en_windows_7_home_premium_with_sp1_x64_dvd_u_676549.iso
Delete the ei.cfg file from the sources folder and ALL editions will be offered during installation.
Obviously select the edition you have a license for.
Step 3
Suggest you get hold of an iso and Update it first.
Update your Win 7 installation media
Step 4
Then install your edition, skip entering the product key. After you reach the desktop put back the activation and drivers you backed up in step 1.
Last edited by SIW2; 01 Aug 2022 at 13:16.
All right!! Thank you a lot, I haven't been able to find that procedure for the longest time. I will definitely try it out.
I assume that after all of that I just have to do a normal in-place repair upgrade. Do you think that if I borrow a copy here on 7forums it will work fine too?
Thanks again :)
Just search for it with any internet search engine, google, bing, yandex, whatever
search internet for
X17-59465.iso
OR
en_windows_7_ultimate_with_sp1_x64_dvd_u_677332.iso
OR
X17-59186.iso
OR
en_windows_7_home_premium_with_sp1_x64_dvd_u_676549.iso