Activation Problem

zapp22 · 15 Apr 2010

I'll check that link Bill.

For anyone reading my posts, let me add right here in bold that I really want to find a technical way to solve this, so that either a Re-Activation is not triggered, or that one is triggered correctly and goes through automatically. End users do not need to be stuck with this issue. Microsoft has the best intentions in all this and does need to eliminate grayware leaks. At the same time, they need to look out for the "little guy" at the end of the rope. This is one of those things that perpetually causes people to say "I wish I had bought A$%$%." If there is a better way to clone, I want to find it TODAY. I get paid by my customers by the hour for helping them with issues, and they do not need to be paying me to go out and "upgrade" their Win 7 hard drives the long and tedious way. The right way to do it is to clone it, hit the switch, and move on. This was a 20 minute job under Windows XP.

WindowsStar · 16 Apr 2010

@zapp22

Bill2 has given you some great information but there is a part that is missing.

Run down: You have a Dell Optiplex with a COA for Windows XP the machine was in the corporate world and was upgraded to Windows 7 Professional with a VLP Key. If that is all correct we have several problems.

First: The Company should have never sold/given/rented/leased/auctioned or otherwise let that system out of their possession without completely wiping the hard drive. A VLP Key is NOT under any circumstances to be let out to the public.

Second: Microsoft made the change from VLK to VLP Keys as Bill2 states but also to help protect the Key that the company paid a lot of money for. When a computer is stolen (laptop/notebook/desktop) it is lost with that VLK (Windows XP); it will never expire and the computer will run forever. This is fine but it would be better if the company would not have to worry about that. So Microsoft setup the VLP to use KMS and re-validate every 180 days. This way if you have a laptop/notebook/desktop stolen the key will expire after 180 days. Giving the Company piece of mind. Plus this makes stealing KMS keys hard, if you steal mine and try to use it on your KMS server it will not work stating it is already used, so the Key is useless to you.

Third: So even if you get this machine working with the VLP key it will still need to validate to the KMS server in 180 days; once it cannot find the server because you have the machine and it is not on the network with the KMS server the key will become invalid.

Your best bet is to buy an OEM copy of Windows 7 Professional and install it on this machine. It will work until the machine dies and you can install it on as huge drive as you see fit.

If you don’t want to do that the Windows XP key is still good and you can install it on a large hard drive.

-WS

WindowsStar · 16 Apr 2010

zapp22 said:

I'll check that link Bill.

For anyone reading my posts, let me add right here in bold that I really want to find a technical way to solve this, so that either a Re-Activation is not triggered, or that one is triggered correctly and goes through automatically. End users do not need to be stuck with this issue. Microsoft has the best intentions in all this and does need to eliminate grayware leaks. At the same time, they need to look out for the "little guy" at the end of the rope. This is one of those things that perpetually causes people to say "I wish I had bought A$%$%." If there is a better way to clone, I want to find it TODAY. I get paid by my customers by the hour for helping them with issues, and they do not need to be paying me to go out and "upgrade" their Win 7 hard drives the long and tedious way. The right way to do it is to clone it, hit the switch, and move on. This was a 20 minute job under Windows XP.

With Windows 7 you do not need to install it the long hard way. You can create images and use sysprep. Microsoft has given you the tools to do it, it just takes a bit to learn them.

WindowsStar · 16 Apr 2010

@Bill2: FYI I wanted to REP you but I guess I had already given you REP and could not give it again.

zapp22 · 16 Apr 2010

WS - you give a good summary. But your bottom line is typical of a big IT vendor [is that your pedigree? it is mine]: in the final analysis the answer is "its your fault Mr. Customer, and you should pay twice, then everything will be fine".

Can you tell me how to absolutely without question identify the license type I have? Apparently microsoft could not, or did not care to share such info [which is rather counterproductive if you're trying to actually solve a problem - an open case]. If your answer is correct, why wouldn't it close the issue?

