pc without windows Cd

  • Thread starter Thread starter Cynanthis
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Cynanthis

Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already have 2
Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the selling party said
it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its worth getting. He said, it
has the windows xp verification tag on the outside so he's pretty sure i can
get microsoft to send me a xp cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont know how), so
I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet til I get a few
ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc, other than some
dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of it. Is ALOT of dust
a red flag, or no big deal.
 
Microsoft won't send you OEM CD, you'd have to try to get it from Dell -
have the seller try to request a replacement from Dell.

--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rob Giordano
Microsoft MVP Expression





| Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already have 2
| Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the selling party
said
| it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its worth getting. He said,
it
| has the windows xp verification tag on the outside so he's pretty sure i
can
| get microsoft to send me a xp cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
| I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont know how),
so
| I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet til I get a
few
| ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
| PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc, other than
some
| dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of it. Is ALOT of
dust
| a red flag, or no big deal.
|
|
 
the serial number on the side means you have a license to use XP...but it
does you no good if you dont have an OEM XP disk.
If you had a generic/store bought OEM XP you could use that CD and the
license # from the case to install XP.
never buy sight unseen
ask to see it running
If he hasn't cleaned it in years what else has been neglected??
peter
 
Cynanthis said:
Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already
have 2 Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the
selling party said it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its
worth getting. He said, it has the windows xp verification tag on
the outside so he's pretty sure i can get microsoft to send me a xp
cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont know
how), so I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet
til I get a few ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc, other
than some dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of
it. Is ALOT of dust a red flag, or no big deal.
Click to expand...


If the tag is for an OEM version of Windows then the seller is
required to surrender that OS with the hardware. It is an OEM version
and its license is permanently attached to the first computer on which
it is installed. The seller is not allowed to keep the OS and then
pirate it to use on some other computer.

If the seller is using a recognized selling agent or service, like
eBay, report that seller for not including the OEM license of Windows
that got installed on it.

Microsoft won't send you a replacement CD for a retail version of
Windows unless you can prove that you actually BOUGHT that retail
version. Microsoft won't do anything regarding an OEM version
because, well, it is an OEM version which you got for cheap because
support is not included (except perhaps from the OEM'er).

Have the seller tell you if "OEM" is somewhere in the product key
shown on the sticker that he claims is on the box. However, since
there is a sticker on the box then the OS was installed at one time
and the seller should have the installation media which me must
surrender. If the seller is not including the OS (and it is not an
OEM version on the sticker which means he could keep it to install on
another host) then you will have to go buy a new copy. Start checking
on what you'll pay to get a copy of the OS.
 
Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already have 2
Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the selling party said
it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its worth getting.
Click to expand...


If he doesn't transfer his CD with the computer, you are not getting a
valid license to use Windows.

He said, it
has the windows xp verification tag on the outside so he's pretty sure i can
get microsoft to send me a xp cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
Click to expand...



It is a fact that Microsoft will *not* do so.

Microsoft provides no support for OEM machines. Your recourse is with
Dell.

I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont know how), so
I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet til I get a few
ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc, other than some
dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of it. Is ALOT of dust
a red flag, or no big deal.
Click to expand...


Dust can be removed. That's not a problem.

If you have a Dell Windows CD that's of the same type (Home vs.
Professional) you should be able to use your CD with the product key
on the sticker. That may create the semblance of a legitimate license,
but without the CD that came with the computer, the license isn't
really valid.

Alternatively, if the price of the computer is attractive enough, you
may want to buy it and buy a separate copy of Windows.

What model is this, and how is it configured? What is the price?
 
Many major brand PC do not come with operating system CDs.

While such CDs would be nice, that is apparently not required by any law.
Maybe they should be, but it is not.

A popular alternative among PC makers is to provide a restoration CD, which
does nothing more than run a partition image restore program, accessing a
hidden parition on the hard drive. Of course, if the hard drive ever goes
bad, then that restoration system will not work, unless you get (i.e.,
purchase) a hard drive from the PC maker that happens to include that hidden
partition with an image of the PC.

As a minimum the PC should come with the restoration CD (or maybe floppy if
an older machine).

As far as contacting Microsoft about an OEM license, that is humorous (in a
sad way). The whole concept of an OEM license is that it is cheaper than a
retail license, because it is supported only by the PC maker, and not by
Microsoft. I suggest that you contact Dell about what, if any, support they
provide for second-hand PCs. If they say none, then you are definitely on
your own.

An alternative to a CD (XP or restoration) is to get your own backup&restore
software and make an image to an external hard drive, CDs, DVDs, etc. Maybe
make one image a month, or before/after software upgrades (including the
monly XP updates). Then, if somehting goes wrong, you can do your own
restore. For such a purpose I recommned Acronis True Image, although others
like Norton GHOST. See the following link for other backup/restore options,
some evenfree:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloads3.html

One word of caution about such programs. To be effective, make sure they
have an option to run from outside of Windows, usually from a CD or floppy,
in case Windows will not boot.
 
In
Cynanthis said:
Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I
already have 2
Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the
selling party said
it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its worth
getting. He said, it
has the windows xp verification tag on the outside so he's
pretty sure i can
get microsoft to send me a xp cd if i really wanted it. IS
that a fact?
I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont
know how), so
I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet
til I get a few
ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc,
other than some
dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of it.
Is ALOT of dust
a red flag, or no big deal
Click to expand...

