windows license question

[macgig]

I have an old pc with xp on it. it's a dell. I have the xp install disc for this pc. I also have a dell install dvd for vista that I got on ebay. if I install vista on this PC, am I breaking any laws?

if not Id like to install vista on this older PC since XP support will soon end.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

Do you have any particular reason to believe the Dell Vista install disk you got from ebay is legitimate? Or illegitimate?

Do you have any type of Product Key for the Dell Vista disk?

 

[macgig]

I do know the dvd is legit because I've seen the dell reinstall dvds before so I know what they look like. I do have vista on another dell pc someone gave me. and that pc has the COA on it. but I don't have a COA for the dell DVD I bought on ebay. I have no idea how the COA and stuff works and what I can or cant do. thats why I'm posting here.

 

[gregrocker]

If it doesn't have a COA with Product Key (check again) then it most likely is just a Reinstallation DVD for reinstalling a Dell PC that came with Vista and has the COA already.

So you'd need to buy a copy of the OS, in which case I'd buy Win7 Upgrade if you can find it, or OEM which is available now on Tiger Direct for around $89 for Home Premium.

 

[macgig]

I have win7 that I paid for so I may just use that. thanks.

 

[caperjack]

I have win7 that I paid for so I may just use that. thanks.

don't activate it right away ,wait a few weeks to make sure its gonna work for you on the older computer

 

[macgig]

its a slow pc. pentium 4. may just stick with xp... I wont be putting it online so I guess xp wont matter either way. its a dell E310 I think.

 

[whs]

You cannot install just any Windows because you happen to have an installation disc. The disc really does not matter. That you can always get from the web. What you need is one product key for each system.

If you use your Windows 7 key (provided it is a retail key) you have to first uninstall Windows 7 from the system where it is now. If it is an OEM key, you cannot move it in any way.

One solution is Linux. There you need no product key. There are many nice Linux systems out there. If you need advice, post back.

 

[macgig]

so even though I bought an xp and vista install dvd from ebay, installing and using them is not legal unless I purchased a key?

what about in cases where someone gave me a pc? am I breaking laws if I reinstall windows on those systems from the recovery partition?

 

[gregrocker]

If you have an XP COA sticker on the PC - which you should if it came with XP - and it has a readable Product Key then you should be able to use the XP reinstall disk if it is the same version and specifically an OEM channel disk.

As already said if the Vista disk did not come with a Product Key then it cannot be used to install Vista.

The owner of any PC is also the owner of the OS copy which came preinstalled on it and is entitled to run Factory Recovery to reinstall their OS along with the preinstalled factory bloatware, or do a Clean Reinstall with just the OS disk using the Product Key on COA sticker.

 

[caperjack]

you should have 30 days to activate Vista ,you could use it for that period ,just to test it ,
I did anyway .
depending on what you use the XP computer for on the internet you could still go online ,Microsoft is going to continue support for Microsoft security essentials for 1 year,

 

[alphanumeric]

That Dell Branded DVD is likely one that came with a Dell PC that shipped with Vista pre installed. That's why it didn't come with a COA sticker. The sticker was on the PC it originally came with. When used on the original PC it would have used the OEM activation and not prompted for a Product Code. It was custom made for that PC. If you use it on your Dell XP PC you should be prompted to enter a product code. Even if your not, it won't be legal without the Vista COA sticker.