OS recovery CDs for IBM Thinkpads

[sdkoskey]

I have a theoretical question for those of you who may know.

I have a Thinkpad T41 that I purchase about 2 1/2 years ago. It has a sticker on the bottom with a product key for Windows XP Home. I've had it loaded with XP pro which was provided by my company.

I'm getting ready to sell the laptop so I want to reload it with XP Home and use they key that came with the laptop. However, I don't have the original CDs to reload the OS.

Is it illegal to ask someone who has the original CDs to make me an ISO of those CDs so I don't have to pay Lenovo $50 for a COPY?

 

[Arkaign]

Shouldn't be directly illegal as long as they don't supply you with a license key or charge $ for it. Just use an OEM XP Home disc, you may have to call Microsoft to help get it re-activated (tell them the truth, they will almost certainly give you the activation override code) and you should be able to get all of the drivers put on a flash stick / cd from the lenovo/ibm thinkpad support site.

A fresh OEM copy of XP > the original craplet/IBM copy of XP

 

[sdkoskey]

I already tried an OEM copy of XP Home. Doesn't work with the key on the laptop. I also tried a retail copy and, just for grins, an MVL copy. None of them like the key on the laptop. I found on another forum that IBM uses a special copy of XP Home and Pro that needs to be used for with the keys fixed to their laptops. That's why I'm asking about getting someone to rip me a copy of their T4x CDs. Of course, I'd use my own product key to register it....

I complete agree that a fresh copy of any OS is tons better than any copy that comes from the manufacturer though. Damn, they throw a ton of nasty worthless software on those images.

 

[Arkaign]

Wow that's weird. I run a PC repair shop, and I use exactly two XP cds for 99% of the reloads/repair installs that I do (at least 1 or 2 a day). I quite often have to call Microsoft and explain the situation for activation, but the keys on the customer's OEM stickers always work. Are you sure the key says 'XP Home Edition'? My discs are XP Home SP2 and XP Pro SP2 that I got from newegg ages ago for personal systems, and they install no prob on old systems that surely shipped with SP1 or earlier. I've installed them on plenty of Thinkpads as well

That said, if you truly have some oddball XP license, then you'll probably be stuck waiting for someone to .iso the IBM discs, or ponying up the $ for the originals.

 

[sdkoskey]

I work for IBM and I'm having a hard time getting those CDs! The sticker on the bottom of the laptop does say Windows XP Home. Directly under that, it says IBM Corporation. Under that is the key.

Do you remember if the stickers on any of the previous Thinkpads you've reimaged had IBM's name on them? That may be the indicator of a specific copy of Windows that's needed for those systems.

 

[Arkaign]

Last one I did was a Thinkpad T30, according to my records. Loaded XP Pro, installed 512MB ram upgrade, installed KAV, recovered user docs from desktop with failed mobo. Did that with my generic OEM XP Pro SP2 CD. I think that unit came from before the time of 'Lenovo', as it was a P4 1.8 circa 2002.