Activation

heau · Nov 18, 2010

Hi i recently installed Vista and after a month or so it rejected the OS. I tried putting in the Key that is located bhind the tower of the Desktop PC (Which is an XP activation key) But as far as i know u can update windows xp home to vista basic home. The way i got it on the desktop is by a Dell OEM installation disc, any advice as to what i should do? ty in advance

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

You have to use the Vista key, not the XP key.
If you are upgrading, and asked for the key number give the Vista number.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Upgrading-from-Windows-XP-to-Windows-Vista
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc748915(WS.10).aspx

heau · Nov 18, 2010

ty for responding. thats the thing, i dnt have a vista key. The desktop i installed Vista to is a Emachines. It previously had WinXp on it. And i read somewhere u can upgrade Xp to vista without purchasing Vista. I have the XP key. So to clarify, i installed, actually, wen i put it the disc it gave me the option to upgrade so i did this. So i had XP SP2 to vista, now it wont let me use Vista, just to acces internet..

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

Not true. If you have XP, you cannot upgrade for free.
Sometimes special offers are given that when you buy a computer with an OS and a new one is ready to come out you can upgrade for free, but that is not your case.
You can buy a windows 7 upgrade for about 120 dollars American (Home Premium)

heau · Nov 18, 2010

WAT!!!!! so i need to do a fresh install of XP!!!! wtf!!! damn How would i do that without earasing my files???

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

I think that we may not be understanding each other. You can use an upgrade DVD to go from XP to Vista (if you have key for Vista) If you do not you can upgrade to Windows 7, with a key that must be paid for.

This is how it is done.
Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows Vista

Were you part of a special offer. Did you buy XP abot the time that Vista came out?

heau · Nov 18, 2010

i didnt no, idk why i thought i read somewhere that i can upgrade from xp to vista basic for free. I dnt have a vista key or a 7 key. the desktop came with xp on it. is there a way i can go back to xp without earasing my files.?

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

Well before we do anything drasic, where did you get the CD to installl Vista?
It may have been part of a special offer to sell an outdated XP

heau · Nov 18, 2010

well wen i read that u can update xp home basic to vista home basic i tried to download it from microsoft but they didnt have it, so i downloaded it. I read that it didnt matter wat kind of disc it was as long as it was vista so i downloaded it. I installed it via USB, i installed it on my laptop as well but the laptop did have vista basic pre installed so thats why it still works....

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

I really am sorry, but you dont qualify for free Vista. You may be able to keep what you have if you buy a key.

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

If we are done with activation, this is how you get your files
Use Ubuntu Live CD to Backup Files from Your Dead Windows Computer - How-To Geek

heau · Nov 18, 2010

damn, so theres no way to go back to XP without deleting my files? Like my programs i have on there.

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

Does the computer work at all, now?

heau · Nov 18, 2010

well it works but it only has limited usability, i can only go on the internet. Wat im asking is if i can somehow downgrade to XP without doing a fresh install, as in keeping all my files but installing XP

richc46 · Nov 18, 2010

I dont know how it would be done.

Lorien · Nov 19, 2010

As far as I know, the only way to return to XP after upgrading to Vista (or W7) is with a clean installation or a restore to factory-original conditions. The only way to get Vista to fully function 30 days after the upgrade is with a valid Vista product key for the installed version - if you don't have one and can't get one, then your only option is to return to XP with a clean installation or a restore to factory-original conditions. To my knowledge, at this point you can't upgrade to W7 either (even with a valid new product and product key) because you can only upgrade from an activated product and Vista is not activated and the original XP activation no longer applies. If you go back to XP because you don't have and can't get a valid Vista product key, you will lose everything you don't first backup and all you can backup and actually use later will be the data (all the programs will need to be re-installed).

You can use Knoppix http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html with a good ISO copier like: http://isorecorder.alexfeinman.com/isorecorder.htm along with a blank CD. This should give you enough access to the system (if you can't get in any other way) to backup your important data. If that doesn’t work, try slaving the drive to another computer and recovering the data using that other computer to access the disk. Once done, you can do a clean install either using the original XP disk or the Recovery Disk or the Recovery Partition (whatever process is dictated by your computer manufacturer – you may need to contact them for the procedure and perhaps to get recovery disks). To do a clean install proceed as follows: http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_install_03.asp (adapted as necessary by the procedures of your computer manufacturer). Then you will need to re-install all your programs, reset all your preferences, reconfigure your network and email settings, restore your backed up data, run Windows Update with many updates pending,...

Sorry, but those are the only ways.

I hope this helps.

Good luck!

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