Windows 7 Licensing Scenario Question

[flipteo]

Scenario:

I buy a computer that has a legit, validated/registered Windows 7 installed on it. BUT, for whatever reason, there is no COA sticker on the computer, and the product key hasn't been written down anywhere.

Now, my understanding is that retrieving the key is relatively simple with the right program. The program finds it, decrypts it, and gives it to you. So now you have a legit key.

Next (this is what I plan on doing), you wipe the hdd, and do a fresh install of a matching (home, professional, etc.) windows 7 iso, obtained from digitalriver.

Then, you go to validate, and...it works, right?

[Saucey]

It would seem so. I have reused Windows COA in the past prior to 7. It depends if that program can take that serial number down correctly.
Windows might see that you reused that COA, but I think that is fine under Microsoft's terms and conditions.

[jayton4]

The key that comes installed with the computer is a generic key that is used for all computers from that manufacturer. Simply putting that key into an install from the digitalriver iso's will not work without first injecting the OEM certificate. You can use SLIC Toolkit to backup your certificate.

Basically read through this:
http://forums.mydigitallife.info/thread ... Repository
Specifically read under "6. Advanced Stuff" sections F-a and F-b

[flipteo]

Thanks you two, and sorry for not being able to reply sooner.

Making sense of Microsoft policies is exhausting.

[Temetka]

Glad you got it sorted.

Out of curiosity why does the machine not have a COA sticker affixed to it?

[flipteo]

Glad you got it sorted.

Out of curiosity why does the machine not have a COA sticker affixed to it?

I don't know, but I see them on ebay fairly often.

[ZaZ]

Sometimes they do hide the sticker under the battery, which my X220 does. Which ThinkPad do you have?

[flipteo]

Sometimes they do hide the sticker under the battery, which my X220 does. Which ThinkPad do you have?

I don't have a thinkpad with windows 7 on it. I'm thinking of getting one though; and that's why I started the thread.

[cadillacmike68]

Glad you got it sorted.

Out of curiosity why does the machine not have a COA sticker affixed to it?

I don't know, but I see them on ebay fairly often.

And that's a problem. I usually won't buy a Thinkpad with a missing or obliterated COA sticker.

[emtee3511]

If your Windows install is a legitimate install, you can use Speccy software (from piriform.com) to find the legal 25 digit key. Speccy also gives lots of other info about your machine, but I have used it many times to help keep track of my authentic Microsoft software. I have waaaaaaaaaay to many Thinkpads and have had many, many more pass through my hands.
(but that is info for another thread with the most-likely title of addiction
I have always been able to match the key given by Speccy to my matching key on an install disk or on the COA on the machine.

[ajkula66]

And that's a problem. I usually won't buy a Thinkpad with a missing or obliterated COA sticker.

Well, many large corporate orders were shipped with no COA enabling IT departments to install volume licensed OS.

All jokes aside, what good does one a XP COA do nowadays? W7 yes, by all means. Even that is not the biggest of deals...

[kevinc]

Emtee... Thanks for the tip. I just checked out Speccy. Excellent tool. I'll keep it around. It's nothing if not thorough. I clicked the print key and had to stop it after 30 pages of a 124 page report. I wonder how many pages I'd get from the Pro version. Good stuff.

[Rockrz]

If your Windows install is a legitimate install, you can use Speccy software (from piriform.com) to find the legal 25 digit key

And, when you use the key to activate a freshly installed Win 7... it activates?

[kevinc]

If your Windows install is a legitimate install, you can use Speccy software (from piriform.com) to find the legal 25 digit key

And, when you use the key to activate a freshly installed Win 7... it activates?

Yuo can also obtain the key from Belarc Advisor. Belarc seems to be a bit more user friendly than Speccy, at least for me.

[Rockrz]

Yuo can also obtain the key from Belarc Advisor. Belarc seems to be a bit more user friendly than Speccy, at least for me.

And, when you use the key to activate a freshly installed Win 7... it activates???

[kevinc]

Yuo can also obtain the key from Belarc Advisor. Belarc seems to be a bit more user friendly than Speccy, at least for me.

And, when you use the key to activate a freshly installed Win 7... it activates???

I ran both Speccy and Bellarc Advisor on my desktop WIN 7 64 bit installation. Each one pulled the correct key.
I haven't experimented with a fresh install.