It's possible that this Dell has a recovery partition on the
hard drive which is used to restore the system to the state it
was in when it left the factory. For a period of time a few
years ago that was the only option that Dell provided. After
several months, Dell decided to go back to including an XP
installation CD but only if the customer ordered it and paid
$10 extra.

An installation CD can be ordered through this web site. I
believe the original owner has to submit the request.

https://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/support/dellcare/en/backupcd_form

Good luck

Nepatsfan
 
Tue said:
Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already
have 2 Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the
selling party said it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if
its worth getting. He said, it has the windows xp verification tag
on the outside so he's pretty sure i can get microsoft to send me a
xp cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
Click to expand...

Negatory, good buddy.
 
Tue, 9 Oct 2007 15:18:48 -0500 from Bob Harris <rharris270[SPAM]
@hotmail.com>:
An alternative to a CD (XP or restoration) is to get your own
backup&restore software and make an image to an external hard
drive, CDs, DVDs, etc. Maybe make one image a month, or
before/after software upgrades (including the monly XP updates).
Then, if somehting goes wrong, you can do your own restore. For
such a purpose I recommned Acronis True Image,
Click to expand...

I heartily second your recommendation. (I have True Image 8 and know
nothing of any other versions.)

Through setting up dual boot when, unknown to me, there was bad RAM,
I got my disk into such a state that it would not boot. Acronis
restored all my partitions including the boot table. The program even
walks you through making a bootable CD, though obviously you have to
do that before you need to do a restore.
 
Stan Brown said:
Tue, 9 Oct 2007 15:18:48 -0500 from Bob Harris <rharris270[SPAM]
@hotmail.com>:
Click to expand...
I heartily second your recommendation. (I have True Image 8 and know
nothing of any other versions.)
Click to expand...

Acronis is now at TrueImage Home version 11. It is very nice.
 
Xandros said:
Stan Brown said:
Tue, 9 Oct 2007 15:18:48 -0500 from Bob Harris <rharris270[SPAM]
@hotmail.com>:
Click to expand...
I heartily second your recommendation. (I have True Image 8 and know
nothing of any other versions.)
Click to expand...

Acronis is now at TrueImage Home version 11. It is very nice.
Click to expand...

I have ATI 9.0. Is it possible to upgrade to either 10 or 11?
 
Daave said:
Xandros said:
Stan Brown said:
Tue, 9 Oct 2007 15:18:48 -0500 from Bob Harris <rharris270[SPAM]
@hotmail.com>:
Click to expand...
I heartily second your recommendation. (I have True Image 8 and know
nothing of any other versions.)
Click to expand...

Acronis is now at TrueImage Home version 11. It is very nice.
Click to expand...

I have ATI 9.0. Is it possible to upgrade to either 10 or 11?
Click to expand...
You can purchase an Upgrade version to 11 online at a $20 saving
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/sales/upgrade/
 
Cynanthis said:
Hi, I came across someone selling an inexpensive Dell pc. I already have 2
Dells so I guess I am familiar a litle with them. But the selling party said
it doesnt have the OS cd so I am wondering if its worth getting. He said, it
has the windows xp verification tag on the outside so he's pretty sure i can
get microsoft to send me a xp cd if i really wanted it. IS that a fact?
Click to expand...



No, it's not Microsoft will not provide support for OEM licenses.
You'd have to get the replacement CD from the computeters manufacturer.

I have never had to do a reinstall on my other XP's (and dont know how), so
I am needing a few opinions here. I havent seen this pc yet til I get a few
ideas from you helpful persons. thanks in advance.
PS he said nothing is wrong from what he can see on the pc, other than some
dust on the inside and that canned air could get rid of it. Is ALOT of dust
a red flag, or no big deal.
Click to expand...


With second-hand computers, especially if acquired from strangers
but perhaps even if acquired from a family member or friend, your wisest
course of action would definitely be to format the hard drives and start
fresh. You don't want to get in trouble because the original owner may
have filled the hard drive with kiddie porn, or have problems because
the original owner downloaded/installed viruses or other malware.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot
 
Wed, 10 Oct 2007 07:30:03 -0600 from Xandros
Daave said:
Xandros said:
Tue, 9 Oct 2007 15:18:48 -0500 from Bob Harris <rharris270[SPAM]
@hotmail.com>:


I heartily second your recommendation. (I have True Image 8 and know
nothing of any other versions.)

Acronis is now at TrueImage Home version 11. It is very nice.
Click to expand...

I have ATI 9.0. Is it possible to upgrade to either 10 or 11?
Click to expand...
You can purchase an Upgrade version to 11 online at a $20 saving
http://www.acronis.com/homecomputing/sales/upgrade/
Click to expand...

Is there any real reason to upgrade? Version 8 seems to be working
well for me.

(The one thing I don't like -- and would consider upgrading to fix --
is that to back up two partitions to two different files, I have t go
through the wizard, wait for the first backup to finish, then go
through the wizard again to kick off the second wizard. It would be
nice to queue the operations and then walk away. But scheduling saved
jobs doesn't cut it for me because each backup is to a different
filename on my external drive, and I don't want scheduling. :-) I
insulate my backup drive by connecting it to power and my computer
only during the backup, then disconnecting it immediately from both.)
 
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