Thinkpads Forum

T500 8gb ram, 500gb hd, bad pgup key (I have a plethora of T60 Keyboards)

https://vancouver.craigslist.org/rch/sy ... 48617.html

When I wanted clarification if it was an actual windows 10 copy fully liscened to run (without the 30days to activate notice) I received the following reply.

Hi there,

It is registered Windows 10 pro. The license ties to this machine. When you do clean install Windows 10 pro, it will get the key automatically.

Resolution is 1920 by 1080. The laptop comes with ATI 3650 dedicated GPU.


Ray

I'm a bit confused. There's a clean install, vs a factory reset.

I'm still on xp (i know, I know), and with thinkpads with the 'restore discs', so I haven't had to deal with Windows Liscenses. The last time I did a license key registration was to a non IBM desktop, which involved calling MS directly for a confirmation code.

If this guy shows me some sort of clean install, at what point, and where can I clarify that it's a working license for that laptop only.

I don't want to buy this laptop and be forced to get a new liscense because this one is invalid.

What questions should I be asking?

AFAIK W10 registers its license to a specific laptop, in your case that T500.
Such a license does not go with the owner, it goes with the laptop.
So even if you yourself would reinstall W10 on that T500 from scratch, it automatically 'picks up' that same license.

I thought the 1920 T500s were 1920 x 1200, not 1080 because they are 16x10 screens.

I do notice the the display driver is probably not installed correctly as it seems like the screen is displaying a stretched image.
Also, the seller claimed in the description that the resolution is WSXGA+, 1680x1050, not WUXGA.
As for Windows installation, as long as the seller didn't install scuffed KMS activated copy of Windows, you can reinstall as much as you can and the license will reactivate as soon as you connect to the internet (license follows the motherboard). Just take note that it's a Windows 10 pro version and not home. In fact you can even upgrade to Windows 11 and use the same license there too.