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#1
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Reactivation -- Why?
I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2
years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Gene |
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#2
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Reactivation -- Why?
They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you
registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. joli -- www.joliballew.com www.northtexasgraphics.com "Gene Goldenfeld" wrote in message ... I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2 years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Gene |
#3
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Reactivation -- Why?
Joli Ballew wrote:
They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. joli You didn't answer the question: if it's hardware based, why now? No, reactivation wasn't simple. Neither cable connection nor dial-up would connect and the first reboot didn't show activation numbers in step 3, which meant a lot of time on the phone was wasted and the process had to be repeated after a several minute computer shut down. Gene |
#4
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Reactivation -- Why?
Not quite. The staledate for changed hardware is 120 days, not a few years
ago. Changes prior to four months ago should not matter. Changing the monitor does not affect activation at all. Changing the primary hard drive can, but changing other hard drives do not. Registration is a process of registering the user of the product not the product. Registration is immaterial to activation. A hardware change, not a software change should be what prompts reactivation. I don't see the kinds of hardware changes here that are required to trigger reactivation. I think that there might have been something go wrong as an unintended result of installing and updating software. That does not mean Nero has anything to do with it, but uninstalling Nero would not help, so don't panic and do that. I agree reactivation should be simple. It should go fine over the internet. If it not, use the phone method as prompted by the activation wizard. One way or another you will be reactivated. However, if reactivation does not hold (the system periodically keeps asking for reactivation after having already accepted it), then post back for a fix. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "Joli Ballew" wrote in message ... They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. joli -- www.joliballew.com www.northtexasgraphics.com "Gene Goldenfeld" wrote in message ... I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2 years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Gene |
#5
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Reactivation -- Why?
....
You didn't answer the question: if it's hardware based, why now? No, reactivation wasn't simple. Neither cable connection nor dial-up would connect and the first reboot didn't show activation numbers in step 3, which meant a lot of time on the phone was wasted and the process had to be repeated after a several minute computer shut down. Gene I suspect it's Microsoft's current push to enforce their licenses more strictly. This would be your third change and it probably pushed things over the edge. They aren't comparing your computer to what it was yesterday, they are comparing it to what it was when it was activated. From what I've read, a hard drive change is one of the big triggers. I don't know the details, but they've also somehow improved their processes for checking things. Or so I've seen written at least; might be a rumor, but the source seemed reliable. That said, I don't know why a "lot of time on the phone" would have occurred, unless you got smart with them or have made other changes that I won't go into. Normally it's just a quick phone call: I don't think I spent more than a minute on the phone the time I called in for Activation after a lightning hit and substantial damage/parts replacements. They took a little info, pressed a button, and I was done. FWIW, anyway, Pop |
#6
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Reactivation -- Why?
"Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message ... Not quite. The staledate for changed hardware is 120 days, not a few years ago. Changes prior to four months ago should not matter. Changing the monitor does not affect activation at all. Changing the primary hard drive can, but changing other hard drives do not. Registration is a process of registering the user of the product not the product. Registration is immaterial to activation. I think you're confusing the 120-day MS database (that determines whether activation can happen automatically, or whether you have to talk to someone first) with the hardware hash on the computer that determines whether the to trigger activation on the computer. The two are not the same. |
#7
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Reactivation -- Why?
"Gene Goldenfeld" wrote in message ... Joli Ballew wrote: They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. joli You didn't answer the question: if it's hardware based, why now? No, reactivation wasn't simple. Neither cable connection nor dial-up would connect and the first reboot didn't show activation numbers in step 3, which meant a lot of time on the phone was wasted and the process had to be repeated after a several minute computer shut down. Gene "why?" is that something went wrong. Software shouldn't trigger activation unless the software changes the hardware somehow so that it appears to be different. Examples would be a bios upgrade or changing the mac addy on a network card. Exactly why it happened on your computer isn't something that a random person on a newsgroup could possibly answer. Even if you took the computer to a qualified shop, I doubt they'd be able to do more than guess. It's like going to the doctor and asking him where you caught a cold. It may just be that the file on your computer that keeps track of hardware changes got corrupted or deleted, possibly related to the software install, but it could just as easily be an unrelated hardware glitch. The fact that you couldn't connect to the internet via cable or dial-up would make me think that you've got other problems lurking. Possibly software, possibly hardware. The need for activation is just another symptom. |
#8
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Reactivation -- Why?
No its not. Your speculation is all wrong. There is nothing in activation
that keeps track of your original configuration. Ten hardware items are watched for changes, with the NIC MAC address counting the most. If the hardware configuration does not change for 120 days then prior changes have no effect when you make a new one. Moreover, you can change the same item a dozen times and it only counts as one change until reactivation is required by other changes. Then the slate is cleared and the count starts over. You can test a dozen different video cards in a week and not trigger activation, but if you change the mobo and cpu and increase the amount of ram you probably will have to reactivate. The OP did not trigger reactivation by making a hardware change. Something else did and probably caused dll's relating to activation to become unregistered. It probably was the installer when he installed Nero and the updates. Reactivation should correct the problem or the dll's may need to be registered again. Microsoft Activation: http://aumha.org/articles.htm Activation FAQs: http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;302878 Both are available by searching the MS Knowledgebase on "activation". The MS Knowledgebase is available by searching in the Help and Support Center or by navigating to http://www.microsoft.com/ and using the link at the bottom of the page under Support. Use it. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "Pop" wrote in message ... ... You didn't answer the question: if it's hardware based, why now? No, reactivation wasn't simple. Neither cable connection nor dial-up would connect and the first reboot didn't show activation numbers in step 3, which meant a lot of time on the phone was wasted and the process had to be repeated after a several minute computer shut down. Gene I suspect it's Microsoft's current push to enforce their licenses more strictly. This would be your third change and it probably pushed things over the edge. They aren't comparing your computer to what it was yesterday, they are comparing it to what it was when it was activated. From what I've read, a hard drive change is one of the big triggers. I don't know the details, but they've also somehow improved their processes for checking things. Or so I've seen written at least; might be a rumor, but the source seemed reliable. That said, I don't know why a "lot of time on the phone" would have occurred, unless you got smart with them or have made other changes that I won't go into. Normally it's just a quick phone call: I don't think I spent more than a minute on the phone the time I called in for Activation after a lightning hit and substantial damage/parts replacements. They took a little info, pressed a button, and I was done. FWIW, anyway, Pop |
#9
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Reactivation -- Why?
