Vista OEM - how activation works

[hongsta]

found this in pcmag.com, heres the most interesting parts;

'As for activation, Brown said users could expect a return to the familiar activation scenario. Windows Vista, like XP, contains an electronic list of the components within the PC, which it turns into a code, or hash. If a user adds or subtracts too many components, the hash will change enough that it will signal the need for another activation, which can be done either online or via telephone.'

and in particular this;

'Vista, however, will apparently be a bit more tolerant of the DIY community: "Windows Vista is more intelligent and a bit more lenient than Windows XP around hardware tolerance,"'

Seems all the fuss about tougher activation rules might be overblown and if the article is correct then the activation system of vista should be at least very similar to XP.

You can read the full article here http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2087792,00.asp

 

[FragTek]

Sweet, this is very good news. That might be just the info I needed to solidify my purchase of Ultimate or Business OEM.

 

[deathwish]

well thats good news i may get premium or ultimate now

 

[Phnom_Penh]

That article doesn't actually answer anything :\.

Afaik, the general Vista oem rule is that you can change anything except the motherboard and the hard drive and not have any problems.

 

[markkleb]

Thats is good news, but my prob is I usually change my hardware weekly

 

[hongsta]

That article doesn't actually answer anything :\.

Afaik, the general Vista oem rule is that you can change anything except the motherboard and the hard drive and not have any problems.

You see it does, what its saying is that people should have a similar experience with vista activation as they had with XP. Alot of people were afraid that the vista activation would be alot stricter, if we go along with this article then i should be able to activate vista even with a hard drive or motherboard upgrade (as i have done with XP many times).

 

[Phnom_Penh]

if we go along with this article then i should be able to activate vista even with a hard drive or motherboard upgrade (as i have done with XP many times).

Erm, read what I just said. You can't change either without needing to reactivate - this is Vista, not XP.

 

[Dav0s]

nice post mate, much needed info for sure

tbh i think its still way too early to upgrade, but this is good news for those who disagree

 

[SuB]

Alright I'm

ed off now, I've had Vista Home Premium 64 Bit installed for a week now and I've had to activate it 3 times..

First time was the usual online way was fine.

Then for some unknown reason (i guessed it might be because i changed a drive letter to sort out after i disconnected ever other hard drive during install) It Deactivated itself. So i called them and got it re-activated over the phone.

next day it announces it's deactivated itself due to a hardware change?! NOTHING CHANGED?!

so i call up and get it reactivated and basically asked if it keeps doing this am i going to have to call M$ every 3 days to sort it?!

i was told "if it happens again sir please call us back and we will see what we can do"

a shady answer at best

so anyway i'm putting Adobe Suite CS2 on ready for Uni on Tuesday wehey...

all done

wake up this morning, looked at the Computer properties and it's decided it wants activating AGAIN without even so much as a pre-notice this time...

I'm at my wits

ing end i've been off the damn pc for months on end and i finally buy a legal frigging licensed copy of windows and its de-activating itself whenever it feels like it!?

*sigh*

anyone else having this problem?

 

[Rastalovich]

Toll free call I expect tho.

Sweet, this is very good news. That might be just the info I needed to solidify my purchase of Ultimate or Business OEM.

Way I understood it, 7 things from the original 10 key hardware types have to remain the same in order for there to be no re-instigation. Or atleast it implies it may`ve been, or that the statement isn`t about Visa, although it could be.

The article isn`t that informative.

I wonder if.. in that case.. as long as u change out 1 device at a time u`d be ok ??

Bizarre waste of time imo.

 

[FarFarAway]

I'm getting Retail. At least that way I know I won't have to screw around like this

 

[Rastalovich]

Kemp, how does that one work ?

U install it on a pc and as long as the pc isn`t touched u`r ok ?

U gonna use one for u`r test rigs ?

 

[Toxcity]

looking good!

I might have to get vista if its easier for the DIY peeps!

 

[hongsta]

The retail and oem versions are the same, its just the licensing restrictions are different- btw, this has been the same with XP oem vs retail.

OEM- Your are only allowed to install it on one machine and it lives and dies on that one machine, this is usually taken to mean one hard drive/motherboard. ie- it is only allowed to exist on that one motherboard and if the mobo dies and you get a new one then you'll need a new copy of vista.

Retail- You are allowed to install this on to one machine and it may exist on only one machine at any one time. If you buy build a new pc then you'll be allowed to install it one the new machine but you'll have to uninstall it it off the first machine first. You can do this as many times as you like.

You'll see why some people would want retail versions, but you must also consider oem is only a 1/3 of the price of retail (at least in th UK anyway).

Now, no matter which version you get you'll still have to reactivate the OS after a certain number of hardware changes, the only differences will be if you upgrade to a new motherboard/hard drive.

So in theory it should go like this with two identical systems;

- I buy and install vista OEM and retail, i install oem on one system and retail on the other. Now i change the graphics and sound cards on both systems, BOTH systems would probably require a OS re-activation due to the hardware changes. So, no probs and i go and reactivate and everythings hunky dory.

- Now I've decided to change both systems to core2duo systems and upgrade the mobo and cpu, they both again would require re-activations of the OS. Now the retail version should be fine and be re-activated whereas the OEM version should throw a wobbly and not be sent a reactivation code.

Now thats the way it's supposed to work, but in practice (with XP at least) its been quite different. You see, what if your mobo dies within warranty? or if your hard drive gives up after 6 months (or in the case of the raptor within 5 years! ) it would be silly to expect people to have to buy another copy of XP/vista. So people often got away with mobo changes by claiming warranty replacement issued them with an alternative mobo, and this would allow you to get a re-activation (at least with XP it did )

There has been a fear that Microsoft would get all strict about the licensing agreements this time round but this article has alleviated those fears somewhat, but i guess we'll have to wait and see.

 

[Rastalovich]

So if u own a test rig for something legitm8 - ala oc3d, u`r gonna need to be on the phone each time.

And I guess u would be under XP too ?

What a crock.

 

[Phnom_Penh]

So if u own a test rig for something legitm8 - ala oc3d, u`r gonna need to be on the phone each time.

No. If you have retail, you can activate it as many times as you want.

 

[NoL]

Hash hacks will show up early.

 

[hongsta]

You can avoid having to activate when you're testing components by not entering a serial when installing, you'll have 30 days after installation to enter a serial and activate.

 

[PP Mguire]

Hash hacks will show up early.

With XP all i said was XP VLM FTW. With this one, uhhhh

 

[markkleb]

Thanks hongsta for explaining it so I understand. Looks like it will be the Retail version for me.