Can I Use A Dell Windows Xp Disc On Another Pc

heathen

hi guys
a year ago i bought a dell pc,with this came a copy of windows xp on a cd(to reinstall if needed)

ive been looking to upgrade and have been looking at buying just a base unit.as a lot of these come without operating systems i wandered if i could use my dell win xp disc to install windows on one of these base units?

if so is it straightforward as im only mildly technical;)

thanks ian

indiegirl_2

AFAIK, I'm afraid the answer is 'no'. I've tried to boot other systems from a Dell XP disc for the Recovery Console, but it's a no-go. I suspect that Dell tag their systems which their own supplied XP discs look for, as it will tell you 'this is not a Dell system' (or something similar).

gizmoleeds

It is also probably against the terms of the licence to use it on another system, I'm afraid.

Windows XP OEM versions can be found on ebay for about £50 (here is one example: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Windows-XP-Home-OEM-free-P-P_W0QQitemZ7187790002QQcategoryZ41887QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem) - make sure it is a standard windows one and doesn't mention HP/Compaq/Dell etc in the item description.

Or, if you do not like ebay, it can be bought on dabs.com for £70: http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=3TSQ&SearchType=1&SearchTerms=+windows+xp+oem&PageMode=3&SearchKey=All&SearchMode=All&NavigationKey=0

webhamster

or get a free os off the net legally like ubuntu.

wacko911

I have installed windows XP home edition from a dell OEM 'purple' cd on a non Dell PC. There are several discs that arrive with your dell, one is a complete reload CD, this basically wipes your main partion and copies over factory condition image from a hidden partion on your dell PC's hard drive. So that CD is no use, as the hidden partion will not be on any other computer.

The windows XP home cd however is just an OEM copy and can be installed on another machine. You will have a problem however when it comes to activation. XP key's can only be used on one machine so for a completely different system you will need a new licence Key. This isnt a problem if there is a sticker on the 'other' PC with its own licence key.

If its windows XP pro then you can (not so legeally) use the same key. Other suggestion would be ** Link to hacking site removed - Edited by AbCon ** & what you search for has nothing to do with me.

flossy_splodge

Like what? Is this another open source OS? Any info would be appreciated, have never heard of this. Thanks

JamesUK_3

Speaking legally, you CAN use a windows disk to install windows onto another pc, however you have to remove it completely from the 1st pc it was on. 1 copy on 1 pc at any time. Dell however are a law unto themselves and MAY have a 'small print' section stating that it is only for use on the pc it was sold with.

If they dont, Dell generally have this little trick of altering a little tiny file on their disks that looks at the BIOS of the pc it is being installed on. It looks at the BIOS and if it returns the answer of "non-dell" then it flashes a nice message on screen saying "installation on Dell systems only" and stops.

It is possible to get around it, it involves copying the cd to the hard drive, editing one file on the cd and changing a string of "---" to "+++" and then re-burning a new disk. This manually returns the "dell = yes" message and installation will complete normally.

However it may be that the disk you have has not been altered by Dell and would install perfectly on another pc.

But as people have said, a new MS copy from ebay is pretty cheap and Vista is just around the corner. Even 98SE is still in use!

jonnymeldrum

I had a Dell XP Disc and I installed it fine on a new non-dell computer. It should work fine.

heathen

thanks for the answers guys,guess theres no difinative answer:eek: ,some work some dont,guess i can buy my base unit and try it ,if it dont work i will have to sort something out.


ian

BoltonMinx

You can't use the dell xp disk legally as it is an OEM copy and is basically tied to the PC it was purchased with (actually down the hardware) - thats why Dell attempt to lock them down.

If you bought a retail version of xp, you could use it on any 1 machine - so you could reinstall it on another pc provided you'd removed it off the first.

This is the reason OEM and retail version prices differ i.e. OEM is cheaper.

You can get more information in this faq.
http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/resources/default.mspx