Dell OS software stays on the Dell?

[partialsum]

About a month ago I finished building a new gaming rig for myself. Since my mom has no computer I wanna give her my old Dell, which is still a good pc. Since I'm gonna do a reinstall of the windows to clean it up anyway, I figured I may as well do one better and replace the tiny 40 gb HD with a slightly less tiny 80 gb one (which would be fine for her). It is the old IDE interface and I chose this one for replacement:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822144122

Can I anticipate any problems with this? I've read that the os software that comes with Dell systems will only work for the particular system you bought it for (bullcrap). I just wanna know if I can put this disc in, reinstall the os that the original system came with, and be good to go. Whatever Dell uses to keep the os software on that particular system isn't somehow tied to the HD it comes with is it?

 

[pinaplex]

if it's the same system, with just a hdd upgrade, it shouldn't be a problem. The OS version is an OEM version and that will NOT usually allow you to switch systems, but should allow you change a couple of components (such as the hdd). In many cases with OEM software the license is tied more to the motherboard.

 

[michiganteddybear]

should be ok to go as long as the mobo is still a dell mobo. As long as the mobo is dell, and the cd for xp is dell, you wont have to activate it after the reload, as the only customizing of the cd is to make it pre-activated for dell hardware.

Now, you can even use that dell cd on a non-dell system, but you will need to activate it once windows is loaded (30 days to do so), and the key that is imbedded into the dell cd wont activate, so you need a valid oem key to get that done.

 

[partialsum]

So it is the motherboard. Well that's good then (sorta). For anyone buying a Dell pc this is important to know when weighing a decision. Your expensive os software will be bound to Dell.

 

[pinaplex]

its not just bound to Dell. OEM software in general is bound to usually one system only. thats why it is usually sold cheaper than the retail version of the OS.

 

[michiganteddybear]

right, I was just referring to dell in particular due to the nature of this thread.

a little more detail on the product key stuff if your interested in it.. The OEM license (says OEM on it) will activate 1 time on ANY hardware you install it on. after that, its supposed to stay on that hardware. Now, there are the 'royalty OEM's" (dell, hp, ect, anyone with a name on the sticker instead of OEM), most of them are flagged by MS to NOT activate if you try to use it. Yes, MS knows what key numbers are sold to which OEM! you can of course call MS and activate your royalty copy on the proper machine if needed (say you reformat a dell using a generic OEM disk instead of a dell disk), just have to go thru the phone thing to get it done. But again, its licensed only to that hardware.

Also, OEM software has limited support from MS. I dont mean updates, ect, but actual technical support. ya know, where you got an error and cant figure out whats up with it, you get ahold of MS to see if they can help. the full retail versions include expanded support. Anyone can also search the MS forums and kb to find solutions also.

 

[runswindows95]

Personally, I say keep the 40GB in there just for the OS, and add the 80GB for data only. This will save you a lot of headache if you have to reinstall everything later on. To answer the original question, as long as the mobo is the same, you should run into no problems.

 

[cranbers]

On a dell oem system, the only thing you have to worry about is the motherboard. Most everything else can be upgraded without any issue of the OEM windows activation.

As for activation, usually the disk has a pre oem activation built in. That means as long as you don't try to install it on a non dell system, activation USUSUALLY isn't even necessary. That is if your using xp, vista is a whole different animal. Sometimes it will flag you as usually non legit software even if a OC goes bad in my experience. But that is another story.

 

[gotspeed1212]

its not just bound to Dell. OEM software in general is bound to usually one system only. thats why it is usually sold cheaper than the retail version of the OS.

its not bound to one system i have a dell xp pro that is on 4 dells at the moment...
2 laptops and 2 desktops with no problem