jigdo said:
I have a small problem in activating my copy of XP. My laptop came
pre- loaded with XP Pro which was good but, I lent it to a friend
who installed a copy of Linux - wiping out my Windows install
partition. I tried to use a retail version of XP (from my desktop)
to install but, it won't accept the OEM Windows key on the sticker
beneath my laptop.
Can someone tell me what I can do? Keep in mind that my Windows
partition has been wiped out!
Well - your laptop should have come with a method to restore it to an 'as
purchased' state. It is possible that was via a partition on the hard drive
and not a set of CDs (the best to hope for is installation and not
restoration/recovery CDs.) They also may have had you create your OWN set
of CDs via an application or process on said laptop (sometimes they create
actuall installation CDs - sometimes restoration/recovery CDs.)
Windows XP Retail (as you have discovered) is *NOT* what you got when you
bought the laptop. 90% or more of the laptops cout there come with OEM
licensed versions of the operating systems. Cheaper for the reseller. So
your first option is to contact the reseller (the OEM actually -
manufacturer of said laptop) and see about getting an installation CD for
Windows XP Professional from them to replace the one you should have
gotten/made in case of a catastrophic failure (or, in this case - a 'friend'
who had no idea what they were doing.)
You could also find a GENERIC OEM copy of Windows XP Professional and obtain
yourself a copy that way. No guarantee that will work - but getting a
generic OEM will increase the chances of it working properly.
You could also make a new CD out of the retail one you have that accepts OEM
keys. That's a bit trickier and I am not about to get into it here for
obvious reasons - but now that you know such an option exists and you
probably know where Google might be - you should be able to find the method
for doing such a thing... ;-)
