Windows 7 SP1 64bit OEM system builder

[Noahthomas29]

In the future I plan on building my own computer, but came across a scary thought.
Let's say I put the build all together and it's working great. But then the hard drive fails a week later, and I have to send back the hard drive to get a new one, am I screw and have to spend another $90 on a windows 7 copy?

 

[Heironious]

No, once you activate the OEM version of windows, it ties it to your motherboard basically. As long as you have the OEM disk it will still work. If your motherboard dies and you have to get a different one, might be a different story.

 

[edogawa]

No, you will not need to buy a new copy. If you buy a copy you can reinstall it on a new hard drive with the same key you had before.

 

[Noahthomas29]

Ok thanks, but is than any percentage of failure rate on hardware, like does a motherboard have a righter rate of failure than other parts?

 

[edogawa]

Any hardware is prone to failure, if it happens, it happens. You cannot really predict if hardware is going to fail. This is why warranties are so great.

 

[JDFan]

The OEM license is tied to the MOBO of the system that it is installed on so the only time there might be a problem is if the MOBO is defective -- that said MS realizes thaty sometimes MOBOs are defective and allows an exception to the license in cases where the MOBO dies under warranty and requires replacement (if possible they want you to replace with an identical model MOBO but if that is not available using a similar MOBO is allowed) -- If you find yourself needing to replace the MOBO due to defect you just need to use the phone activation process and may need to talk with a CS rep if the activation fails and answer a few questions (mainly to ensure that the old MOBO was defective and that the license is only being used on the one system) and once you explain the situation to them they will provide a working response code to reactivate the install.

 

[kotoly4]

No, once you activate the OEM version of windows, it ties it to your motherboard basically. As long as you have the OEM disk it will still work. If your motherboard dies and you have to get a different one, might be a different story.

No, you will not need to buy a new copy. If you buy a copy you can reinstall it on a new hard drive with the same key you had before.

If i download Windows 7 on internet (without the disk), does it stay in my computer if I need to clean it up to factory settings after system failure? Or I'll need to buy it again?