How to find my windows xp cd key

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site. Thanks for your answer. I am a bit confused, I used a utility to find my product key but the key was different from the one one the side of my computer? Which one should I use? Is it safe to format my hard driv? In reply to jsknight's post on December 3, If you have a computer that came with Windows pre-installed, the "original equipment manufacturer" OEM almost certainly used a special generic product key that Microsoft allows the big OEMs to use in order to make and "pre-activate" their thousands of machines.

That key is what will be shown by a keyfinder utility The specific machine you bought has its own individual license, and that's what's on the sticker. If you reinstall Windows using a special "hidden partition" on the hard drive, you don't need to activate the computer at all. That method of restoring gets the computer back to the way it was when it first left the factory, i. On the other hand, if you reinstall Windows using a "generic OEM" CD one not specifically for your brand of computer , you need the product key from the sticker in order to activate.

The CD must be for the same version of Windows e. If you bought a new version of Windows, it will have come with its own product key, and that's what you should use, not the one of the sticker or the one used by the original manufacturer. If necessary, the installation process itself will do that. Actually, you wouldn't be able to format the system drive from within Windows; you'd have to use a different tool to do that think of sitting on a tree limb while wanting to saw it off.

Before you get yourself in trouble, perhaps you'd care to explain a why you think you need to reinstall Windows and b what method and what media you plan to use to do this. In reply to LemP's post on December 3, It will not work on any computer. The only issue I do have is, even with unattend and putting in the CD key that does come on the computer will not work, even with the proper version of XP.

The key is for pro and the key will not work with the copy I have. I end up running through the online verification every time to authorize it. Leo, Thanks for clarification on some topics. TXT file. TXT is to allow you to do an unattended installation i. This streamlines and automates installation. TXT is a sample. The installer needs to modify this file and include their unique information, including the product key.

It can be used to set up multiple computers, but is used with a Uniqueness Database File UDF , which contains settings unique for each computer, such as machine name. Just follow these simple steps.

Explore the CD and navigate to the i folder. You will find your Windows XP Product key there. Sorry Leo, you are so, so, wrong. Hope you will feel the same!! You are describing a totally different file on the disk! SIF file, a totally different place on the disk , is good. PrivateWalker is absolutly correct, I checked both places. Just referring to PrivateWalker comments, I thank you for the comment, I have been looking everywhere for this information well done.

I think that you should know, your article is totaly incorrect! This is a very time consuming thing to do! This information I know to be true! So please in the future if you do not know the answer for people then do not post something that is wrong!

So made recovery disk from my buddy but can only load to were you enter keys please Help Ty Barry. It was fantastic! Both methods should work but my key worked too.! The shop did the last reinstall — could they have used a different Genuine Advantage kit disc? So be warned, copy your activation key and save it somewhere that you can find it later if you need it!!

I really need to have this serial code! I only have the disc and not the case it came in that had the serial code on it. Are you crazy? Its at the bottom of the text file. Whenever I get a disc with a product key, I write the product key on the disk itself with a Sharpie indelible pen. That way if I have the disk, I have the key!! Comments violating those rules will be removed.

Comments that don't add value will be removed, including off-topic or content-free comments, or comments that look even a little bit like spam. All comments containing links and certain keywords will be moderated before publication. I want comments to be valuable for everyone, including those who come later and take the time to read. Search Ask Leo! Nice to share. The site is www. Thank you so much, your video is so helpful. Go on and laugh. Especially for those who have already done this.

Thank you very much for the clear instructions. I had to repair Windows XP Home due to an error and after installation it needed the product key. I had discarded the original PC case with the product key sticker but did have the CD. Found the code in the Unattend. Surely sirs, you jest Rather late but curious: I only recently discovered the site and as I was having computer troubles, timely enough. Many thanks, but to what end is the information?? Some legal, some questionable. Some "cold start", some "restore".

I followed sort of the instructions for this article. What I found was curious, at best. Many users search for a Windows 7 Ultimate serial key. It verifies that your copy of Windows is genuine. Unfortunately, some of these keys might have been used already.

You can come back another time to get new and updated Windows product keys from this website. We regularly update our database and give you new and working Windows 7 activation keys when they are available.

Try an updated Windows 7 product key from this list. Some of them might work for the Ultimate version, while others work for Home and Premium edition as well. If you specifically want Windows 7. Many users are exclusively looking for a Windows 7 activation key for the Ultimate version. The latest working serial numbers for this version of OS are bellow. When you are already running Windows 7 and it asks you to activate your copy of Windows, you will need to enter the Windows 7 key in order to do so.

To find the key in your current system, follow these easy steps. Run it and provide it with any permissions and details it asks for to find the Windows 7 Ultimate product key. A product key is never written or stored on a retail copy of Windows any version. However, some users may have a restore Windows disc that might have a Windows 7 Ultimate product key stored on the disc in a file. Unfortunately, this Windows 7 serial key might fail to work as another user may have already used the key.

If you have used the above method to get a Windows 7 key for your current system, you might be thinking of using it to activate Windows 7 on another computer. That is usually not possible. But it could be done in certain situations. The catch here is that you can install as many copies of Windows as you want, but you can only activate it on one of those computers. So if you are looking to give Windows 7 a try, use any key that you find and install the product.

It will let you run the OS for a month before asks for activation. Below, you will learn a few methods that work even though it has been more than a decade since Windows 7 was first released. Give them a try. The easiest way to get Windows 7 today is to buy a new PC with Windows 7 pre-installed on it.