serial number + what required to reinstall windows xp?

[Jeff]

I just picked up an older dell latitude notebook on ebay from someone with 99.9% positive feedback (until I can save up and buy the higher powered notebook I really want :))

The ebay listing says "XP installed, activated, Registered, and verfied as genuine via the windows update utility. (No Recovery CD included)"

I'm thinking that I might want to give centos a try on this notebook, but if that doesn't go well, I might want to go back to xp (plus I wouldn't mind having a 100% clean install of xp.) I have my own XPSP1 CD. I see under control panel -> system -> general it appears to give the serial number. Could I simply use the serial number that I presume is from the dell oem version installed on this notebook to reinstall XP using my CD? Or are there other pieces of info necessary during the xp install that I might not have for this used notebook?

[ryount]

Not sure what you see on the general tab is the key. There should be a sticker on the bottom of the laptop. If not, this keyfinder has saved me a few times: http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml

[Jeff]

You are correct - the number I was seeing on the general tab was not the CD key and the above program seems to work great! Many thanks.

(hopefully the xp coa sticker will be on the bottom of the notebook so I won't need it if all the info I need is on the COA sticker when I get it, but I'm not 100% sure.)

[ryount]

Chances are the key you retrieve will not match the sticker on the laptop. Dell seems to use the same key on every system they ship, at least for the last few years anyway.

[Jeff]

Hmmm... retrieved the serial number, reinstalled windows, and now windows xp won't activate.

Wonder if different serial numbers are tied to different CD's or versions (SP2 was installed, my CD is SP1.)

[Randall]

Wonder if different serial numbers are tied to different CD's or versions (SP2 was installed, my CD is SP1.) Pretty likely that the serial numbers changed with SP2. If you know someone with an SP2 CD, a reinstall might do the trick.

On the other hand, you might give telephone activation a try. Just be prepared to read a really long number out loud, twice -- once to the automated system, and again to a human rep after the system rejects it. They seem amenable to satisfying the customer, particularly if your voice sounds as ragged as mine did by the time the rep came on the line. :blah:

Randall

[Jeff]

Got an email back from the seller:
The XP Installed is Genuine Dell Version so the Number revealed will only be valid with a Dell XP install Disk. Your disk is probably an OEM or Retail version which will require a different Key for that specific install disk. The dell computers when using genuine software from dell use the bios code to register, active and verify it as genuine.
The listing said simply:
XP installed, activated, Registered, and verfied as genuine via the windows update utility. (No Recovery CD included)
On the bottom is a windows 98SE COA! The seller had a 99.9% Positive feedback with 5500+ feedback comments and has sold a number of these exact units, but I guess I didn't ask the right question and took things at face value too much. I figured activated and genuine would be good to go... I suppose I might as well give microsoft a call and see what they can do for me as I don't have anything to lose at this point.

In a worst case, I wonder if the "genuine dell windows xp" serial number is worth anything for an upgrade to a real non-dell version of xp :(

[Jeff]

Well, at the advice of the seller, I now bought a "genuine dell xp reinstallation cd" on ebay for $18 so hopefully that will work and activate with the genuine dell windows xp serial number that I got with the notebook. I've always built my own computers so I didn't realize there was a whole world of cheap dell windows apart from the "real" windows...

[Randall]

Well, at the advice of the seller, I now bought a "genuine dell xp reinstallation cd" on ebay for $18 so hopefully that will work and activate with the genuine dell windows xp serial number that I got with the notebook. I've always built my own computers so I didn't realize there was a whole world of cheap dell windows apart from the "real" windows... The Dell Windows CDs don't differ much from standard discs as far as I can tell, which is more than can be said for the "recovery" CDs you get from some manufacturers. The main difference is that the Dell CDs will only install on Dell machines -- but if you change a couple of files in the i386 folder, they'll install on anything.

Randall

[Jeff]

If only I knew how to change the files the other way :)

Ah well, once my $18 disc arrives I won't be mad that I didn't ask the right presales questions and wasted 1 1/2 hours installing windows on my "new" notebook only to have to do the same thing with the dell version again. (despite the... ahem... dated CPU, it actually runs great with firefox once I found an extra 64 out of an old laser printer on the shelf!) And it's a lot better than the image type spam-ridden restore disks that other manufacturers provide.

I guess the seller must get the serial numbers from dead dell notebooks where the dell cd's are lost, but luckily there seems to be a market providing plenty of restore cd's at around $20 probably from notebooks where everything else was destroyed :)

[kn1ghtcr4wl3r]

to bad you don't have a dell disc, a clean install=no activation needed(must be dell computer) Now I'm curious what file needed to change for other computer not needing activation? :EG:

[Randall]

Now I'm curious what file needed to change for other computer not needing activation? :EG: :siren:

The modification I alluded to doesn't bypass Product Activation. It simply allowed a Dell install CD to work on non-Dells. And that was a Windows 2000 trick ... dunno if it applies to XP.

Some Dell machines do have to be reactivated, even with a genuine Dell CD.

Randall

[Jeff]

Got a sealed Dell XP Pro SP2 reinstallation CD today and reinstalled "dell" windows xp from scratch from this cd. Was not prompted for a serial number, installed, veriifed as genuine, and downloaded 41 updates :). Used http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml and the serial number reported was the same as before. Interesting! Learn something new every day.

[kn1ghtcr4wl3r]

yeah but if you do the upgrade method it would make you activate.