Q: I bought a box full of computer stuff at an auction yesterday. It contained a (what appears to be) retail copy of XP home edition (version 2002) including product key (sticker still attached to the manual). Right now I’m running Me on a custom built pc (900mhz athlon) that did NOT come with any os discs or recovery software. I meet the system requirements for running Windows XP, but… will I be able to reformat my hd and install this operating system? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
A: Yes, you will be able to install that operating system. The real question is whether you will be able to activate it over the Internet. If that product key has never been used, or if was last activated more than 120 days ago, then you probably will be able to activate. If the key has recently been used on another computer (one owned or controlled by the person from whom you bought the computer), then your online activation request will be rejected and you’ll have to talk to a representative on the phone and convince that person that you legitimately own the license.
I’m not a lawyer, so I can’t give you definitive advice on this. There are specific provisions in the Windows XP license agreement for transferring ownership. But in your case the practical concerns of activation are more important.
[Updated to correct error in grace period for activation. See the comments for more details.]
Ed Bott 
Activation is becoming more and more of a problem. Microsoft needs to develop alternative forms of activation in order to fast track the activation process for legitimate users. This could even include my giving them my unique credit card number (if I so chose) in order to verify single use tied to a key etc.
My recent troubles with authentication have caused me to abandon my perfectly legal and legitimate copy of Outlook in favor of a free version of Thunderbird that doesn’t hassle me with authentication. Suffice it to say, when I buy my next PC and it asks me whehter or not I want to add Microsoft Office to the bundle, where I used to always automatically check yes in the past I will be checking no this next time. Authentication is just not worth the trouble when fine free alternatives exist. The hassle factor of having to deal with it is just not worth it.
I’m not sure how Adobe does it but on my $1,000 copy of Photoshop it frequently is asking me to reauthenticate. Adobe then connects to a server somewhere and says thank you. I’ve never had a single problem being turned down by them and although slightly inconvenient I can put up with it. It kills me thought that every single time (and even worse, every single time in the future) I want to reinstall my Media Center software on my Media Center PC I’m going to need to jump through hoops that even include making a physical phone call to someone. This needs to be fixed.
http://thomashawk.com/2005/10/microsofts-poor-authentication-drove.html
Nice talk on the Media Center show by the way.
If I am not mistaken, the (re)activation interval is 120 days. Being a retail copy, Windows XP activation should go smoothly, even if it was activated on another PC more than 120 days ago.
Ervin,
Yes, you’re right. The grace period (at least acording to Alex Nichol’s extremely reliable WPA FAQ), is 120 days. I’ve edited the orignal post accordingly.
Thanks!
I want to buy a used PC. The ad says Windows XP is preinstalled and the COA is provided. However, there are no CDs available. What makes me the legitimate owner of this software? The COA? The CD? The program already activated on that particular computer? I’ve got legal copies of XP Pro 1&2 (OEMs purchase with a hard drive or something) can I use those for reinstall if needed? Thanks!