Formatting & Reinstalling

[HazMan]

Just a quick question.

I been hoping to do this of late, but i have Windows XP. Does anyone know what processes i have to go through to reactivate Windows or if it can be done at all?

[kamiccollo]

Dont know specifically about XP but it shouldnt be any diff than previous windows.

A good site I used is:
http://www.pcnineoneone.com

Go to the 'How to' section.

Has stepby step instructions for a lot of seemingly complicated tasks, and has helped a lot.

[TheTastyLettuce]

What's wrong with the XP you have at the moment?

[kamiccollo]

Youll have to be sure you have the full windows installation disc aswell with the product code, drivers, and the same with other software you might want to keep. Cant stress that enough.

[HazMan]

What's wrong with the XP you have at the moment?

Its bugged and clogged up with spyware and viruses. I've tried countless programs and yeah nothings going. A clean boot is needed.

Dont know specifically about XP but it shouldnt be any diff than previous windows.

I should have no trouble formatting it, just that XP has an activation code you have to enter to stop it from shutting down in 30 days after installing. I'll check that site out. Thanx.

[REINER]

The code is probably on a sticker on your PC somewhere, just enter it and your done. It takes less than a minute.

[Brendan]

Did you get an OS disk with your computer? If you do a re-install with that then you probably wont need a key or anything you will just have a bunch of add ish on your computer to get rid of.

You will only need a key if you have a blank OS disk and you will probably have trouble gettin a valid key if its sp2. I tried to install pro and went through probably 40 keys that did nothing

[HazMan]

The code is probably on a sticker on your PC somewhere, just enter it and your done. It takes less than a minute.

Well yeah it was. I entered it but for some reason it said i had gone over my activation limit, and i had to ring Microsoft and get them to give me an alternative code. I have nothing against people who don't speak english but they shouldn't be working in customer service lol. Oh well its all sorted now. :chug:

[HazMan]

Did you get an OS disk with your computer? If you do a re-install with that then you probably wont need a key or anything you will just have a bunch of add ish on your computer to get rid of.

You will only need a key if you have a blank OS disk and you will probably have trouble gettin a valid key if its sp2. I tried to install pro and went through probably 40 keys that did nothing

Yeah i got the disc. I formatted first though, so all remaining data was wiped. There was a trick i found on the net to prevent having to go through the activation process but the systems files weren't present for some reason. Its all gravy now though, damn there is such a massive difference when there is no spyware clogging it up.

[Brendan]

damn there is such a massive difference when there is no spyware clogging it up.

Yeah its almost like a mac haha

You should learn good internet habits so you dont have to do that again for that reason

[HazMan]

Yeah its almost like a mac haha

You should learn good internet habits so you dont have to do that again for that reason

Yeah i'm thinking of getting into Mac's. We have a few up the college and they are great, despite the shortcomings PC users always pick up on. Why not use both?

Bad habits die hard. No porn and music for me :angry: Haha whatever. :chug:

[Ephemeral]

I have a question.

If I have a windows XP disc that I bought, and installed it already on another computer, and activated it, and I install XP using the same disc on my laptop, will I still be able to activate it and go through all of the windows genuine advantage stuff, and be able to get updates?

[HazMan]

I have a question.

If I have a windows XP disc that I bought, and installed it already on another computer, and activated it, and I install XP using the same disc on my laptop, will I still be able to activate it and go through all of the windows genuine advantage stuff, and be able to get updates?

No. With activation it runs through a test of ten or so parts of hardware that it knows is specific to the computer you first activated your version of XP on, and you must pass at least 7. This is for reactivation purposes purely, and if it determines its not the same computer it won't install.

Installing XP on another machine requires a fresh copy or a crack. Whatever one you choose is your gamble.

[Ephemeral]

No. With activation it runs through a test of ten or so parts of hardware that it knows is specific to the computer you first activated your version of XP on, and you must pass at least 7. This is for reactivation purposes purely, and if it determines its not the same computer it won't install.

Installing XP on another machine requires a fresh copy or a crack. Whatever one you choose is your gamble.
I see. So, it goes out on the internet and compares? What if I don't have it connected to the internet?

[HazMan]

I see. So, it goes out on the internet and compares? What if I don't have it connected to the internet?

It dials straight to Microsoft, so just plug the phone line into your modem. It doesn't have to be set up to use the internet at all.

If you have no modem you can do it over the phone i think.