If it's an OEM version of XP, the key sticker is going to be on the PC it came with, and I regret to inform you, you are probably going to have troubles when it comes time to install the OS on your new hardware. OEM versions of XP are licensed ONLY for the PC with which it shipped. You really need a full retail version of XP for what you are trying to do. You may be able to fool the OEM disk into installing, but I haven't had too good of luck trying to do that. A brief Google of this type of procedure showed that there are ways of "tricking" the Microsoft activation scheme, but it doesn't look very easy to do. There's always a chance that it might just install and run without a fuss, but I seriously doubt it, especially when it comes to activation. All this is assuming you can locate the CoA sticker that has the key, if you don't find that, you won't even get XP installed. Good luck.

Tom

I have a trick. But it is illegal. You can just install the pirated os (xp) downloaded 4m net n u can get crack for it which makes it totally original.

For further details u n contact me mithrasvs@gmail.com

To settle this argument because I really wasn't sure, I looked up the Windows EULA and here is the applicable part:

MICROSOFT WINDOWS XP HOME EDITION (RETAIL) END-USER LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR MICROSOFT SOFTWARE

Published: June 1, 2004

This End End User License Agreement (EULA) is for informational purposes only. There is no software accompanying the EULA.

IMPORTANT-READ CAREFULLY: This End-User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between you (either an individual or a single entity) and Microsoft Corporation for the Microsoft software that accompanies this EULA, which includes computer software and may include associated media, printed materials, "online" or electronic documentation, and Internet-based services ("Software"). An amendment or addendum to this EULA may accompany the software. YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS EULA BY INSTALLING, COPYING, OR OTHERWISE USING THE SOFTWARE. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE, DO NOT INSTALL, COPY, OR USE THE SOFTWARE; YOU MAY RETURN IT TO YOUR PLACE OF PURCHASE FOR A FULL REFUND, IF APPLICABLE.

1. GRANT OF LICENSE. Microsoft grants you the following rights provided that you comply with all terms and conditions of this EULA:

1.1 Installation and use. You may install, use, access, display and run one copy of the Software on a single computer, such as a workstation, terminal or other device ("Workstation Computer"). The Software may not be used by more than one processor at any one time on any single Workstation Computer.

Here's the web site if you want to read all of it:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/eula/home.mspx. My motto is: why think when I can look it up.

Stephen

You cannot move a preinstalled XP to a new machine. The license remains with the original PC.

A retail version of XP can be moved, but since you do not own this you will need to purchase it. Try Linux or Windows 7 on the new PC.

If the original machine is no longer in service, and the original license for XP is valid, you may be able to transfer the license to a new machine, possibly requiring a small fee from Microsoft, which may or may not be cheaper than just buying a new commercial CD. Finding the right contact within Microsoft in order to relicense the product can be a real challenge. Microsoft is not known for good customer service/relations.

You could take the hard drive to the new PC.

That is probably going to be a problem because the old drivers on the HDD won't match the new machine. I don't honestly know if it would boot.

Never the less it can work for a short time if only to explore disc contents & recover code

I guess it would over write the registry and therefore the only source of the serial number is gone completely.

If the serial is needed, I personally only know (never tried it!) of the Linux method to read it out from a non running windows, but I am sure some other methods do exist. Do remember that he appears NOT to have a running version.....

Another way if the Windows can be booted is to install Aida32, a free program that can read out the Serial number on a screen that looks like this:-

This is the first time I have used it but it seems to work fine.....

I have removed some characters in my own key to make it illegible of course!!! Sorry!!

Here is a further software that you can download and use:-

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/productkeysactivation/ss/mjbkeyfindersbs.htm

One, it won't boot unless it's the exact same motherboard, which means that the OS will freak out when you try to boot it. I've tried it before. And two, you'll have to call MSFT during the activation process to get a new, one-time activation key. It's a fairly painless process, but you'll have to do it each and every time you ever re-install. This is the same thing you'll encounter with Windows 7 if and when you upgrade. Unfortunately, with Windows 7, you'll have to do it whether it's an OEM or retail key.

This works if you can locate the motherboard/graphics card drivers.

