Can you boot from Winnt32.exe

[tkeane]

Hi i have an advent notebook which is pretty old and has no optical drive and so the manufacturer put in a .exe file which reinstalls windows xp
If i copied this to a usb drive could i boot and install windows xp on another computer considering i have an unused activation key?
Thanks

 

[phil22]

The recovery utility (the .exe file) has probably been tailored to match the hardware inside your Advent notebook in respect of device drivers. These drivers will not be correct for another computer and will therefore cause multiple errors, that's assuming Windows starts at all.

More importantly though, the Windows you got with your Advent notebook is tied to that notebook under the terms of the Microsoft End User Licence. That installation is not legally transferrable to another PC.

It would be illegal to install it on another PC, even if you have an unused Product Key.

 

[tkeane]

Ah and would making a ghost image of another computer and attempting to transfer it that was also be illegal?