Windows XP Registration Key

The installation CDs all come in exactly the same format.

The only real difference - apart from maybe advertising - is that there is a field in SETUP.INI  called a PID. (Google it)

This PID is used to identify the type of install to do and the registration key is tied to the PID.

As long as you use an install CD with the same PID as was originally used, the key on the bottom should work.

Dave Burnett Microsoft MVP Shell/User (see http//mvp.support.microsoft.com/ )
God doesn't play dice Does that mean I was supposed to be like this??

I have a HP laptop with Windows Vista Home Premium (32-bit) pre-installed. I wished to install the 64-bit version, and am lucky enough to have a 64-bit installation disc as supplied by Microsoft. I was able to install Vista Home Premium (64-bit) from this disc using the product key affixed to the bottom of my laptop. I couldn't activate over the Internet, but had no trouble activating over the phone following the automatic prompts; I didn't even need to speak to a Microsoft product representative at any stage.

The product key obviously requires a Windows XP installation disc - if you have one of these, and you're worried about it being lost or damaged, you should make a back-up copy. Better still, why not create a slipstreamed installation disc with the latest Service Pack (2 or 3) already incorporated into it? That way when you next reinstall Windows from that disc, SP2 or SP3 is installed at the same time, saving you the hassle of downloading and installing it separately. We've covered this numerous times in the magazine using a program like AutoStreamer or nLite OS.