Windows Validation can be frustrating

[Vesku]

I changed the motherboard and swapped between two cpus a couple of times and now I have to call in to re-activate Windows 7. This is a non OEM edition so I'm pretty ticked I have to call in after just swapping some components around. Would be nice if they raised their threshold a bit.

Worst of all, you have to call in. No web chat option at all. I hate waiting on the phone.

 

[Spicedaddy]

MS never made me wait on the phone, and they've never denied an activation after a reinstall or hardware change.

You spent hours swapping parts, and you're frustrated about a 5 minute phone call that you have 30 days to make?

 

[Vesku]

Three days to re-activate, actually. It's a retail copy and I find it kind of silly that they have their genuine check threshold so damn low. Only the cpu and motherboard changed, am I using a magical splitter on my hard drive Microsoft? This is on par with terrible video game DRM.

 

[Worthington]

You don't necessarily get 30 days. I just did the same thing (swapped out a MB and CPU) and once windows booted up, I got that nice black desktop. Checking to see if my validation was fubar'ed, I learned I had 0 days to validate. "You must validate today" is not something you really want to see at 1am or whatever time it was when I was done. Not sure why it was zero and not 30, but there it is.

The online activation didn't work, but thankfully the automated phone system took care of it.

 

[waffleironhead]

wont slmgr -rearm buy you some time?

 

[Nothinman]

I changed the motherboard and swapped between two cpus a couple of times and now I have to call in to re-activate Windows 7. This is a non OEM edition so I'm pretty ticked I have to call in after just swapping some components around. Would be nice if they raised their threshold a bit.

Worst of all, you have to call in. No web chat option at all. I hate waiting on the phone.

So stop using Windows, no one is forcing your hand.

wont slmgr -rearm buy you some time?

Right, because everyone knows that off the top of their head...

 

[waffleironhead]

Right, because everyone knows that off the top of their head...

Well, now anyone who reads this thread will. :\

Sorry, I forgot where I was posting.

 

[zerocool84]

Umm fyi changing the motherboard is not swapping a few components. It's common knowledge that new motherboards will make you re-validate.

 

[Vesku]

I knew that if you got an OEM edition it would bark at pretty much any change. But I'm a bit peeved that you can't even tinker with your core components on retail without needing a phone reactivation. I just think it's a bit on the extreme side of anti-piracy tactics.

 

[RebateMonger]

I knew that if you got an OEM edition it would bark at pretty much any change. But I'm a bit peeved that you can't even tinker with your core components on retail without needing a phone reactivation. I just think it's a bit on the extreme side of anti-piracy tactics.

Generally, you can tinker with quite a bit with a Retail edition. But in Vista (and I assume Win7), simply changing the disk will trigger re-Activation. MS has never identified how their latest "point system" works. They haven't commented on the scoring system since 2002 or so.

Note that a failure to Activate on Win7 won't necessarily stop you from using the computer. Starting with Windows Vista SP1, Microsoft removed the "reduced functionality" mode. Delayed Activation, based upon what I've seen with Server 2008, generally results in nothing worse than a black desktop background, pop-up warnings on the desktop, and the inability to do automatic Windows Updates of anything but critical updates.

Some people have experienced worse effects (a completely black desktop), but I don't believe those were intended by Microsoft.

 

[Vesku]

Apparently procrastinating did the trick. After a day and a half it decided it was indeed legitimate again. Perhaps it is thanking me for giving it a performance boost.