XP re-activation question

[tedsmith]

I still use a copy of Windows XP that originally had 5 activations.
Over the years I have changed or reformatted my drive and reinstalled it more than 5 times.
The last few times I had to phone Microsoft and beg as the automatic internet method told me I had exceeded 5.

When I recently re-activated, the automatic activation worked again.

Does this mean that seeing Microsoft have abandoned XP I can now reactivate as many times as I like?

Anybody heard anything about this?

 

[goombawaho]

Does this mean that seeing Microsoft have abandoned XP I can now reactivate as many times as I like?

I would highly doubt that but I don't have proof. The last XP I reloaded, it activated normally but that was a key code that had never been registered. Microsoft would be stupid if they gave up on activation and let the rest of the world bootleg it.

 

[hairlessupportmonkey]

If ever I have had to register an MS product out side of its allowed activations, the automated phone service generally does it for me!

ACSS - SME
General Geek

 

[strongm]

The following was Microsoft's official position about a year ago: "The end of Windows XP support will not affect activation

 

[tedsmith]

Well it worked for me on the same computer even though it initially said I had exceeded the number so I tried it on an old disk in a completely different computer with a different CPU and sure enough it said "I had too many activations"
However the automated phone service allowed mt to register it!

I would think this makes a mockery of their whole activation system - and so it should because they won't sell you a new copy of XP to replace it either!

 

[strongm]

>this makes a mockery of their whole activation system

Depends what you think activation is for. It certainly isn't to limit you to a maximum of 5 installs, and never has been.

 

[tedsmith]

Well as a test, I installed and activated a (5 copy) copy of XP that had been used more than 5 times on an entirely different computer - I would have thought this is what activation was intended to prevent?
This was different to reinstalling the same XP on the same computer.

After all if your motherboard and drive fails and you have to buy a new ones, isn't that a different computer to the original anyway?
I understand MS create a score of the number of changes to determine if it should be reactivated so they I wonder if they are also counting the number of times your computer is significantly different(different computer) or if it is only slightly different (eg only a drive is changed)?

 

[goombawaho]

If it's a retail copy, you can legally move it to another PC and they will always activate for you - whether you can do it over the internet or via phone call is a different question.

If it was an OEM copy, you shouldn't be moving it around or if you replace the motherboard with anything other than the original one, it should die with that mobo.

I think you misunderstand what activation is for. It's so that you can't install the same copy of XP on 10 PCs or 5000 of them in China. They figure that you might need to reinstall over the life of the product and/or that you might make hardware changes. For MOST people, online activation is always going to work. At some point, reactivation too many times in a certain period of time OR too many changes will trip the "phone call" requirement.

I'm almost suspicious of you for activating so many time and asking this question now that I think about it. Plus - time to get off XP.

 

[cdogg]

Ted,
I agree with Goom, but we should also point out that Microsoft is generally very lenient with activation in the first place. There are rules, but many have exceptions and a phone call can often get around the ones that don't. Trying to find the limits to activation really is a pointless task, especially in regards to XP which is being retired.

-Carl
"The glass is neither half-full nor half-empty: it's twice as big as it needs to be."

[tab][navy]For this site's posting policies, click [/navy]here.

 

[tedsmith]

I am afraid that to some more disadvantaged persons, XP is still a fact of life.

The reason I am interested is that I have to maintain a number of computers that all use XP in a special setup. The control software for the special attached hardware only runs on XP as I think it used some 16 bit controls.
So I have no choice to keep it going for probably the next 20 years. Some of the computers are over 10 years old and still functioning but each hard drive or motherboard fails I have to replace it normally requiring reactivation. Some of them have exceeded their 5 times.

I merely commented that when I just replaced the drive, MS auto activated over the internet even though I got the (5) message whereas when I had to replace both the drive and motherboard, I had to use the phone system to reactivate.

There ends up no more copies of the XPs than there originally were, just in other hardware so I think it is all legal.

I was just wondering how many times I can continue to do this?

