I read that all OEM versions of Windows are bound to your particular pc and no other, does this means that your Windows is locked to the whole pc once it has installed and activated? I've read somewhere that only the motherboard is what Windows locks itself to, which gives me the impression that upgrades to your system is possible minus changing the motherboard, is that true or not? If it's true, this means as long as the motherboard is not changed I can swap out any other component with any other compatible upgrade component and still be able to do a full wipe and install of OEM Windows afterwards!?? I really appreciate the response!
its tied to all hardware technically but you are allowed to change some hardware such as RAM, HDD GPU etc. changing the mobo constitues as a major change and will fail activation sometimes. If this happens all you need to do is activate by phone and it will activate. ive always bought OEM copies of windows and have changed lots of different parts. for example what if your motherboard goes bang in 2 years and you need a new one ? does that mean you need a new OS license too because they dont make your mobo anymore ? i wouldnt worry about it to be honest.
Hey thanks for the prompt response... So the difference from having a FULL version and having an OEM version is by way of activation after a major change to your system has be done? For instance the Full version lets you install on a entirely new system provided the old is not used at the same time as the new one online, and with the OEMs with the same scenario requires a call by phone to Microsoft to complete the activation of Windows on your new system?
OEM is supposed to be for system builders and technically should not be sold without a new system Retail is for average joe bloggs looking for a new OS which can be installed as many times as you want on any hardware regardless of changes as long as its ONLY 1 machine.
If that is so, does this means all those retailers and etailers are breaching contract by selling OEM copies of Windows 7??? I doubt Microsoft will stop them from doing it as it just makes it bad business sense...
i suppose technically yes if you just buy a single copy of OEM windows from a retailer they are breaking the license they agreed otherwise why would any buy a retail copy ever. retailers like to try to get round the issue which is a bit of a grey area and force you to buy a piece of hardware with it like a SATA cable to say they are complying. like i said its not really an issue and i have NEVER had OEM licenes fail to activate at all when changing hardware - online sometimes yes but a quick phone call to an answer machines solves it every time.
OEM versions are sold sealed and can be sold be authorised resellers (otherwise how would system builders get them). Once you break the seal you are the one agreeing to the OEM terms stating that you will supply the software installed on a PC to another person & not use it yourself
saspro is correct. but if you go to a retailer buying an oem copy of windows with a single piece of hardware it does not make your license legal, as oem rules have changed, it isnt a grey area, as it is clearly stated on the oem packaging, that an oem version has to be pre-installed with the OPK onto a fully functional pc. you cannot license an oem copy to yourself, or to family members, or employers. as a system builder you are also required to provide technical support to any pc you put an oem copy of windows on, as this is the case, if you were to phone microsoft for support, they could tell you to bog off.
Basically what you're saying is don't bother risking my chances in buying an OEM copy of Windows 7 on it's own as I might not be able to activate it after installing it?
There's a good chance HP's version only activates if an HP BIOS is detected. Makes things a lot simpler for the manufacturer, but the OS won't work on anyone else's hardware.
no not at all just MS wont support you thats all. personally ive never rang MS for support or needed to.
Meaning that I can re-activate Windows 7 on a new system build over the phone with Microsoft and thats it nothing else?
no i'm not saying that, you will be able to activate it, if you make changes to your pc, and are required to reactivate it, there is a chance you might fail activation, and then have to phone to activate, if it fails phone activation, you will be put through to a human, who may if they are having a bad day tell you, you need to purchase win 7 again. it would be rare for this to happen though. also on rare occasions there maybe an issue that requires support from ms, if you have to contact them for a specific patch for example, they may refuse to help, again very rare. people building their own machines should look here for microsofts advice on licensing
I know Windows7 Pro OEM will register time and time again as i work for an IT company and use one serial number from an original oem sticker from my laptop. I used this to setup several different PC's setups all with different motherboards, cpu etc so i can test each for suitability for running specific software in a process to decide if we wish to go Windows 7 full time. Each time all it does is needs to be activated again on each new install or hardware change (i.e if i swap a hdd to a new machine, different mobo etc - all it does it needs to be activated again)
I have to agree with Adam aswell dynamis_dk, you shouldn't be doing that, unless you only allow the new system online and stop using the other previous systems from going online, I guess thats kinda in the grey area...
This isn't a farm of PC's which are all in use, its a PC which is setup and tested - then a few weeks when we're to do it again for some other hardware - its new hardware setup, install, testing etc. The key is only used in the machine i'm currently testing. For use our 'live' enviroment the department which ends up with the PC use there volume key from select agreement. Once we're happy the hardware/software combo work they might order 100+ units which then all get configured using volume key and clone imaging. My laptop is used with a volume key too so i know the key is only being used one 1 PC at any one time. My point was purely there isn't any limit i've found or aware of on how many activations are allowed for any given key - i wasn't really thinking from a legality point of view purely reporting my experiences given the question which was asked
Question... Does each tested machine you build have to the same motherboard or are they different everytime? It's just that I've read that if Windows is bound to the first motherboard you activate Windows on first time use... So if you're using the same model motherboard every time, it just means that you're technically not activating Windows on completely different systems... Correct me if I'm wrong but imo an OEM key can be used on different systems just as long as the same motherboard model is used and just as long only one of the systems is used online only at any one time...
In my experience, I changed every piece of hardware except the HDD which had the OEM install of XP on it & all I had to do to reactivate it was phone the automated helpline, jot down a long number and type that into the activation screen on the PC to get it working again; you really are worrying too much about this IMO. Grab a cheap(er) OEM copy of win7, install it, and any issues you have later down the line are easily solved either by online re-activation or via a 5 minute phone call to the MS automated helpline. or, there are more dubious methods to activate any copy of windows 7....
