Windo$e OEM & WGA

[Rastalovich]

Question:

Whilst browsing a popular retailers site, I happen upon an advert for OEM Windo$e w/Vista voucher - anywayz, I dig deeper to find out what the voucher is for - free upgrade (which I doubt), or just a discount - either way it never said -- but reading within I find this, which I`ve seen b4 but just skimmed over tbh:

PLEASE NOTE : The OEM agreement for SOFTWARE DISTRIBUTION.

If the individual software license is a desktop operating system (including Windows XP Media Center Edition), we grant you a nonexclusive right to distribute individual software licenses; provided that each one is distributed with either (a) a fully assembled computer system or (b) a nonperipheral computer hardware component.

A “fully assembled computer system” means a computer system consisting of at least a central processing unit, a motherboard, a hard drive, a power supply, and a case.

A “nonperipheral computer hardware component” means a component that will be an integral part of the fully assembled computer system on which the individual software license will be installed.



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Now this means with this OEM version of the OS I can:

a] Install it on a pc I`m about to sell, aslong as I built it.

b] Install it on a hard drive I may be installing.

A seperate question, although this may be advertized as a "single license", does that mean a single license for the purchaser ? As in only one person can own it and hense forth aslong as they install it as in a] & b], being the OEM, that`s fine ? As the agreement for distibution issued above - figuring if single license = single user, a distribution agreement doesn`t make any sense.

Furthermore, does the OEM installed OS owner - the person u`ve theoretically built or added to their computer, have a WGA issue there-after ?

(in actuallity, the product I looked at said OEM single-pack, not single license)

What`s u`r opinion ?

[FragTek]

Wow that seems very conflicting... It's wierd really I don't know what to think or say. From what I read it would let you install it on as many computers you wanted to as long as you built them? But it's a single user license, so I don't see how that works I suppose?

[Rastalovich]

It`s weird aint it, on the one hand u think of it as "single user license" as in Home Edition & Professional standard purchases - which I can understand, as in EULAs u get with most software stuffz.

And yet as an OEM u have an agreement to distribute. As u are a manufacturer, not a manufact.

To qualify to purchase, or sell, an OEM version of windo$e - I do believe - u have to purchase the minimum HD/mobo/cpu or equiv. part (not necessarily all the parts for a pc, just the main items) - as any1 who`s purchased off Scan (as an example) will tell u - as u go through the checkout procedure, Scan remind u that u qualify to purchase the OEM version when u simple buy a hard drive.

As I understood it - u can-not buy OEM Windo$e on it`s own, or not supposed to. BUT I slightly think even that`s changed.

[Phnom_Penh]

This *was* aimed at manufacturers, in that until not so long ago, they were only allowed to distribute OEM XP with a component or a new pc. Now it's changed and it can be distributed freely. The license itself belongs to the machine (or more importantly, the motherboard).