Questions about Windows Product Key

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likely · #1 Post by **likely** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 12:53 am

ok i just bought a t40 off of ebay. normally they have a hidden partition with windows on it for easy reinstallation. this one didnt. though this is a legitimate laptop with its own xp sp1 product key on the underside.

i know there's an option to order a recovery cd set from ibm for $51. but is that required? i have a retail xp sp1 cd i had paid for, for my desktop that im using now. can i use that cd for the t40 in conjunction with the t40's product key? both are legitimate keys, one for my desktop and one for the t40, its just that i only have 1 cd. i want to do this the legal way. will this work?

thanks in advance.

mysbca · #2 Post by **mysbca** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 1:43 am

likely wrote:i have a retail xp sp1 cd i had paid for, for my desktop that im using now. can i use that cd for the t40 in conjunction with the t40's product key? both are legitimate keys, one for my desktop and one for the t40, its just that i only have 1 cd. i want to do this the legal way. will this work?

I doubt it. Your T40 OEM key probably will not work with your retail disc.
Does your T40 still have the i386 folder? If it does, you can make your own bootable Windows XP disc. Follow the link in this thread:
http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=3827

If you still have the ibmtools folder, you should back htat one up, too.

likely · #3 Post by **likely** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 2:45 am

that is a handy thread, but it cant help me much my hdd is blank. i only have the product key. or, can the core i386 files be taken from another computer to make a bootable? if so, im guessing it has to be oem and not retail?

LtTPfan · #4 Post by **LtTPfan** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 5:45 am

dr_st · #5 Post by **dr_st** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 6:54 am

You can try getting hold of an OEM CD and use it with the code on your T40.

#6 Post by **carbon_unit** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 7:38 am

Why not give it a shot and see what happens?

icantux · #7 Post by **icantux** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 11:48 am

Through my experience ordinary OEM XP may not install properly and/or the OEM key may or may not work with a new installation from any old OEM CD. The i386 folder on a thinkpad contains a few "verification" files that ascertain whether or not the system on which the OS is being installed really is a thinkpad - it's a BIOS check. That's why a DELL OEM XP disk won't accept the product key from an IBM or Toshiba, etc... OEM is OEM for a reason. Only way to get around that is install an IBM OEM and then activate the product key with Microsoft.

Your OEM XP number on the bottom of your machine will definitely not work with with a retail disk either. But if you have a retail disk with a legitimate number then you could install that version of XP and then tweak the final installation for use on a laptop (ACPI processor integration etc..), although that should happen automatically.

440roadrunner · #8 Post by **440roadrunner** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 12:05 pm

I think the answer is "more research"

Here's a few things I've found, and it's a mess.

I got a Dell branded CD cheap, and I have a few keys, ALL LEGIT to the systems they are installed and used on, so the following is just experimentation

The Dell CD has it's own built in Product Key, so to speak, and that key seemingly only works on a Dell. What I mean is, when you perform an installation, there is never a point where a key is demanded. If you install on something else, you can't change the key--a legit operation under some conditions. Neither will the "built in" key work on another OEM unbranded CD

HOWEVER, I ALSO have three different systems that seem to use OEM "unbranded" systems. ANY generic, unbranded CD will work with these "keys" so long as they match the "version"--in otherwors, "OEM PRO to OEM PRO", and "OEM HOME to OEM HOME". You can't cross the keys from home to pro, or from OEM to RETAIL.

I have an E machine with an XP home license, and successfully reinstalled it using the original E machine "key" that belongs with it, and using a "generic" OEM home CD

I have a stray HP "operating system cd" with HP's logo, NOT Microsoft, and it turns out to be nothing more than an "unbranded" OEM cd. With a legit licence "key" it will install on ANY machine, just like an unbranded OEM cd.

I think, therefore, that it's important to determine whether Dell/Gateway/ etc use "branded OEM" or "generic OEM" which could make or break this idea of mixing disks.

This idea of "burning our own backups" is OK to a point, but the fact is, there is NOTHING more reliable and guaranteed to be uncorrupted, than a factory made CD/DVD

Look folks, here's what this all boils down to. Next time ALL or ANY of YOU waltz into a retail store, ask the salesgirl "does this come with software disks" and when she says "no" then YOU turn right around and waltz right back out. IF EVERY ONE OF YOU had done this when this mess started, then we all would be getting backup copies of the software when we buy a computer.

likely · #9 Post by **likely** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 5:00 pm

icantux, everything you've said is right. i've had to learn all that in the last day. and yeah the retail key will work with the retail software, but the thing is that key is for this machine im typing on. so no dice there. it looks like my only options are to find an oem for this particular model, pay for another oem (in which case ibm and microsoft would recieve money twice over for the same machine), or install an older os that im no longer using. in the end it would either suck or i would feel cheated.

