illegal copy

[cakeman]

i had my computer repaired by a local engineer that sad he had to format my
drive. When it came back it had an illegal copy of XP Pro installed. Is it
possible to reinstall XP Home without looseing all my data, would appreciate
any help

[Bruce Chambers]

cakeman wrote:
> i had my computer repaired by a local engineer that sad he had to format my
> drive. When it came back it had an illegal copy of XP Pro installed. Is it
> possible to reinstall XP Home without looseing all my data, would appreciate
> any help


Sorry, no. The only way to change from WinXP Pro to WinXP Home is to
format the drive and start over. There is no supported downgrade path
or technique.

After backing up any data you wish to preserve, and using the File
and Settings Wizard to preserve personal settings, simply boot from the
WinXP Home installation CD. You'll be offered the opportunity to
delete, create, and format partitions as part of the installation
process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of boot devices in the
PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)

HOW TO Install Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrum Russell

[Ben Miller]

Very good instructions Bruce. I would like to add that you need to report
that person as installing pirated copies of XP. This can be done by emailing
or by following the instructions on this page:

http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/Reporting.mspx

On a side note, I think that you should get your money back from that
consultant as a result of these problems.

Hope this helps!

-Ben

"Bruce Chambers" wrote:

> cakeman wrote:
> > i had my computer repaired by a local engineer that sad he had to format my
> > drive. When it came back it had an illegal copy of XP Pro installed. Is it
> > possible to reinstall XP Home without looseing all my data, would appreciate
> > any help
>
>
> Sorry, no. The only way to change from WinXP Pro to WinXP Home is to
> format the drive and start over. There is no supported downgrade path
> or technique.
>
> After backing up any data you wish to preserve, and using the File
> and Settings Wizard to preserve personal settings, simply boot from the
> WinXP Home installation CD. You'll be offered the opportunity to
> delete, create, and format partitions as part of the installation
> process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of boot devices in the
> PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)
>
> HOW TO Install Windows XP
> http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941
>
> http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html
>
> http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm
>
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> Help us help you:
> http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
> safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin
>
> Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrum Russell
>

[violet]

You have been pirated, if you did not get a legit CD & COA# sticker. The pro
version also comes with a certificate. Report him to Microsoft, the BSA, &
the local authorities. Take him to small claims court & get your money back &
the money for a legit version. If the local authorities do nothing, then
contact the FBI. You may want to check my posting.....possible piracy. I
received a lot of great information.

"Ben Miller" wrote:

> Very good instructions Bruce. I would like to add that you need to report
> that person as installing pirated copies of XP. This can be done by emailing
> or by following the instructions on this page:
>
> http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/Reporting.mspx
>
> On a side note, I think that you should get your money back from that
> consultant as a result of these problems.
>
> Hope this helps!
>
> -Ben
>
> "Bruce Chambers" wrote:
>
> > cakeman wrote:
> > > i had my computer repaired by a local engineer that sad he had to format my
> > > drive. When it came back it had an illegal copy of XP Pro installed. Is it
> > > possible to reinstall XP Home without looseing all my data, would appreciate
> > > any help
> >
> >
> > Sorry, no. The only way to change from WinXP Pro to WinXP Home is to
> > format the drive and start over. There is no supported downgrade path
> > or technique.
> >
> > After backing up any data you wish to preserve, and using the File
> > and Settings Wizard to preserve personal settings, simply boot from the
> > WinXP Home installation CD. You'll be offered the opportunity to
> > delete, create, and format partitions as part of the installation
> > process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of boot devices in the
> > PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)
> >
> > HOW TO Install Windows XP
> > http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941
> >
> > http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html
> >
> > http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm
> >
> >
> > --
> >
> > Bruce Chambers
> >
> > Help us help you:
> > http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> > http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
> >
> > They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
> > safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin
> >
> > Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrum Russell
> >