Secondly, I don't doubt your explanation of VLK vs VLP, but do you have a link to the contract? I would like to read for myself the clause about non-transferability. There are more people involved here than just me. Disposing of hundreds, thousands of off-lease machines is a serious business with serious organizations involved. If I can trace this back, for example, to Dell Financial Services, then I think I could get the practice stopped. That is, if you are correct, ergo it is illegitimate to represent these lot-sales as being for Windows 7 Equipped, and double-licensed systems that are transferable [completely]. Government Liquidators are huge - the financial firms that arrange the lease instruments are on the hook for both sides of the transaction. Once it goes downstream, I guess they would say its not their issue, but it certainly is. Whoever represents the systems in an illegitimate manner as it leaves the back dock of the original purchaser is culpable of violating the agreement between Microsoft and that Company or Entity, if the language of the license reads as you have paraphrased it.

WindowsStar · 17 Apr 2010

zapp22 said:

Secondly, I don't doubt your explanation of VLK vs VLP, but do you have a link to the contract? I would like to read for myself the clause about non-transferability. There are more people involved here than just me. Disposing of hundreds, thousands of off-lease machines is a serious business with serious organizations involved. If I can trace this back, for example, to Dell Financial Services, then I think I could get the practice stopped. That is, if you are correct, ergo it is illegitimate to represent these lot-sales as being for Windows 7 Equipped, and double-licensed systems that are transferable [completely]. Government Liquidators are huge - the financial firms that arrange the lease instruments are on the hook for both sides of the transaction. Once it goes downstream, I guess they would say its not their issue, but it certainly is. Whoever represents the systems in an illegitimate manner as it leaves the back dock of the original purchaser is culpable of violating the agreement between Microsoft and that Company or Entity, if the language of the license reads as you have paraphrased it.

I don't deal with contracts those are handled by an entire different agency that I don't typically have access to. However I would like to see the information myself. I will put a request for it and see what happens.

jezza31 · 26 Apr 2010

hi all, Ive just upgraded my laptop from vista to 7 and I am trying to activate it but the problem is I was having overheating problems at the time and as I was downloading 7 it crashed and I lost the product key supplied by the microsoft website.
Now I also got a backup DVD sent but the activation wont work because as Im trying to put the product key in it keeps on saying "unacceptable character".
Any Ideas?

MacGyvr · 26 Apr 2010

jezza31 said:

hi all, Ive just upgraded my laptop from vista to 7 and I am trying to activate it but the problem is I was having overheating problems at the time and as I was downloading 7 it crashed and I lost the product key supplied by the microsoft website.
Now I also got a backup DVD sent but the activation wont work because as Im trying to put the product key in it keeps on saying "unacceptable character".
Any Ideas?

Don't hijack an old thread to get an answer to your problem. You need to start a new thread of your own.

derekimo · 26 Apr 2010

jezza31 said:

hi all, Ive just upgraded my laptop from vista to 7 and I am trying to activate it but the problem is I was having overheating problems at the time and as I was downloading 7 it crashed and I lost the product key supplied by the microsoft website.
Now I also got a backup DVD sent but the activation wont work because as Im trying to put the product key in it keeps on saying "unacceptable character".
Any Ideas?

Welcome jezza31,

The best way to get your problem resolved is to start your own thread by going here Windows Updates & Activation - Windows 7 Forums and pressing the new thread button.:)

zapp22 · 27 Apr 2010

spoke with an IT friend over the weekend. some time back [he does volume licensing... big shop with lots of desktop clients and portables] he had a devil of a time getting valid Windows 7 volume lists from Dell. Took quite a few heated conversations until he finally threatened to fire them, then they finally figured out what was amiss and got him good keys. I shan't defend Dell too vigorously but an issue like that MUST backwater into Microsoft

Bill2 said:

WindowsStar,
Just FYI, some of the early Dell keys were blacklisted by MS because they were used to hactivate Win7 by pirates. Its possible that the key your dvd is trying to install is one of those blacklisted keys. Theoretically that key should activate but fail MS validation. In your case, darn thing is not activating at all, so ya call Dell/MS.