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W7 upgrade, MS nullifies current XPproduct key?

lotvic
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Posted July 21, 2009 at 11:26PM

IMHO that article by click here is nonsensical - especially the bit that says
"And if you're upgrading from XP to Windows 7, no matter how you acquired the licence for XP, the activation key on the XP CD will probably not work. (During the upgrade, the PC sends a key-cancellation request to Microsoft's servers to nullify the XP activation/product key and link the machine to the new Windows 7 key.)"

I don't see how that can happen seeing as you have to do a clean install of W7

What do you think?

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WhiteTruckMan

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Posted July 21, 2009 at 11:44PM

that if you have an upgrade version of w7 you need a full previous version of windows to hang it on. Assuming you meet the upgrade criteria, you will only have a licence for one full OS, and if you are using w7 then you cant legally use the full xp as it is tied in with the w7 installation.

Obvious way round this problem is to buy a full install version of w7.

Thats my take on it anyhow.

WTM

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skeletal

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 10:36AM

But I thought that, in the UK at least, you cannot “upgrade”, you have to have a full clean install.

Skeletal

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X7-250

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 10:50AM

"But I thought that, in the UK at least, you cannot “upgrade”."

the article is a copy & paste from a US site, click here

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skeletal

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 11:17AM

Actually, I am now confused. X7-250’s link, plus the article (yes they do look similar!) does seem to contradict itself with the “activation key will not work” section.

If you have bought a copy of XP, it seems dodgy that you “lose” it just because you’ve bought another piece of software.

I’m only half following this story (so may have misunderstood the situation) as it is extremely unlikely I will risk “upgrading” to 7 given my computer’s hatred of Vista.


Skeletal

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interzone55

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 11:50AM

An upgrade licence converts your current licence to the new software.

This means that the old licence is no longer valid.

If you want to run both pieces of software you will need to buy a full licence of Win7 rather than an upgrade, that way you can still use both licences...

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skeletal

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 12:34PM

Ah!! Perhaps the penny is slowly dropping. The issue of “upgrade” is not technical, it is commercial.

If I understand correctly, ALL installations of 7 will be a fresh install; in technical terms none of them will be an “upgrade”.

But, if you buy an “upgrade” to 7, during the process of the fresh install, MS are informed and your XP licence key gets deleted.

If you buy a “full” 7, during the process of a fresh install, MS are NOT informed so your XP license key does NOT get deleted.

Skeletal

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jakimo

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 12:40PM

Having read Microsoft's information sheet over & over again,I read it that there is no European upgrade version of Windows E for XP and Vista,and only a full install is possible

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interzone55

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 1:32PM

That's correct.

With an upgrade copy of Windows, even if installed on a bare drive you have to enter the product key of your existing copy.

If you buy a full copy of the software, be it retail or OEM, you will not be asked for a previous version product key.

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Forum Editor

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Posted July 22, 2009 at 6:45PM

to the Windows 7 forum from Speakers Corner.

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lotvic

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Posted July 23, 2009 at 12:07AM

According to Amazon.co.uk in the EU we get a full retail Windows 7E click here

<<2. Is this a full product or an upgrade from a previous version of Windows?

At present in the EU, all versions of Windows 7 (Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate) are the full product. This means that to install Windows 7, you do not need any previous version of Windows installed on your computer.

Since only the full product is available, please note that when you install the E edition of Windows 7, you'll need to do a custom (clean) installation.>>

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