How does one a repair install and still maintain activation?

I originally made a thread here: How to make minimise-restore-down-and-X buttons permanently normal?

I eventually took this question to another forum (one that I often frequent), and we made some progress there. However, in the end (after some months of looking into this), it was determined that the only real way to fix the caption button problem (that wouldn't involve what would essentially be the digital equivalent of destroying everything in a house but its initial foundation beams) would be a repair install.

However:

I no longer have my activation key from when I first got this computer (I first got this computer back in 2010). Furthermore, it is an OEM installation, and Windows does not accept OEM keys, from what I understand.

I have everything that I would need to do a repair install already, but the fact that it seems that I would not be able to reactivate Windows afterwards is stopping me from doing the repair install.

So I ask:

How does one do a repair install and still maintain activation?

SIW2 said:

Back it up with dism++




Dism++10.1.1000.100.zip

Thank you so much. I wish that someone would have told me about this sooner!

SIW2 said:

Back it up with dism++
[/ATTACH]

Question: Does this simply back up the key included and that is easily accessible via the registry? And, if so, does it restore it as it was previously, or does it simply send the key back to Microsoft for activation?

The reason why I ask is: the key that I managed to extract (prior to making this thread) is not accepted by Microsoft because they don't accept OEM keys. So if the process used by Dism++ actually re-incorporates the activation itself that was backed up, then there ought not to be a problem. However, if it is just sending the OEM key to Microsoft for activation, it won't work.

What exactly it is doing is very important here, because if I do the repair install, and the activation fails, I'll essentially be on a time limit. I'm getting back to college soon, so it is very important that I have a well-functioning computer.

townsbg said:

It may be hard coded into the installation partition. If so that would require

Are you saying that that program linked to me above, Dism++, won't work if the situation is the one that you are suggesting is a possibility?

townsbg said:

If so that would require a clean install which might not be a bad idea.

In my case and current situation, that's not practical, unfortunately.