I would think there are a number of other institutions like schools in disadvantaged areas in a similar position who can't afford to buy a new computer (and software) just because of a $100 fault.

 

[strongm]

>Some of them have exceeded their 5 times.
>I was just wondering how many times I can continue to do this?

I'll repeat - there is no limit on reactivating, as long as you follow licensing rules, which from

>There ends up no more copies of the XPs than there originally were

it would appear that you are. Unless they are OEM copies of XP (as goombawaho has already pointed out)

 

[goombawaho]

Trying to find the limits to activation really is a pointless task, especially in regards to XP which is being retired.

Very well said and what I was thinking as well, but maybe doesn't apply to the OP.

Here's the real thing I learned from your thread. At some point, you will be forced to moved away from XP and 20 years is NOT reasonable. Why? Because as motherboards die, the OEM copy needs to die with them. Also, if they were retail copies, yes you could buy a new mobo and keep rolling, BUT the newer hardware probably won't be able to run XP for too much longer (if even now).

You have to investigate with your product (control software) and ask them what their plan is for moving forward in terms of hardware and software compatibility. Your scheme is not likely to keep the ball rolling for too long.

I'm also wondering if, at some point, Microsoft will say, "no more XP activations, it's dead/gone". I don't know if they can legally do that, but I'm sure they'd like to close down that whole segment of their operation at some point.

 

[goombawaho]

I am afraid that to some more disadvantaged persons, XP is still a fact of life.

This is not a person, correct - it is a corporate entity?? In that case, you can't think like a person with $50 in your pocket. You have to think long term and infrastructure spending is a part of long term business thinking.

I should have also said that Windows 7 Professional or Windows Ultimate will support XP mode which should run your software. If you're unable to spend much money though, it will eventually chase you into a bad situation. Also, it's going to start getting tough to find Windows 7 pretty quickly. Again, there is time pressure on you.

 

[tedsmith]

It's not the control software that is the problem (it could easily be rewritten in a more modern language) but the device that is connected to it. The device manufacturer no longer exists and it's drivers will definitely work in anything later than XP.

I don't fancy trying to write new drivers.

The devices are unfortunately a unique thing specially designed for this client and I agree the client will have to get someone to invent replacement devices if MS ever decide to not activate any more or don't give everyone a universal key to do it (or a third party does it).

Maybe the guy that runs the organisation will be dead by then so it won't matter!

 

[strongm]

>I agree the client will have to get someone to invent replacement devices

Erm ... or get someone to write new drivers, surely. As you say, it may not be something you fancy - but any new device would need new drivers anyway ...

 

[goombawaho]

Well, I guess it will all play out.

 

[cdogg]

Ted,

Until you provided a larger perspective, it was hard to tell what your goal was here. I didn't mean to sound like I was belittling the little guy.

I used to work for a manufacturer that had the same problem with machines being tied to Windows 98. Their solution a long time ago was to virtualize the application, so that it could run on any platform, such as Windows 2000 and XP. I moved on shortly after that, so I have no idea what they're facing now as XP loses support on newer hardware. And in your case, I'm not sure how you would approach the driver issue, other than moving XP to a VM (virtual machine) environment and testing, or possibly trying out XP mode in Windows 7.

One thing is for sure. You're going to want to verify soon if the computers are using OEM copies of XP. If they are, then the client will want to consider purchasing retail copies of XP while they're still available, or make the conscious decision to bite it down the road. Sooner or later, you're going to have to replace the computers as their main components die and identical replacements are no longer available. As Goom points out, OEM copies cannot be moved when the destination is seen as a new computer.

-Carl
"The glass is neither half-full nor half-empty: it's twice as big as it needs to be."

[tab][navy]For this site's posting policies, click [/navy]here.

 

[goombawaho]

I'd love for you to show me where a retail XP license could be purchased today.

 

[strongm]

>a retail XP license

Maybe not brand new, but it is perfectly legitimate for retail XP to be resold. Of course, identifying such legitimate second-hand copies may be difficult.

 

[goombawaho]

Got it. Ebay here I come.