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I'd like to get my hands on to legal Windows XP keys so that I could setup a few virtual machines. I'm a software developer and this would be greatly useful.
Active4 years, 6 months ago
Microsoft Windows XP operating system is one of the best selling products. August 24, 2001, first released. A day we will share all product activation key valid serial XP Service Pack 3. Windows XP SP3 Serial Key (Most Latest).
I'm willing to buy them (cheaply) if needed but I've not been able to identify a source for legal Windows XP keys. Is it possible for a previous user to resell Windows XP or is this against Microsoft's terms?
I am aware of MSDN Subscriptions, but I was hoping to keep this entire project within $50 (USD). I only need two to four keys..
(Note: The legal portion is extremely important. I don't even want to be in the gray here..)
Journeyman Geek♦
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Frank VFrank V
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8 Answers
Retail copies of XP can be resold with no problem. OEM copies are tied to the machine (specifically, the motherboard) and therefore non-resaleable after install. Also, you want to have physical possession of the sticker the key is on.
OriharaOrihara
Are you in a startup? If so, BizSpark may be useful.
BenMaddoxBenMaddox
Newegg is still selling XP Pro licenses, but they are very expensive at $440 for a 3-pack or $140 for a single license.
Dan WalkerDan Walker
Soeone else mentioned bizspark and you questioned if you were eligible:
Taken from the MS pdf
Startup Eligibility Requirements: An eligible startup must have the following characteristics at the time of joining:
• Actively engaged in development of a software-based product or service that will form a core piece of its current or intended business
• Privately held
• In business for less than 3 years
• Less than US $1 million in annual revenue.
I think that even a personal project would fit that. Their goal I think is to win back some of the people who have been leaving the MS platform for Linux and Mac.
I'd investigate if I were you. All it would take is a domain name and email with that domain that was hosted anywhere. You also have to provide a website with contact info. (I might be confusing this with one of their other programs, but they may be the same)
timtim
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You could always save your money and download Virtual PC images from Microsoft, although you'd have to get new ones every few months.
NealNeal
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Have you tried eBay or Craigslist for old retail copies of Windows XP?
ChealionChealion
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eBay should be a good way for most people to get it. You don't have to worry about counterfeits if you pay attention to their feedback scores and reviews (nobody is going to blow a 10,000 rep for $50), and make sure to open a dispute in time if it does turn out to be counterfeit to get your money back. Download free nexus expansions. Plus, if you find someone in your area, you can opt for local-pickup and meet them in person to examine it yourself and save on shipping.
Another option is online classifieds. That way, you can meet the seller in person and examine it as with a local-pickup. Many countries have Kijiji (renamed to eBay Classifieds in the USA) and others that don't usually have some sort of local counterpart. It is indispensable because it greatly helps to reduce waste by making it easier for people to buy and sell locally. I highly recommend it for general use.
Xp License Key FinderSynetechSynetech
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If you already have XP installed as the host, I have been told you can legally isntall and run up to 4 virtual instances with the same key. Something I was told at a Microsoft TechEd Conference.
From: Windows 7 licensing and virtual machines clarified
How To Change Win Xp License Key
if you have Volume Licensing, an SA and the Windows 7 Professional Upgrade License (Volume Licensing Upgrade License) or Windows 7 Enterprise then you can run 4 virtual copies of Windows 7 on a server or desktop
Frank V
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AaronLSAaronLS
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Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged windowslicense or ask your own question.
I must state from the beginning that this article is not about cracking Windows activation engine because we don't want to break our Windows EULA, do we?. This article tries to show you ways to bypass Windows XP product activation for those emergency situations. I will explain in details below.
Let's suppose that you have a licensed copy of an Windows XP but lately you have installed-activated/uninstalled it for several times. At some point the Microsoft Activation Server just get bored and says 'OK, if you want me to activate your license then please pick up the phone and call me!'.
What if you get bored (or you are just lazy) to call Microsoft and to justify yourself and to ask them 'Please, can you activate the copy that I bought legally? How do i uninstall microsoft edge browser. Yes, I have an invoice, in fact I have 10 invoices because it happens that I bought more copies than I'm using right now. No, I'm not a software theft, I cross my heart and hope to die!'