[Rockrz]

Well, I'm hearing all the k0oL people do fresh installs to eliminate bloatware but I
don't want to have to buy an OEM copy of Win 7 to do that... so I wuz just askin

[emtee3511]

Rockrz: "And, when you use the key to activate a freshly installed Win 7... it activates???"

I've done this many times on many different Thinkpads. Most likely your re-install will automatically install online, but if for some reason it doesn't auto-activate, a pop-up window will show a Microsoft phone number to activate. When you call that number, most likely a computer/phone voice will walk you through the activation process and activate for you. If again the auto-activate phone/computer voice doesn't activate the install, you will then be transferred to a real "live" Microsoft tech, who will activate for you. Just tell the tech your computer "crashed," /replaced hard drive, /got a virus... whatever fits your circumstances most closely, and you will be asked if this is the only computer your Windows is on... that's it... the tech will activate for you. Pretty simple.

I only/ever use legitimate, purchased or oem Windows, but I play with my machines waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much and have to reinstall probably more often than the average user. A 'non-geek' doesn't install much because they don't know how; a 'real geek' doesn't install much because they know what they are doing; but a 'geek wannabe' (like me) tends to install lots because I'm always fooling around with my machines and trading stuff out... yadda... yadda

It always works for me when I call Microsoft; on the rare occasion when I have to talk to a 'live' tech, I let the tech know I have the COA (or, if a download, the original Key number; and also that I am a "non-geek"; the techs are always willing to get my re-install activated.

All that said, it is most likely (90% of the time) your re-install will auto-activate on line.

[Rockrz]

OK, k0oL... I'm actually planning on installing a 1 TB drive so that'll be my excuse!

Thanks for relaying your experience with this. I was hoping this could be done without having to buy an OEM copy of Win 7

[cadillacmike68]

I play with my machines waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much and have to reinstall probably more often than the average user. A 'non-geek' doesn't install much because they don't know how; a 'real geek' doesn't install much because they know what they are doing; but a 'geek wannabe' (like me) tends to install lots because I'm always fooling around with my machines and trading stuff out... yadda... yadda

Well said. I have never been reduced to the point of having to do a complete re-install on my or my wife's computers. I've had to do it for other folks though.

[Rockrz]

I heard performance / paranoid geeks always do a fresh install so they can
control what goes on the system and so they can tweak it all out how they want.

Heard that on another board... that shall remain nameless

[theterminator93]

I have yet to see a Windows 8 -> 7 downgrade PC have a COA label for 7 on the machine anywhere since PCs started being shipped/originally equipped with 8... but the company I work for typically deals with HP products so I can't speak for all distributors. They have a Windows 8 product key embedded in the ACPI, but the Windows 7 installs are done with a generic volume license key as was said earlier (as is almost always done when factory images are made/pushed out to PCs).

[Rockrz]

Yeah, I hear the only way to re-install Win 7 on one of these is to contact the manufacturer and ask for Win 7 restore disks which is a hassle since they'll probably give ya a hard time for not being in lock step with everybody else to use Win 8.

But, but... I don't want Win 8

[cadillacmike68]

I heard performance / paranoid geeks always do a fresh install so they can
control what goes on the system and so they can tweak it all out how they want.

Heard that on another board... that shall remain nameless

If you know what you are doing, you can completely eradicate an errant or unwanted program from your system, without doing a fresh install. It is far less time consuming that re-loading 2 or 3 dozen applications.

I have yet to see a Windows 8 -> 7 downgrade PC have a COA label for 7 on the machine anywhere since PCs started being shipped/originally equipped with 8... but the company I work for typically deals with HP products so I can't speak for all distributors. They have a Windows 8 product key embedded in the ACPI, but the Windows 7 installs are done with a generic volume license key as was said earlier (as is almost always done when factory images are made/pushed out to PCs).

I think this is the norm. My T61s with XPP all have Vista COAs.

But they have a COA, it's not missing or removed. A downgrade is allowable, but as rockrz states, the machine mfrs don't always make it easy.

[pianowizard]

But, but... I don't want Win 8

Windows 8 has so many advantages over 7. It's much faster, more secure, and takes up less space. Microsoft will support Windows 8 until Jan 2023, versus only Jan 2020 for 7. Also, Windows 8 can often be had for less than Windows 7, e.g. Amazon had 8 for only $60 a couple days ago. You may have played with 8 a while back and decided it's not for you, but after Microsoft released the update for 8.1 a month or so ago, many people who used to hate 8 now like it much more. Give it another try; it's a much better bargain than 7.

