Okay obviously as we all know, OEM is meant to mean, registered to one machine and not tansferable to subsequent ones. Quite how I'm not sure but I think it's the MB and info on that is picked up by Windows and sent during registration. Correct ? Anyway, that's not so much what I need to ask. Background : I'm trying to retain for use an old machine built in 2007 but with a very good spec, for games from the XP era that have just sat on a shelf. I'm not 100% sure it will work out. But I know someone for whom needs are simpler, don't involve games etc and also needs Win 7. The reason for both of us wanting to make the move soon, is the ending of support for XP and therefore increasing online vulnerabiulity. SO TO THE QUESTION : If it doesn't work out for me and I don't immediately register the copy, would I be able to let the other guy try and then go ahead with registration for him ? Or, would there be some kind of stamp of MY machine left in Win 7 despite my not having registered it ? In other words, does it have to be registered before it gathers and retains information about a system installed on ? This is not a cheat in spirit, because there actually is only going to be one user of it on one machine. Either mine if it works fine, or his if I'm not satisfied. And if neither satisfied, then binned. I'm just concerned that Microsoft might detect a breach in strict terms if, even without registering, it picks up that an attempt had been made to work on another machine first, thereby rendering it useless for the other guy ( and embarassing ). Just to clarify, if I'm happy with 7 it will mean eventually two copies bought and each registered to one machine, as intended by Microsoft.
If the key hasn't been used before, it will be able to be activated on different hardware. However, if the activation doesn't work you can call microsoft and ask them to remove the previous activation as your motherboard died and you got a new one as a warranty replacement. YMMV though.
yeah no problem just have a chat with the robot we always say overhere i have my OEM win 7 since 2009 and gone trough atleast 4 or 5 pc's
I actually never had to request more activations and I've gone through 3 motherboards/cpu's since buying OEM Win7. After I installed it each time it activated normally.
The key will failed to activate under some condition. Mine used to works okay for a few reinstall/format/upgrade. But after a few years, it started to ask me to call microsoft to activate over phone and they usually just let me activate it.
I think maybe people are getting the wrong idea of what I wanted to do. I just wanted to test whether an old macine could get on with 7 and find drivers for everything, before registering it. If no good I would have new machine built, again with another OEM 7 bought. The earlier 7 would then be handed over to somone else. From Microsoft's position of interest they would have two sales and two machines using it. I was just concerned it might trigger something even without registration. So I guess I would just have to keep disconnected from the net during my initial experimentation. Which I suppose answers my own question.
With 7 you have 30 days to activate you can even install without entering a key..You seem to be over thinking the whole process. OEM EULA says it will be tied to the original machine but that has been the same through every version of windows since 98.Since activation started with XP I have changed hardware many times over the years and have had no trouble activating any install.Some of them I had to call but not once has it ever been denied.If you keep it installed on only one machine at a time I still think you are keeping with the spirit of the EULA if not the letter.