PROBABLE THIS HDD WILL NEED TO BE HOOKED UP IN ANOTHER MACHINE AS A SLAVE THEN YOU CAN ACCESS ,WORK INTO THE REGISTRY AND RETRIEVE THE KEY, SIMPLE RIGHT, UNLESS YOU GET LOST IN THE REGISTRY. REQUIRES SKILLS. SEEK YOUR LOCAL COMPUTER SHOP TECH FOR THIS FIX. MAC

CD key for Windows XP...........got lots of them.....if you want one let me know!!!!

Cute- make an offer and give no one a hint as to how to contact you...

XP keys only work once- you have to register the product with MS after you install (or it dies in 30 days). If the key has been used, it won't register...Then they want you to contact them by telephone, which is a bit of a challenge for some of us who are aurally challenged...

I have tried that too. Trouble is as soon as MS finds them they cancel them. And they have canceled a whole bunch of them. But you could be lucky. I haven't had any luck with those fake keys in years. Matter of fact if you have one that you think will work I'll be happy to test it. I have an old machine that is just sitting around for want of a good key. I'll be happy to eat my words. I'm running the original XP cd with no Service Packs. So that's the type key I need.

stephen.hoenig@gmail.com

Student versions are great if you can find one, since they use the same key for an entire university. I had one of those that I used for years, until a burglar relieved me of it.

I had what was supposedly a corporate key that worked but it quite so I assume it was restricted by MS. I don't know if they are the same as student or not. I just really sympathize with the guy. I know how frustrating dealing with Redmond can be. They own the world, you would think they could cut us some slack. But I guess that's how they got to own the world, huh? I understand they are not offering an upgrade discount for Office 2010. I have all my computers but 2 switched over to Linux, but there are some apps I use like AutoCad that there is no Linux version unless you go back to I think Version 13 (if you can even find it). I have come to really hate corporations.

Brian.

Kudos. I have been using Ubuntu for quite some time now (in fact, this particular computer is dual boot- two different versions of Ubuntu). I have used Ubuntu to rescue many ancient (i.e., more than 5 years old) computers quite successfully. This is fine for many, many people (Firefox under Ubuntu even on an old machine really flies). However, there are things out there that still require Windows...In fact, I still run software that is incompatible with newer versions of Windows, like XP (I still have a machine running 98SE!). I now run a lot of my Windows only software in virtual machines, but this is not yet a full solution for all applications. And, one still needs a license to run Windows under a virtual machine...

Been there done that...

John's got a good plan.

read this if you want an alternative

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/LiveCD

the old machine should have the key on a stick on label. As long as you run it on one machine, the new one, there is no law broken. If it is an OEM licence you still have that right, but sometimes the OEM licences detect what they run on and look for proprietary parts, BIOS, etc. Microsoft would have you believe their licence stuff, but the courts have held that once you buy software it is yours. You cannot install the same SW on 2 or more machines, legally.

In addition, there are a number of ways to defeat the odes, look for them on torrents, but have a good virus check program and again, just one machine for one purchase program is 100% legal.

Years ago the copyight people tried to kill off libraries. They partly succeeded in the UK. Do you believe that you can not legally repair a bound book in a library in the UK.

That means that as a book wear out you cannot fix the spine, binding etc.

If you doubt me, some might recall the text inside the cover that this book can not be sold, rented, loaned or otherwise distributed in any other binding than the one is was first printed in. Yes, you cannot not fix a worn library book and keep lending it out.

The publishers want you to buy another one.

This alone keeps book in the UK 30-50% higher for the same titles than in the USA

Correction:

A MS retail lic can be legally used on one machine at a time.

An OEM MS O/S lic can only be legally used on one machine but you can get a new lic from MS just initiate an install then call the number provided when you try to activate.

That is what I said.

In what way?

An OEM lic is not transferable...it can only be used one the machine it is originally installed on.

you buy it and you can transfer it to another machine. Whatever agreement Dell signed does not bind you. The tick box licences are not enforceable, since Microsoft was paid for that copy at the OEM rate, they have been paid. All MSFT wants to do is maintain retail prices and that has been kicked to death in the courts. You can not run it on two machines, I agree.

OEM disks that check Bios etc, can easily be made to work on non OEM machines.

Yeper...just buy the license any disc will do

It not illegal to use it ONCE on any single PC that you wish. MS have already lost that court case years ago.....

Sometimes the correct drivers are not on the disk, so if you have one of those OEM disks, you may need to set it up using old drivers and add the right ones after downloading from the web.