This is the advice I have been giving people: If you already have a Vista COA, just use it, because Vista is a superb OS, and is free since you already have the COA. If you have an XP COA, or don't have any COA, get 8 instead of 7, because 8 is much better than 7 as explained above. Buying Windows 7 makes the least sense, unless your goal is to waste money.

I heard performance / paranoid geeks always do a fresh install

We should always reinstall the OS on a second-hand computer, because the previous owner could have installed spyware on it.

[Rockrz]

Win 7 allows me to control more of how my machine works, so I'll stick with it.

Going forward, users will have less and less control over their machines and there are things on there that allow spying by manufacturers and government not to mention it's all about making users spend money to upgrade.

Besides, I saw an article not long ago where extensive performace testing was done and Win 7 is reported to be faster that Win 8

[ajkula66]

This is the advice I have been giving people: If you already have a Vista COA, just use it, because Vista is a superb OS, and is free since you already have the COA.

I agree, presuming that one is intent on using a spinning drive. Vista + SSD is a "no go" in my book, due to its lack of native TRIM support.

If you have an XP COA, or don't have any COA, get 8 instead of 7, because 8 is much better than 7 as explained above. Buying Windows 7 makes the least sense, unless your goal is to waste money.

FWIW, there's a *lot* of old software - especially proprietary offerings - that does NOT play well with W8. Whatsoever.

So I'd say that each and every one of us has to make a decision on what's better for them depending on their own user patterns.

We should always reinstall the OS on a second-hand computer, because the previous owner could have installed spyware on it.

Agreed 10,001% and not just for the security reasons...

[Cigarguy]

Win 7 allows me to control more of how my machine works, so I'll stick with it.

Besides, I saw an article not long ago where extensive performace testing was done and Win 7 is reported to be faster that Win 8

I agree. Fresh install of Win 7 and call it a day. In my experience no significant speed difference between Win 7 or 8.

[pianowizard]

Win 7 allows me to control more of how my machine works, so I'll stick with it.

I don't know what you want to "control", but for the control features that I need, they are all still there in Windows 8. By default, they can be hard to find, but once I have added a Control Panel shortcut on the desktop, everything is just as accessible as in Windows 7. And of course, regedit is still there.

Going forward, users will have less and less control over their machines and there are things on there that allow spying by manufacturers and government

By default Windows 8 does try to share more of your information than previous versions of Windows, but privacy settings can be easily changed manually. You may be right about going forward, but Windows 8 isn't that "forward" yet.

not to mention it's all about making users spend money to upgrade.

This thread is about getting Windows for a machine that didn't come with a COA. Getting Win 8 for this machine would allow the OP to spend less money. First of all, Win 8 tends to be cheaper than Win 7. Second, by installing 8, one wouldn't need to upgrade again until Jan 2023. So, your argument actually argues for Win 8 and against Win 7!

If you already have 7, then of course you shouldn't upgrade to 8. I have never encouraged anyone to upgrade from 7 to 8, as I consider it to be a waste of money. But again, this thread is about an entirely different scenario: the OP's computer has no COA sticker.

I am against extracting the COA, and then using this code to reinstall Windows, because in most cases this would be illegal. For example, as ajkula66 said, "many large corporate orders were shipped with no COA enabling IT departments to install volume licensed OS." These site licenses typically allow the computers to be used legally only within that particular company. If you are not affiliated with that company, then using its COA would be illegal.

Besides, I saw an article not long ago where extensive performace testing was done and Win 7 is reported to be faster that Win 8

You will always find an occasional outlier. Even for Vista, I recall seeing a couple articles concluding it was faster than XP. "Extensive" testing isn't always a good thing, because many of the benchmark tests aren't that relevant to what the average user needs. At least 7 out of 10 users have found Win 8 to be faster than Win 7.

[ajkula66]

"Extensive" testing isn't always a good thing, because many of the benchmark tests aren't that relevant to what the average user needs.

Agreed.

At least 7 out of 10 users have found Win 8 to be faster than Win 7.

That really depends on a number of things, and I'm not going to start the speed debate in this thread.

My experience over the past decade has been that the most common - as well as the biggest - bottleneck is the user themselves...

I'd also state that while there are many people who push their systems to the limits trying to achieve the best scores imaginable, there are even more users who want their systems to be dead stable, at least judging by my past and present clients over many years and in different walks of life.