I want to buy a real, legal, unused box copy of windows 7. I know they are expensive, but piracy is unsafe and limits how much troubleshooting you can do. I'm not asking for instructions on how to pirate windows 7 safely. What I want to know is, if I buy a legitimate box of windows 7, can I be secure in the knowledge that the included product key will not have been blocked or otherwise discontinued by Microsoft?
I'm not asking how to know if a box is real or not, I'm fully aware that there are risks involved with buying these boxes. I want to know, if the copy I have IS real and unused, can I be assured that Microsoft will accept its product code and allow its activation when I set it up? My worry is that Microsoft will just start invalidating unused Windows 7 product codes to keep people from installing it.
I'm not asking how to know if a box is real or not, I'm fully aware that there are risks involved with buying these boxes. I want to know, if the copy I have IS real and unused, can I be assured that Microsoft will accept its product code and allow its activation when I set it up? My worry is that Microsoft will just start invalidating unused Windows 7 product codes to keep people from installing it.