Remember this, you bought it, you are the license holder, you can do what you want with it!!! Stuff it up your back passage if thats what turns you on, MS cannot forbid it!! Even though they try!!

Andy-

I am of the opinion that MS should have the right to define whatever terms of usage they feel is appropriate for their product. But, I also am of the opinion that I should have the right to reject their terms, which is one of the reasons I have switched most of my work from Windows to Linux (a more important reason is that, in my experience, the Linux option has proven to be superior- something I did not discover until getting in to the transition). Years ago, the option to reject the terms was less obvious.

Note that I am very specific with the acknowledgement that this is my opinion based on my personal experience (and requirements) and the solution I have chosen is not necessarily appropriate for others...

MS have lost their rights (if you feel they ever had any!) to stop anyone using an OEM version or any other version of Windows on a PC of their own choosing. (Excepting Vista and Win7!).

I certainly do not agree that some big companies can set their rules in the manner that MS has tried to do over the years....

It is as though you bought a radio for your car, later you sold the car but kept the radio and you were not legally allowed to install it in another car of your choosing......thats why they lost the case....

I do agree that Linux is also a good direction to take though I have to admit only using it to recover data, PC installs from some viruses and driving a CNC machine occasionally for the moment....

Many people who have bought Win7 have not read the small print yet!!! MS has achieved their goal of making it un installable on another PC, after it has been installed on another) at last it would appear. I tried to find confirmation on the web but was unable to confirm that 100%.

Re-installs on the same (hardware wise) PC are also purported to be very restricted in number....

That will keep WinXP going for a few more years yet. A German magazine has promised to support XP till at least 2014, if they can do it, so can others too!!!

Many are still using Win98, released almost 12 years ago, this means that XP (released generally in 2001 I believe) will probably still be in use in 2013 at the very least. In fact I believe it will be around longer as it is in many ways better than 98...

I personally will not buy any further Windows, if I need to "Upgrade" I will go to Linux.

We're not on the same page.

An OEM license is owned by a reseller or the manufacturer. When a consumer purchases a computer the license ownership is not transfered.

It would appear that MS has no way of knowing this exactly enough to block an install!! Many are using OEM versions on other hardware, its big business on ebay.

So the net effect is zero.

Also, I believe you will find that there are some small but important legal differences between Europe and the USA on that point if I remember exactly....its a long time ago!

With Vista & Win7 the restrictions are for all....which is why i will eventually leave MS completely alone....I do not want to buy a new operating system just because I bought a new PC.....

What you say may be true but if you can't get the key from MS the software will not run. And they will not give you the freakin key. I KNOW this to be true. So what are you going to do, sue them? I have tried this repeatedly (not the sueing part.) Unless this policy has changed in the past 6 months I have experience with this problem. The basturds will not work with you.

Supplier be asked for

Frustrating isn't it. If your machine was working then some thing like Belarc would report the key for OS Install as I recall it. I am sure this is what I did once.

Your old hard drive won't work on your new computer because the HAL files will be wrong (stands for Hardware Architecture Layer) Doing a (is it) "sysfig" (a standard Microsoft method) prior to saving an image is one way to get a disc across to a new system - it effectively cuts out the HAL stuff, makes the image generic and the new machine inserts th required stuff on boot. There are reputedly other tricky stop start boot ways that you can get there if do a bit of maneuvering - though when I tried it I failed.

Only other way I can think of, and others would have to confirm, is if there is someway of operating your disk (and the operating system that is on it) in/on/as a virtual machine and then running Belarc over that, you might get a result - may be a non idea, but hey, you have to be creative to do the "impossible".

I forgot to tell you that those installs I refer to, in my post #15, were to new machines after catastrophic failures killed the old ones.

Regards

Yahlasit

But that's the problem isn't it. The old machine has got to be able to run that code. It good to have for future reference though. Could have used it last year.

Craigsat was one of the few to get it really right.

There was a lot of B******T from some other posters.....sorry.

I write my Windows password keys on the CD Box, or on the CD, the sticker goes on the bottom of the keyboard.

The Sticker is the bit you buy and license really from MS, the CD can be found and used (almost with a few OEM exceptions) from anywhere.....

I cannot recommend using an illegal password, MS can get quite nasty.....fully legally!

