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Vista reinstall - key already in use

  • 08-01-2010 1:06pm
    #1
    Stky10
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,165 ✭✭✭


    A not very computer literate friend of mine had a borked HP laptop, and had either lost the cd, or never got one (he claims he never got one, it was the last of its type in the shop, had been out on display etc). So I used my cd to reinstall vista for him. When we try to activate it using his key from the bottom of the laptop, we get the error "key already in use".

    From a quick google about it I tell him he needs to ring Microsoft about it. He does, but they tell him as its a preinstalled HP OEM install, he needs to ring HP about it. He rings HP, they tell him they can't help him as its illegal to do what he's trying, and while they could tell him the way around this, they can't because calls are being recorded, but to check it out on google for the solution.

    I've checked it out, and I can't see anything obvious, bar possibly

    slmgr.vbs -ipk <product key here>

    slmgr.vbs -ato

    described here http://social.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/genuinevista/thread/c6e5b16b-ff6f-40ed-acf5-0f8fe3df3631

    So... (1) Why would HP claim that reinstalling is illegal?. We're not trying to upgrade versions, and surely in buying the laptop, he bought the right to reinstall it as often as he liked? (ps this isn't ireland based, but I can't see how that matters). (2) Anyone know the definitive way to do this?

    He's pretty pi$$ed off about it, so for now I've created a second partition and installed ubuntu as a dual boot option for him to play around with so he can decide whether to jump to it once vista goes into reduced functionality mode if we can't fix this.


Comments

  • #2
    Capt'n Midnight
    Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 93,563 Mod ✭✭✭✭Capt'n Midnight


    would have thought that a windows key issue was strictly microsoft

    IIRC it resets after 120 days :rolleyes:

    for missing media yes they were right to fob you off to the OEM , and considering that something like 1% of HDD's die every year the OEM should have better mechanisms to handle it.


  • #3
    Stky10
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,165 ✭✭✭Stky10


    Capt'n Midnight wrote: »
    would have thought that a windows key issue was strictly microsoft

    So would I, but it was on one of the pages I was reading today that they've ended support for product keys for OEM devices.
    Capt'n Midnight wrote: »
    IIRC it resets after 120 days :rolleyes:

    Not sure I get ya here. What resets after 120 days?
    Capt'n Midnight wrote: »
    for missing media yes they were right to fob you off to the OEM , and considering that something like 1% of HDD's die every year the OEM should have better mechanisms to handle it.

    He didn't ring Microsoft or HP about the missing media, I sorted that for him, only for the product key. He got fobbed off there, which is why I'm here asking


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