Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.general (
More info?)
"Bruce Chambers" <bchambers@cable0ne.n3t> wrote in message
news:uzFXH38mFHA.2156@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...
> Richard wrote:
>> I have built a new computer and want to install XP Pro on it. From Newegg
>> I can purchase XP Pro OEM or Retail versions. Other than the $100 price
>> differential what are the differences between the 2 versions. Will either
>> version allow me to do a repair install? (if the occasion ever presents
>> itself).
>>
>> Richard
>
>
> There are some very important reasons that an OEM license costs so
> much less than a retail license. OEM licenses are very limited:
>
> 1) OEM versions must be sold with a piece of non-peripheral hardware
> (normally a motherboard or hard drive, if not an entire PC, although
> Microsoft has greatly relaxed the hardware criteria for WinXP) and are
> _permanently_ bound to the first PC on which they are installed.
Funny, I bought three that activated and passed the WGA and I didn't buy one
single piece of hardware.
> An OEM license, once installed, is not legally transferable to another
> computer under any circumstances.
It's only "legally" when MS gets off its duff and sues someone for copyright
breach. Until then, it's only MS' rules that you are breaking. If 120 days
have passed since the last hardware change on the first computer, an OEM can
technically be moved to another computer. Whether it's legal or not has not
been decided.
> This is the main reason some people avoid OEM versions; if the PC dies or
> is otherwise disposed of (even stolen), you cannot re-use your OEM license
> on a new PC. The only legitimate way to transfer the ownership of an OEM
> license is to transfer ownership of the entire PC.
As stated above, "legitimate" has not been decided in a court of law.
>
> 2) Microsoft provides no free support for OEM versions.
BFD.
> If you have any problems that require outside assistance, your only
> recourse is to contact the manufacturer/builder of the PC or the vendor of
> the OEM license.
Or post here.
> This would include such issues as lost a Product Key or replacing damaged
> installation media. (Microsoft does make allowances for those instances
> when you can prove that the OEM has gone out of business.) This doesn't
> mean that you can't download patches and service packs from Microsoft --
> just no free telephone or email support for problems with the OS.
BFD
>
> 3) An OEM CD cannot be used to perform an upgrade of an earlier OS,
> as it was designed to be installed _only_ upon an empty hard drive. It can
> still be used to perform a repair installation (a.k.a. an in-place
> upgrade) of an existing WinXP installation.
The OP is putting it on a new computer, not upgrading so, again, BFD.
>
> 4) If the OEM CD was designed by a specific manufacturer, such as
> eMachines, Sony, Dell, Gateway, etc., it will most likely only install on
> the same brand of PC, as an additional anti-piracy feature.
Um, the OP wrote and I quote, "I have built a new computer ... "
> Further, such CDs are severely customized to contain only the minimum of
> device drivers, and a lot of extra nonsense, that the manufacturer feels
> necessary for the specific model of PC for which the CD was designed. (To
> be honest, such CDs should _not_ be available on the open market; but, if
> you're shopping someplace on-line like eBay, swap meets, or computer
> fairs, there's often no telling what you're buying until it's too late.)
> The "generic" OEM CDs, such as are manufactured by Microsoft and sold to
> small systems builders, don't have this particular problem, though, and
> are pretty much the same as their retail counterparts, apart from the
> licensing, support, and upgrading restrictions.
>
>
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> Help us help you:
>
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
>
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
> both at once. - RAH
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