Is my OS OEM or full version?

[Yujia_]

Hey guys, I bought a Dell XPS8700 from Bestbuy last year, and I am currently building my own DIY desktop since that XPS8700 isn't good for gaming.

I was thinking about buying a windows 8.1 from Internet for my new DIY pc because people says the OEM os version can only be used on the very first PC. However I gave it a try so I directly installed the old HDD with an OEM OS (From Dell XPS8700), to the new desktop with new motherboard, cpu, gpu, etc.

It works! I boostup as usual....

But I don't understand what happened here....

btw can I just copy OS from my old hdd to another hdd? i am considering to upgrade my hdd from WD blue disk to black disk....

Sorry for the languages & Thank you all in advance! 😀

 

[Ryan_78]

It works cause it's on the drive. Usually they come with OEM but really if there's no hardware issues for you....
Also you can't copy. You have to use a cloning software.

 

[basroil]

Dell=OEM

OEM does not mean that you can't install on other computers, rather that it won't activate on other computers. If you don't activate it with a valid license in the first 30 days, it will nag you constantly (and in some cases give you only 1 hour of use before forcefully restarting)