Website · #10 Post by **tfflivemb2** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 5:17 pm

Why not just follow LtTPFan's advice and try to get a copy of the Recovery Disks for your model from the FS/WTB portion of this forum. This way you don't have to spend the ridiculous amount of money on OEM disks.

sparta.rising · #11 Post by **sparta.rising** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 8:05 pm

The key on the bottom of the machine is an OEM key. It won't work with a Retail XP cd. But you can probably find an OEM CD somewhere, just be inventive. Might be able to go to a specialty computer store and find one.

LtTPfan · #12 Post by **LtTPfan** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 10:01 pm

One advantage of using product recovery disks is that you don't have to fool with Microsoft's product activation.

smugiri · #13 Post by **smugiri** » Sat Feb 04, 2006 10:05 pm

Lots of info on this topic in this thread.

AndyL · #14 Post by **AndyL** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 9:01 am

The only difference between a retail WinXP CD and a "generic" OEM one (or a volume licence one) is in the setupp.ini file. You can convert a retail CD into an OEM one by changing the data in that file - a google for setupp.ini will turn up some sites with the values needed for the different types of CD. Here's one way to do it:
1. Rip an ISO image of your WinXP retail CD
2. Use an ISO editing program to replace the setupp.ini file with one edited for OEM settings
3. Burn the ISO to a new CD - hey presto it's an OEM WinXP CD!
You still need to do the product activation after installing. In my experience it won't work over the internet, you'll probably have to call the product activation phone line.

ibmuser · #15 Post by **ibmuser** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 11:43 am

You can use R & R to create the recovery disks:

"To create Product Recovery discs, do the following:

Click Start > All Programs > ThinkVantage > Create Recovery Media.

In the Recovery discs area, mark the Create a set of Product Recovery discs now radio button.

Click OK.

Attention: Your Microsoft(R) Windows license permits you to create only one set of Product Recovery discs"

#16 Post by **GomJabbar** » Sun Feb 05, 2006 9:40 pm

ibmuser wrote:Attention: Your Microsoft(R) Windows license permits you to create only one set of Product Recovery discs"

It's more than the Microsoft(R) Windows license. The software simply will not let you burn a second set.

LtTPfan · #17 Post by **LtTPfan** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 6:49 am

dr_st · #18 Post by **dr_st** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 6:55 am

GomJabbar wrote:
ibmuser wrote:Attention: Your Microsoft(R) Windows license permits you to create only one set of Product Recovery discs"
It's more than the Microsoft(R) Windows license. The software simply will not let you burn a second set.

So if I burned a set and it got f*cked up, I cannot burn another one?

#19 Post by **GomJabbar** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 8:02 am

Make sure that you use reliable, quality media. AFAIK, you can make a disc copy of the media you burned using a CD copying program such as Nero (others should work also). I 'think' that if the original burning process doesn't complete successfully, you may get another chance. But once you have made a complete set, I know that you can't make another with the Create Product Recovery Discs program.

Zeitgeist · #20 Post by **Zeitgeist** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 8:22 am

dr_st wrote:
GomJabbar wrote: It's more than the Microsoft(R) Windows license. The software simply will not let you burn a second set.
So if I burned a set and it got f*cked up, I cannot burn another one?

Yes you can. Just press F11 during boot and go back the the factory installation. Or make a copy from the CDs.

#21 Post by **GomJabbar** » Mon Feb 06, 2006 8:21 pm

Zeitgeist wrote:Yes you can. Just press F11 during boot and go back the the factory installation. Or make a copy from the CDs.

Yes that's true unless your hard drive has failed and has to be replaced and you don't already have a good Product Recovery Disc set to restore to Factory State.

dr_st · #22 Post by **dr_st** » Tue Feb 07, 2006 7:37 am

Zeitgeist wrote:Yes you can. Just press F11 during boot and go back the the factory installation. Or make a copy from the CDs.

Suppose I don't want to go back to factory installation. Copying the CDs is always simpler, unless the CDs themselves are screwed. So I guess one is better make a backup copy of the CDs as soon as he finishes burning them.

And what happens if the burnprocess fails in the middle? Can you restart it?

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