Quick question: Compaq/Windows licensing.

[Heisenberg]

I'm helping a friend rebuild his machine after the hard drive crashed. It's a Compaq and his OS (ME) is on Compaq's lovely quickrestore CD's. I'd like to just install ME cleanly, without all the other stuff the quickrestore puts on. I've got a 'real' copy of ME I can use to do it. Is it legal to do that if I just put in his product key (assuming I can find it)? I don't see a problem with it since he technically owns a license.

 

[fatbaby]

i don't see a problem with it either

And why ask? People do this (and a lot of worse things) all the time

 

[FoBoT]

compaq's have an OEM key, it'll only work in an OEM copy, its a different format with -OEM- in the middle instead of all numbers , well at least for win95 it worked that way, and 98 i think , ME is probably the same

but it won't hurt to try

 

[NogginBoink]

Technically, no. It's against the license terms.

Although in reality the two products are most likely identical, the OEM version of Windows that shipped with the computer has different licensing than the MS retail product.

You may or may not subscribe to the "don't ask, don't tell" school of thought that others advocate.