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Question XP OEM
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Posted by: Troubled
I am wanting to get Windows XP.I have been on Newegg and they are selling it OEM for $90,but in the reviews people are saying that it has no support.Does this mean that you cannot download Updates and Patches for this.I also saw where someone said that you cannot reinstall it if for some reason you have to do a format and clean install,or if you change hardware in your system such as HD or Motherboard.I have done several hard drive wipes and reinstalled 98 SE OEM on my system when I have ran into problems that I couldnt fix.Can anyone explain some of these things to me.Thanks............Troubled.
Posted by: NegotiatorSmith
No, that does not mean that you can't download updates for Windows XP. When those people said that the OEM version has "no support", they meant that Microsoft will not provide technical support for the product. I don't think that will be a problem, as I doubt that any computer problems you encounter will be caused by Windows XP itself; XP is a very stable OS and when something breaks, it's usually another piece of software or a piece of hardware. I have an XP laptop and an XP desktop, and both of them have run XP without any major problems ever since I got them.
More info about the OEM version of Windows XP can be found here:
http://www.tek-tips.com/gfaqs.cfm/pid/779/fid/4004
The OEM version will be a full product, so yes, if you need to format your hard drive you can reinstall Windows XP without having a previous version of Windows available.
If your system's hardware configuration changes significantly and you reinstall XP, you will have to re-activate the product. Activating Windows XP basically means that you contact Microsoft via telephone or the Internet and let them know that your product key is associated with your particular hardware configuration. You can reinstall XP and not activate it, but if you don't activate it within a certain amount of time, XP will go into "limited functionality" mode. More info can be found here:
http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/bas...tion/mpafaq.asp
Posted by: redwench
youre refering to the OEM that comes preinstalled when you buy a computer from some places like Dell. Those come with restore disks typically, rather than the real thing.
when you buy the oem windows, you will get the cd, coa, and a basic instruction manual. there is no difference in the physical product between oem and retail, only the support, manual size, and pretty box differ.
Posted by: INeedHelp
yeah, except you have to buy the OEM version of windows xp with a hardware, or you'll have to buy the retail version instead
Posted by: Shalome
 Quote:
Originally posted by INeedHelp
yeah, except you have to buy the OEM version of windows xp with a hardware, or you'll have to buy the retail version instead
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No.. the OEM version of Windows is for sale. It's exactly as redwench said, though... no tech support from Microsoft, minimal documentation, but the product is exactly the same.
But hey, since when has 'no support from Microsoft' been a problem for people who surf OpenTechSupport? 
Posted by: DemonBob
Oh, and you can purchase the support from MS for a nice fee of $100 if you got the OEM version...
Posted by: Troubled
Thanks for all the info.I would like to know a couple more things though.The piece of hardware that comes with the OEM,is it manditory for that piece of hardware to be installed with the Opp. system purchased and can I format and replace the existing OEM Win.98 SE with XP on that same machine without problems.Thanks...
Posted by: redwench
unless the hard drive, ram or cpu are under xp's min requirements, you can put it on the drive.
considering the hardware includes such items as cables and fans, no you dont have to install it on that computer if you dont wish to.
Posted by: Troubled
Thanks.I have an 80 gig W.D. Hard Drive,256 Megs DDR andXP 2200+ CPU.
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