Are windows licences tied to prebiult Dell motherboards?

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lolidk

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Jan 25, 2018
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Hi guys,

I'm building a new pc, but keeping the old hard drive. It seems that the more research I've done, the more questions I have. I'm upgrading from a prebiult Dell. I've heard that Windows licenses are tied to the motherboards of prebiults. Is this true? Any answers would be appreciated greatly.
 
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V1ctor89
Actually, any OEM license will be tied to a particular PC once it gets activated online. It is mainly tied to the motherboard, so you can upgrade the HDD, CPU or GPU no problem. However, a Retail license can be used on an unlimited number of PCs, as many times as you want. Retail licenses are more expensive than OEM.
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V1ctor89

V1ctor89

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Actually, any OEM license will be tied to a particular PC once it gets activated online. It is mainly tied to the motherboard, so you can upgrade the HDD, CPU or GPU no problem. However, a Retail license can be used on an unlimited number of PCs, as many times as you want. Retail licenses are more expensive than OEM.
 
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william p

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Sep 22, 2010
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OEM license costs more because MS includes support with it. OEM licenses require the OEM to provide their own support.
FWIW I bought a dell office computer with no HDD, and no system disc. I installed the same version Win 7 Home Premium from an OEM disc and used the Dell
activation key from the COA label on the computer. MS wouldn't activate it until I contacted them and told them why the versions didn't match.
Retail licenses are supposed to be tied to a specific computer when activated. You might use the MB swap story more than once I guess. But one computer is my understanding of the license.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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Mar 16, 2013
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You have that mostly backwards.
(pre-Win 10)
OEM is generally cheaper, because the retailer (Dell/HP/whoever), gets it cheap, and includes it with the hardware.. Includes no support from MS, and is tied to the original motherboard it is installed with.
Purchase your own OEM license, and it us slightly cheaper than a Retail license.

Retail license is more expensive, because you can use that with different hardware, and it technically includes support from MS.

Of course, that is mostly changed with Win 10 licensing.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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Which specific OS is this?
7, 8.1, 10?
Generally, with a Dell, that license it linked to that original hardware.

If you're building a whole new PC, a new license for your new system is maybe 10% of the total price.
Just buy a new license for your new system.
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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This too.
I have a long running Win 10 install, in a VM, to test exactly this.
435 days so far. Running perfectly, exactly as it did on Day 1.
 
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