How to get the original product key number from my OEM Packard Bell Desktop PC? When my pc crashed and?
kept restarting itself for several days, I reinstalled the computer with a pirated XP by using the CD drive to the default C:\partition(20GB). When I found out that it was a new partition and the old inaccessible partition was still there. I reinstalled in the second hard disk (D:\) Then I reduced the size of the F:\ partition(to increase the C partition) with a hard disk management program and have deleted some information in that drive which was originally the (D:\)drive. I then reinstalled with another pirated copy of XP with updates included. I tried going to the Microsoft Download Center to get some software which required the validating process. .. I think Microsoft detected that my pc is an OEM pc and downloaded a Windows Key Update tool. I tried using the OEM Certificate of Authenthicity Product Key number but it didn’t tally. The certificate had been there since I bought the computer, from a reputable chain store. It’s an iMedia M8220MDRW model. Why isn’t the number valid?
Will it help if I reinstall with another pirated copy of XP Home Edition? .. .. By the way, I have actually bought an original Vista Home Premium DVD OEM version too but am reluctant to install it because I’m afraid my hardware cannot support it. I have also tried using the Vista Upgrade Advisor It says I only needed to upgrade the video card but I still think my Pentium 4, 2.2 GHz is too slow for Vista. Besides my 2nd hard disk is only 80GB with only the 38GB E partition available to install Vista…… too small. (20GB were used to install Linux Ubuntu which Windows won’t recognised) and won’t let me access it.
I think the word ‘pirated’ may have something to do with your problem!
If you didn’t have the product key number written down anywhere, I’d say you are without help.
If you bought the item from a ‘reputable chain store’,
1) you should have bee given a genuine CDROM with a genuine product key number written on it somewhere.
2) Some OEMs do not give you a CDROM, so the only place the number is – is on the Hard Drive.
You seem to have overwritten this more than once, and all your moving around of partitions may have not helped either..
BTW, the Product key numbers for different releases often have a different format, so you can’t just use any product key number.
Because the pirated XP is the corporate edition.
Your key is for the OEM edition.
Keys from one don’t work on the other. You’ll need to get hold of the OEM edition of XP. It sould have come with your machine as a recovery disk, or a part of the hard drive set aside for recovery.
When installing the pirate XP, there’s a chance you wiped this.