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retail, or oem?
- Thread starter pejsaboy
- Start date
- Joined
- May 8, 2004
You are supposed to keep the OEM attached to a single PC. The OS shuold not be installed to another system ever. You can "Upgrade" the PC as much as you want, as long as it is still "The SAME PC" 
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The Retail license allows swapping the OS to different PC's - but STILL only 1 PC at a time (you must un-install off the old PC to re-install on a new PC). I have also heard that te Retail ones are a bit more lenient with re-activations due to hardware changes - but that is no biggie IMO (10 minutes on the phone to save $100 - shoot yeah!).
I have like 5 OEM licenses for my 5 PC's. I have no plans on bastardizing my older PC's by stripping off the OS, so this works well for me. If I need a new PC, I build a new PC, and buy an OEM license for it. My old PC's continue to run just fine, and I can sell off the older PC's with the attched license if I feel the need.
OEM saved me TONS of cash considering I have 5 Licenses...
. The Retail license allows swapping the OS to different PC's - but STILL only 1 PC at a time (you must un-install off the old PC to re-install on a new PC). I have also heard that te Retail ones are a bit more lenient with re-activations due to hardware changes - but that is no biggie IMO (10 minutes on the phone to save $100 - shoot yeah!).
I have like 5 OEM licenses for my 5 PC's. I have no plans on bastardizing my older PC's by stripping off the OS, so this works well for me. If I need a new PC, I build a new PC, and buy an OEM license for it. My old PC's continue to run just fine, and I can sell off the older PC's with the attched license if I feel the need.
OEM saved me TONS of cash considering I have 5 Licenses...
- Joined
- Jun 5, 2005
- Location
- Vancouver, Canada
Off topic but, would it be illegal for you to trash one of the computers which have one of hte licenses and use that licenses on say.... a new build?
- Joined
- May 8, 2004
Legally - NO, you can't put the OEM on a different PC, but it has been known to happen
Consider the price: 1 Retail OS = 2 OEM licenses
You'd have to move your Retail license to 3 different PC's (and only legally use it on one PC at a time) before it was more cost-effective than buying an OEM for each PC (but still having full use of XP all 3 systems)...
Consider the price: 1 Retail OS = 2 OEM licenses
You'd have to move your Retail license to 3 different PC's (and only legally use it on one PC at a time) before it was more cost-effective than buying an OEM for each PC (but still having full use of XP all 3 systems)...
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Tyreal said:
i think it would be, i think the license would be null and void once you destroy the computer it was installed on unless it was the retail version. but my friend who used to handle activations through microsoft says that with the oem or retail licenses you get two instances of activation, perhaps somebody with a copy of the EULA could elaborate, i would like to know as well.
- Joined
- May 8, 2004
I know I have activated my OEM installs 6-8 times on the same PC before I ever had to call MS. Then, they re-set your Activation status, and you get a clean slate.
If you totally re-configure your system and do a fresh install like I did (with a RMA replacement MoBo that appeared as new hardware, adding 2 RAID arrays, new Video Card, CPU, and DVD-R's), and it has been over 3-months since your last online activaton, you can still activate online until you have 3 more major hardware changes...
The 3-month timespan appears to "Reset" your hardware fingerprint's link to your CD-Key as far as MS is concerned. And the Fresh Install wipes out the previously stored WPA.dbl file, so the OS has nothing to compare your old hardware to the new...
Something like that
If you totally re-configure your system and do a fresh install like I did (with a RMA replacement MoBo that appeared as new hardware, adding 2 RAID arrays, new Video Card, CPU, and DVD-R's), and it has been over 3-months since your last online activaton, you can still activate online until you have 3 more major hardware changes...
The 3-month timespan appears to "Reset" your hardware fingerprint's link to your CD-Key as far as MS is concerned. And the Fresh Install wipes out the previously stored WPA.dbl file, so the OS has nothing to compare your old hardware to the new...
Something like that
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- Joined
- Dec 25, 2004
- Location
- Denton, Texas
Well, for the OEM version, what do they define as a 'PC'? A hard drive? A mobo? A CPU? The entire rig, including optical drives? So in case of hardware failure or an upgrade, they honestly believe that it's fair to not let you re-use the OS? I REALLY hate that... wish OSX would come to x86, I'm not about to learn a *nix variation...
hmm, i remember back in the day the local pc shops around here would sell oem licenses of win98 and winME, but only if you bought it with a hard drive. not sure if they still do that, or if it was even legal in the first place.
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2003
Basically, think of an OEM license as attached to the computer you first install it on. Throw out the computer and you throw out the license. You will need to purchase a new license next time.
A retail license is forever. You will always have a license to run 1 copy of the software on ANY PC of your choice.
A retail license is forever. You will always have a license to run 1 copy of the software on ANY PC of your choice.
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
MRD said:
While this does directly address the original question of this thread, the finer point here is "what defines a computer". In the thread to which I linked earlier, I defined it as the case, as this is the one component which will not need to be replaced during the "life" of the "machine".
- Joined
- Oct 12, 2001
- Location
- Los Angeles
Yes, indeed i consider it the case as well. Afterall, I always put the OEM license on the case.
- Joined
- Feb 14, 2003
Haha, the case. That's clever.
That's not how M$ defines it. It's a fairly complicated formula, but it only involves pieces of hardware that the OS can identify when running, things like ethernet card, mb, cpu, etc., as those have numbers that uniquely identify them. The computer can't tell if it's in a case or screwed onto a piece of plywood (nor does it care).
I've seen some fairly complicated explanations of the involved formulas used by M$ to figure out if the computer is still the same.
If you use windows 2000, you don't have to activate, so there is more flexibility (though perhaps not in a legal sense, they may define "same computer" in the same way). With XP, you have to be very careful because M$ can refuse to activate the OS, and then you're out an OS.
That's not how M$ defines it. It's a fairly complicated formula, but it only involves pieces of hardware that the OS can identify when running, things like ethernet card, mb, cpu, etc., as those have numbers that uniquely identify them. The computer can't tell if it's in a case or screwed onto a piece of plywood (nor does it care).
I've seen some fairly complicated explanations of the involved formulas used by M$ to figure out if the computer is still the same.
If you use windows 2000, you don't have to activate, so there is more flexibility (though perhaps not in a legal sense, they may define "same computer" in the same way). With XP, you have to be very careful because M$ can refuse to activate the OS, and then you're out an OS.
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2002
The motherboard is the foundation you build on and it has lots of identifiable chips on it. If you replace it with the same model motherboard, there shouldn't be a problem with Microsoft. If you try to upgrade the motherboard to a different model, then it's really a new computer even if you bring all the other components over from the first system.
I would buy the retail version myself just to avoid a few more questions during that phone call. I change components far too often to get locked down by a specific build. If I were to build one for someone else, then OEM might be an option, but then again what do you do if Microsoft tells them to take the issue to the OEM?
I would buy the retail version myself just to avoid a few more questions during that phone call. I change components far too often to get locked down by a specific build. If I were to build one for someone else, then OEM might be an option, but then again what do you do if Microsoft tells them to take the issue to the OEM?
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- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
MRD said:
The discussion here has so far not been about activation per se (which has been beaten to death on other threads), but rather the legal aspects and hence, the rights and responsibilities of individuals using, or wishing to use, an OEM license.
