Windows 7 House party OEM? Retail?

[gskills]

Hello

I have a question that even microsoft did not know when I called them.

I got windows 7 ultimate and Im dont know if it is OEM or retail.
If its OEM i dont want to lock it to my motherboard as I might upgrade in a few months but if it is Retail then Ill have the option to do so.

Thanks
G

 

[tw33k]

My understanding is that it a full retail version of ultimate in those party packs.

 

[usasma]

If this is the Steve Balmer signature edition then it's the Retail version.

FWIW & IME the only "lock" on OEM versions is imposed by the OEM's themselves (Dell used to do it, HP does it now, and I think a couple of other OEM's do it). So you won't see that on any disks from MS - only on disks that are manufactured by the OEMs.

 

[WolfSoul]

You sure? I thought activation linked your Windows erial to your configuration, mainly motherboard

 

[Barman58]

Thanks for the clarification USASMA, that's how I understood things to be but was not sure if Windows 7 had changed anything.

It always used to be that the only difference between Retail or Enterprise or OEM was one of licensing, rather than code

 

[gskills]

thanks

I was susprised that the MS helpdesk didnt know if it was OEM or retail.

Im going to install windows 7 now and if i change my motherboard then i wont cry.

 

[Sevenfreak]

So if I install it on my older HP and it lets say it dies on me (pavilion 6000 have many issue lol), can I go out and buy a vista running machine and re install it?

 

[Tews]

You should probably call MS directly for clarification... its really hard to play "what if" and expect a knowledgeable answer...

 

[usasma]

This is a different question. Are you referring to an OEM upgrade version or an OEM "full" version? Check for the word "Upgrade" on the installation media.

If it's an upgrade version, it's going to want to check for a qualifying product to upgrade from.

An OEM full version will install without the need for a "qualifying product" - so there's no need to get a Vista system (a blank HD will do).

 

[Sevenfreak]

You should probably call MS directly for clarification... its really hard to play "what if" and expect a knowledgeable answer...

thank you sir
anyone else that may help would really be appreciated

 

[stormy13]

It is the retail version. You can confirm it yourself by browsing the disk for the ei.cfg file and opening it in Notepad.

 

[valtonray]

the signature edition disk is a full retail version, it will not be tied to your hardware if you choose to move your installation from one pc to another(note it's not legal to have it installed on multiple pc's at one time.) you will also not need a previous version of windows to install from the signature edition disk as it is not an upgrade disk.

 

[gregrocker]

It is the full retail RTM version, which means like any retail copy it belongs to the owner and not the machine (OEM).

You can migrate it to another machine for any reason. The only rule is that you cannot have it on more than one machine at the same time.

I had a retail XP which I used on four successive machines. The tech support alone was worth the money as they taught me clean reinstalls, virus hunting, optimization, and much more, responding to my eagerness to learn by spending hours helping me. I can only hope MS is still as generous. I feel like I got a college education at the top university!