Well, in that situation (let me make myself clear: when you both have the legal right to use that piece of software and you don't break the EULA) you could just try to exploit one of the Windows XP weaknesses. In fact you could try to exploit more than one, I'm sure about that (someone might think that I did it in the past; maybe they're right).
You could find yourself in one of the following situations:
Your 30 days has expired
So you've got a message like the one below:
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Windows Product Activation - before log in
You could also get a message like the one below, I meet that situation several times in the past, unfortunately I haven't tested to see if the trick works also for this particular situation, I guess/hope it does:
Anyway, so you either have exceeded those 30 days after the period when you have been supposed to activate your copy of Windows or, lately, you have changed the hardware such that the Windows has started to annoy you with the Windows Product Activation dialogue.
No matter in which situation you are just press the Yes button, like you are willing to activate your copy of Windows. A new window like the one below will be shown:
Let's activate Windows - click WinKey+u Zynga poker chips generator free download pc.
By pressing simultaneous 'Windows key' and 'u' (WinKey+u) you will open a window called 'Microsoft narrator' where you can click on some hyperlink called 'Microsoft web site' which in turn will open your default web browser (hopefully IE otherwise it works but with one more step; we get to this soon).
Note: if by pressing WinKey+u it opens another window named 'Narrator' then, in order to get the 'Microsoft narrator' window, you have to right-click that window's title-bar and to choose 'About narrator' pop-up menu.
So the 'Microsoft narrator' window should look like this:
Microsoft Narrator - click the 'Microsoft Web site' link
At this point the idea is to get the IE browser opened because the browser has 'an issue' that we are going to exploit it. In case that your default browser is Firefox/Chrome/Opera/etc we should do some extra steps in order to open your IE browser because finally the IE is the one we are going to hack. If your browser is just IE then skip the steps below and go to the 'IE browser opened'.
Non-IE browser opened
IE browser opened
In the URL address bar enter 'C:' then hit OK. If you are not using IE8 then that command should exploit a weakness of IE7 (or earlier) which in turn will 'crash the Windows' in that way that it will load the Desktop, the task bar, everything.
Note: for some reasons Windows keeps locking itself every 30-60 seconds so you won't be able to see the Desktop nor the task bar. If that is happening just repeat the step mentioned at the paragraph above (enter 'C:' in IE browser URL bar). Hacking is not always an easy job, isn't it?
So, you have gained a time frame for ~30-60 seconds of fully functional Windows system, period when, hopefully, you will be able to launch whatever program you want even if ~30-60 seconds later the Windows will lock it again (your application is already up an running so you are happy; Windows has closed its Desktop, he think it's clever, it's happy too; everybody is happy now, right?).
Notes:
This trick just helps you to use your Windows copy in these emergency situations; I would not recommend anyone working like this on the daily basis because it could just prove to be a nightmare.
You are within those 30 days time limit
In this situation you are reminded (frequently enough) that you have only 30 (or less) days left for activation. The trick to bypass Windows XP product activation is the simplest and the most effective one.
It should not ask you anymore for software activation. In fact you could run Start->All Programs -> Activate Windows and you should get an response message like 'Windows is already activated'. If not working then just try again, maybe you have missed something on the way.
Xp Mode License Key
If you are interested on Windows Vista/7 license activation you could read also an article I wrote about this.
[!] WARNING [!]
I would not recommend to anyone to try this procedure in order to gain the access to use an unlicensed copy of Windows. In fact, when dealing with licensed software (like Windows), I would strongly recommend you to contact your software provider to ask it if you are allowed to do something like that or not. I wrote this article only for myself for research/educational purposes so that in case of emergency to be able to rescue my licensed system. When I have refereed the pronoun 'you' or 'we' I meant 'I'.
Now, if you think that this article was interesting don't forget to rate it. It shows me that you care and thus I will continue write about these things.
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Windows Xp License Key Registry LocationEugen Mihailescu
Founder/programmer/one-man-show at Cubique Software
Always looking to learn more about *nix world, about the fundamental concepts of math, physics, electronics. I am also passionate about programming, database and systems administration. 16+ yrs experience in software development, designing enterprise systems, IT support and troubleshooting.
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