Use Upgrade License key after install of other?

gregrocker said:

Perhaps you can post a link to the Win7 you bought so we can have a look.

I purchased this one. Received email that it has shipped.

ewingr said:

gregrocker said:

Perhaps you can post a link to the Win7 you bought so we can have a look.

I purchased this one. Received email that it has shipped.

I am not sure what the "(Branded)" tag means at end of title but am suspicous that in description it says not to install Upgrade Manager (Disk1). If they are reselling a manufacturer's Upgrade Kit then they could be in trouble. Who else provides an accompanying Upgrade Manager disk? Better ask them.

However, excellent merchant reviews here: Merchant Review for Discount Mountain - PCWorld Pricing

OEM means it will be permanently locked to the hardware once installed.

Thanks for the input. I'll ask them about the 'Upgrade Manager'. I was wondering too on that.

I didn't realize it would be permanently locked to the HW, but I'm OK with that.

That's why OEM is so cheap, as is normal.

MS sponsored an Upgrade program where people who bought computers in the year before Win7 was released could get a free Upgrade, which was mailed to them by manufacturers after 7 release. This was to keep computer sales moving.

Most manufacturers provided an Upgrade manager/Drivers/Apps disk and OEM install DVD which was unable to be used except on intended machine, however some brands failed to restrict its use in this way. This might be what you bought from a reseller.

Their Customer Service in the reviews sounds superb, so maybe they'll back out gracefully or make it good or better. You may be better getting your money back and going to newegg, buy.com or a local box store.

I looked on their site, and it this is the description of OEM:

OEM packaging includes the installation disc(s), Certificate of Authenticity, and product keycode(if needed). OEM is different from Full Retail in the following ways: OEM does not come in a retail box, it does not include printed manuals, cannot be transferred to another computer (even if the original computer breaks), and is not eligible for free technical support from the manufacturer. Help files can usually be found on the disc and printed out. OEM software is the same software as the Full Retail and can be upgraded, it just comes in different packing.

So, I called them and discussed, and decided to switch to the retail box, so that I could ultimately switch to a different computer if needed. It was less expensive than NewEgg (which I don't really find that often), and I feel fairly comfortable with the vendor.

While I received email it had shipped, it was still there waiting for pickup, so caught it before it went out.

We'll see how it goes now.

Yeah, I've seen some issues where people have upgraded, or at least tried to upgrade but kept getting an activation error, more can be seen here: Windows 7 Activation Error 0xC004F061 on x86 and x64

ewingr said:

I've beat that by a little bit for a Professional Upgrade, not full license. But it remains to be seen if I get burned or not.

I did get the PRO license very fast, and it was good. Came in MS original packaging.

In the end, for getting it to take the new key, I had to do the boot with the CD that came, and do the Repair, and got it to work.

Thanks for all the help everyone.