bbq Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Recently i went to reformat my pc as i dual boot linux and xp... I opened my little box where i keep all my backup cd's and OS installs etc... to discover my XP Pro SP2 OEM cd had snapped in half :/ I am not buying a new copy thats for sure... currently just running fedora linux to keep me going however some apps i use need doze and i need to get it running again on a new hdd i bought... problem being i don't have a cd anymore... i am not purchasing another... is there anyway to reinstall windows... warez is dodgy even for apparently untouched images etc... i want to reinstall with my key and all that... any suggestions are appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparda Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Recently i went to reformat my pc as i dual boot linux and xp... I opened my little box where i keep all my backup cd's and OS installs etc... to discover my XP Pro SP2 OEM cd had snapped in half :/ I am not buying a new copy thats for sure... currently just running fedora linux to keep me going however some apps i use need doze and i need to get it running again on a new hdd i bought... problem being i don't have a cd anymore... i am not purchasing another... is there anyway to reinstall windows... warez is dodgy even for apparently untouched images etc... i want to reinstall with my key and all that... any suggestions are appreciated backup your stuff, including games. You are SOL if you don't want to download a copy of the Windows disk via file sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xarf Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 You are SOL SOL = ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digip Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 SOL = ? SOL = shit out of luck... Anyway, if you want, you can try resizing the HDD and then installing Linux on the rest of the partition without having to format the drive and waste yoru windows install(Unless you already wiped it, then you are SOL). DISCLAIMER: USE AT YOUR OWN RISK, THIS IS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY! and may be agianst forum rules, so I tread lightly here. There are some other ways around this, but would require you have another XP install disc to work from, which kind of defeats the purpose. If you can borrow someone elses XP install disc, and copy their activation file to a USB key, then install windows on your machine from their disc, then copy over the already registered activation file and it will never ask you to register/activate your copy of windows since it was already done on the other machine. The activation file from the other machine(As long as its a valid install) is what makes this easy since you can backup your own for later installs from your own media. 1, this is not legal unless it was from your own machine and own install disc, and 2, I can't remember the name of the file you copy over. Search google for Windows Activation File and you should be able to figure it out. (Winners don't do warez). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loony Guitarist Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 If you can borrow someone elses XP install disc, and copy their activation file to a USB key, then install windows on your machine from their disc, then copy over the already registered activation file and it will never ask you to register/activate your copy of windows since it was already done on the other machine. Actually borrowing a friends Xp disk isin't a bad Idea especally if you have your own CD key. I don't think the activation file is nessicary though. I have about 5 - 6 XP disks laying around that I use whenever I need to re-install winblows and as long as I use my own CD key at installation they work fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m0u53 Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 the only problem with useing a backed up activiation file *.dbl or something is that it is set to your hardware specificly meaning if you change anything like a hdd it will be invalid personally i use WPA cracks..because god knows my parents have over the years spent around 2k on windows cd's...its bs that you cant reactivate windows with the same key twice...i mean they relise how unstable shit is...</rant> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X3N Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 as long as you have an xp sp2 disc you can reinstall with a different cd then use a program like magic jelly bean to change your windows key to your old one. Should work fine. Ive done it many times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparda Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 as long as you have an xp sp2 disc you can reinstall with a different cd then use a program like magic jelly bean to change your windows key to your old one. Should work fine. Ive done it many times. It has to be the same version. There are a couple of subversions for each version. XP Pro SP0/1/2/3 Retail XP Pro SP0/1/2/3 OEM XP Pro SP0/1/2/3 OEM Reseller (Except each reseller has there own set of keys) Each version (Retail, OEM and OEM Reseller) has a different key set. Each service pack version has a different keyset from what I understand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natural_orange Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 I can get XP from my college through the M$ Academic Alliance. Idk if thats an option for you, another option is getting a subscription to something like TechNET where you get a lot of software for free and legit, but its not supposed to be for personal use. If you have a name-brand computer like HP or Dell you may be able to buy a backup/recovery disc through them. And sometime you may be able to buy what is called a "media-kit" for xp, where you get an XP Cd, but you don't get a cd-key or license. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbq Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 Alright thanks for the information... I do not know anyone who has XP Pro as my mates either have mac notebooks or XP Home... I will ask at uni if i can borrow a mates DVD and install with my own serial... I actually did that once before on my old old pc when i had XP Home as it was a Packard-Bell and they didn't give an OS disk with the computer as most package POS computers do... I had a learch around some dodgy places on the net (warez)... It seems to be rather difficult to find completely untouched .iso's of my version of windows Windows XP SP2 OEM 2002 You would think MS would offer some kind of .iso download so people can restore there product legitimately... Already millions of people are using pirate windows... I prefer not to as i am an advocate for open source however i don't mind paying for MS and believe there are only 2 things on a computer that are definitely worth paying for OS and Anti-virus if needed... That way you have a 'safe' basis to build from... I reformatted my hard drive already as dual booting from the same HDD was causing some crashing issue's for windows and the Linux partition I had previously was a little small and my HDD had no room for resizing the partitions. So i cannot restore windows from within windows in anyway as it was nuked before I realised I had broken the cd :( I guess i am definitely SOL... and as m0u53 said most people have already handed there hundreds if not thousands into microsoft for products and I am most certainly not re buying something i already own and have a license to use.... Thanks for the advice and i will try to source a sp2 xp disk from a friend and do it that way. Cheers bbq ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbq Posted October 13, 2008 Author Share Posted October 13, 2008 I can get XP from my college through the M$ Academic Alliance. Idk if thats an option for you, another option is getting a subscription to something like TechNET where you get a lot of software for free and legit, but its not supposed to be for personal use. If you have a name-brand computer like HP or Dell you may be able to buy a backup/recovery disc through them. And sometime you may be able to buy what is called a "media-kit" for xp, where you get an XP Cd, but you don't get a cd-key or license. Sorry for double post... I am certain my university does not offer that sort of service... Although it does sound like a good idea. I do software engineering and the course is leaning towards Linux and GNU for development... They steer clear of windows except to occasionally show the difference between compiler warning / error messages under different environments... My computer is hand built by me from parts bought individually, so there is no chance of a recovery disk being obtained... so yeah I am currently SOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKo Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 Buy it or steal it. The choice is yours. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snakey Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 ok this is the logical way to do it. 1. get xp (warez, mate whatever). 2. use your cd key. 3. use activation crack. Done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbq Posted October 14, 2008 Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Lol i might just have to do that, will give it a try... If that fails - then i will steal it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRGRIM Posted October 14, 2008 Share Posted October 14, 2008 I don't understand the problem here, your Windows XP OEM CD came with the PC? I would guess then you have already have a CoA attatched to the PC or to some sort of documentaion? i.e. your windows copy is legal? If your copy of windows is legal, borrow a friends OEM disk and use your Serial. Where do you live? Edit: I re-read your post :P if you tell me where you live, I can see how much it would cost to ship you one of my spares :P I have errrr many XP PRO OEM disks ;) reccently did some hardware upgrades, and the previous guy only bought XP HOME ... makes a domain migration intresting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbq Posted October 14, 2008 Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Live in Australia - its all sorted asked a mate at uni and he has xp pro and is sharing his cd with me :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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