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Windows License on a Used Laptop?

Tags:
  • License
  • Windows XP
  • Netbooks
  • Laptops
  • OEM
  • Windows 7
  • Operating Systems
July 26, 2014 4:17:42 PM

So I just got a netbook on Ebay for dirt cheap. It's a Samsung NC10, and even with an Atom N270 and 1GB of RAM, it performs quite well for basic web surfing, watching 360p flash videos, 480p video files, and will even stream netflix smoothly. Who'd a' thought?

Anyway... I obviously bought this netbook used. It does however, have an intact license code for Windows XP (something). Which version it is, is unimportant.

Windows 7 is installed on that machine, but I've been noticing some quirks, which are making me question what the hell the guy who reinstalled 7 did to the thing. Anyway, I don't have the disk for whatever version of XP this is supposed to be.

When you buy Windows, you don't so much buy the software, as much as you buy the license to USE the software, correct? What I'm wondering is, how would I get a copy of XP to install on that machine? The license key is there, so would I not be able to use it legally, regardless of how the install software is obtained?

Maybe my thoughts on licensing are too lenient, so that could certainly be illegal, but that's why I'm asking you guys, because I'm sure most here would know better than I do.

But another thought. The OS supplied with a machine is an OEM copy, correct? And that copy is legally tied to the first motherboard in which it is installed on, right? So it's not so much the disk you use, but the license on that machine... That copy of windows can be legally installed on that one machine. But if you think about it, I'd still be using that same license key on the machine for which it is legally assigned, even if I'm not using the OEM disk to install it, right?

It all seems like such a grey area, and the answer is probably simpler than I think. Can anyone advise me on this matter? Thanks so much!

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