The Ubuntu tip is a good one, Open Office is an MS clone that runs well on Linux....Linux has really "Grownup". I am going to a dual boot version with XP on my Laptop soon. I tried it with a bootable CD and it simply works fine.....there is a lot of other software available.

Also, some Linux CDs can be booted and search for the lost password in the registry on the hard disk I am informed, but I have never done it myself.....

Here are some links to help you:-

http://www.raymond.cc/blog/archives/2009/08/10/easiest-way-to-recover-xp-and-vista-product-key-from-dead-or-unbootable-windows/

http://www.justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=134457

http://software.informer.com/getfree-recover-xp-product-key-linux/

Best of luck.

Attach the old hard drive as an extra hard drive on the new PC (I am assuming that you have already checked it for viruses and the like using a bootable Linux CD!).

Using a linux CD (from the weblinks I gave you earlier) search out the registry on the old hard drive and get the serial for your copy of WinXP.

Install WinXP on the new H.drive using the serial you found in the registry.....

Save any important data from the old H.Drive, then reformat it and use software tools to make sure its fully OK.

Enable S.M.A.R.T. in the new BIOS for all of your hard drives.

Just a thought. I recently purchased copies of Windows 7 Home Premium x86 and x64 on eBay for $20 for both discs, and license codes for $9 each. All are perfectly legit and have been running on three laptops here for several weeks already.

If your hardware is up to the challenge, Windows 7 is a much better choice than XP. It is the latest offering from MSFT and will be around for years to come, whereas support for XP will now be ramping down, and it will become harder and harder to find applications and drivers for it. Furthermore, W7 is the easiest to learn MSFT OS I've worked with yet and I've worked with just about all of them. Users are switching to W7 in droves, and indeed, this is the future, in the MSFT world at least.

If your hardware is older and not up to W7, then Linux is an excellent alternative, and in many ways superior to anything MSFT has ever offered. It runs very well on older hardware, is extremely stable and glitch free, and there are very few people out there writing nastyware against it. But, be prepared for a steep learning curve if you want to do anything but surf the net and do basic email and word processing.

Back in the days when MS first announced they were dropping support for Windows 98, I got really nervous, and started doing some research into what this would mean for me. I got myself a new machine to run Windows XP- and found that a lot of what I was using was not compatible with Windows XP- some specialized data acquisition systems, my accounting software, the version of the CAD program I was using, some critical data analysis software, etc. I figured out that, independent of the cost of the computer and operating system, a full upgrade to Windows XP would cost me something on the order of $7000 in software alone. Needless to say, I continue to this day running some of my critical applications on the old Windows 98 machine (after several generations of new drives, new power supplies, etc,), and I began my search for alternatives because I suspected the next Windows upgrade would be even more costly for me (a reasonable call, since Vista is even less compatible with legacy software than XP was).

But, the most important lesson I came away from all this with was the realization that Microsoft support is not necessary. The few times I have consulted with Microsoft to address a technical question, I got absolutely no assistance whatsoever- real answers to technical issues are available these days from user groups on line (same, and more effectively, with Linux).

So the first thing I did when I got my newest computer was "format c: " and load two different flavors of Linux in dual boot, one running Windows 98 SE in a VirtualBox...Which, of course violated my warranty on the hardware, but I am unlikely to make a claim on the warranty anyway (I would not replace a computer that failed in one year with the same brand!)

Mr. Warner sir, I absolutely agree with you, with one reservation. Yes, if you are willing to invest the time and frustration to learn Linux or UNIX, these are as I've already said, far superior to anything MSFT has ever offered.

However, if you chose to stay in the Windows universe, which unfortunately means the lion's share of computer users, then MSFT support is critical in just one area, which is software updates. Like you, I really liked 98SE and stuck with it for 8 years, but the sad truth is that with time's march and MSFT's abandonment of the OS, using it for any kind of web connected work is cybernetic suicide. And in due time, the same will be true of XP.

craigsat said it first...You should be able to connect the old drive with the old cables to another Windows PC, run this program, and retrieve all product keys.

"The Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder v2.0.1 is a freeware open source utility that retrieves your Product Key (cd key) used to install Windows. It also has a community-updated configuration file that retrieves product keys for many other applications. Another feature is the ability to retrieve product keys from unbootable Windows installations."
www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder/

Dear "al",

putting your name "al" in the middle of a weblink means that it does not function at all.

Try this instead:-

http://www.magicjellybean.com/keyfinder/