"David" wrote in message news
A close friend has an unlicensed copy of XP Pro on his PC. Because of
that he is unable to download & install Microsoft Security Essentials.

He wants to get a licensed, legal copy of XP Pro on his PC. I know
where to buy a sealed copy of XP Pro. I need to know how (if
possible) how to install the legal, licensed copy of XP without losing
all his data - that is without reformatting his hard drive. Is this
possible?

David

And be careful of the "sealed copy" of XP Pro. If it indicates anywhere
that it is a volume licensed version then it is NOT legal. If it is System
builder OEM then it should be at SP3 level (unless the seller had a supply
of SP2 versions. You may want to let us know the source of this XP and we
may be able to give an educated guess on if it is legal.