Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics (
More info?)
crazy_lee wrote:
> i have windows 98 on my computer can i restore my computer with xp from
> disks from a new computer? if not how do i upgrade? thanx
>
No, you cannot (and may not) use the OEM Recovery Cd for another
computer to upgrade your machine from Win98 to WinXP.
You'll need to purchase a separate WinXP license for each computer on
which you install it.
First of all, you have an OEM license for WinXP. An OEM
version must be sold with a piece of hardware (normally a motherboard
or hard rive, if not an entire PC) and is _permanently_ bound to the
first PC on which it's installed. An OEM license, once installed, is
not legally transferable to another computer under _any_
circumstances.
Secondly, as it has *always* been with *all* Microsoft operating
systems, it's necessary (to be in compliance with both the EULA and
U.S. copyright law http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/117.html), if
not technically) to purchase one WinXP license for each computer on
which it is installed. (Consult an attorney versed in copyright law
to determine final applicability in your locale.) The only way in
which WinXP licensing differs from that of earlier versions of Windows
is that Microsoft has finally added a copy protection and anti-theft
mechanism, Product Activation, to prevent (or at least make more
difficult) multiple installations using a single license.
--
Bruce Chambers
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