That could well be. Nevertheless, I suspect the dll's related to activation
are the culprit. It sounds like they may need to be re-registered if activation does not hold once successful. In any case the amount of urban legend that tries to link this kind of issue with what Microsoft is doing to crack down on misuse of OEM COAs issued by the major computer manufacturers is getting out of hand. All that crack down has changed is that once reactivation is triggered, consumers and businesses who have such installations of XP from the 20 top manufacturers will not be able to activate by phone. There has been no change to activation itself. Just the response of the activation center when an owner of one of these mass market computers needs to reactivate. Large numbers of the mass produced machines are handled a different way and never have to be activated in the usual sense at all. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "D.Currie" wrote in message ... "Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message ... Not quite. The staledate for changed hardware is 120 days, not a few years ago. Changes prior to four months ago should not matter. Changing the monitor does not affect activation at all. Changing the primary hard drive can, but changing other hard drives do not. Registration is a process of registering the user of the product not the product. Registration is immaterial to activation. I think you're confusing the 120-day MS database (that determines whether activation can happen automatically, or whether you have to talk to someone first) with the hardware hash on the computer that determines whether the to trigger activation on the computer. The two are not the same. |
#10
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Reactivation -- Why?
Correction for the Microsoft Activation link:
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;302806 Sorry about that. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message ... No its not. Your speculation is all wrong. There is nothing in activation that keeps track of your original configuration. Ten hardware items are watched for changes, with the NIC MAC address counting the most. If the hardware configuration does not change for 120 days then prior changes have no effect when you make a new one. Moreover, you can change the same item a dozen times and it only counts as one change until reactivation is required by other changes. Then the slate is cleared and the count starts over. You can test a dozen different video cards in a week and not trigger activation, but if you change the mobo and cpu and increase the amount of ram you probably will have to reactivate. The OP did not trigger reactivation by making a hardware change. Something else did and probably caused dll's relating to activation to become unregistered. It probably was the installer when he installed Nero and the updates. Reactivation should correct the problem or the dll's may need to be registered again. Microsoft Activation: http://aumha.org/articles.htm Activation FAQs: http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;302878 Both are available by searching the MS Knowledgebase on "activation". The MS Knowledgebase is available by searching in the Help and Support Center or by navigating to http://www.microsoft.com/ and using the link at the bottom of the page under Support. Use it. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "Pop" wrote in message ... ... You didn't answer the question: if it's hardware based, why now? No, reactivation wasn't simple. Neither cable connection nor dial-up would connect and the first reboot didn't show activation numbers in step 3, which meant a lot of time on the phone was wasted and the process had to be repeated after a several minute computer shut down. Gene I suspect it's Microsoft's current push to enforce their licenses more strictly. This would be your third change and it probably pushed things over the edge. They aren't comparing your computer to what it was yesterday, they are comparing it to what it was when it was activated. From what I've read, a hard drive change is one of the big triggers. I don't know the details, but they've also somehow improved their processes for checking things. Or so I've seen written at least; might be a rumor, but the source seemed reliable. That said, I don't know why a "lot of time on the phone" would have occurred, unless you got smart with them or have made other changes that I won't go into. Normally it's just a quick phone call: I don't think I spent more than a minute on the phone the time I called in for Activation after a lightning hit and substantial damage/parts replacements. They took a little info, pressed a button, and I was done. FWIW, anyway, Pop |
#11
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Reactivation -- Why?
Joli Ballew wrote:
They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. Yes, reactivation should be simple. It should also *not* be triggered by the events the OP described. This is clearly yet another glitch in windows product activation. -- -- Rob Moir Website - http://www.robertmoir.co.uk Virtual PC 2004 FAQ - http://www.robertmoir.co.uk/win/VirtualPC2004FAQ.html Kazaa - Software update services for your Viruses and Spyware. |
#12
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Reactivation -- Why?
Thank you, Robert. There are a lot of urban legends floating around about
activation, especially since the recent change in the internet availability for systems made by the top pc makers. btw, I love your VPC site. -- Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine] (Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested) "Robert Moir" wrote in message ... Joli Ballew wrote: They are just noting that this PC is quite different from the PC you registered a few years ago. They want to make sure you have not installed XP on a different PC. Reactivation should be simple. Yes, reactivation should be simple. It should also *not* be triggered by the events the OP described. This is clearly yet another glitch in windows product activation. -- -- Rob Moir Website - http://www.robertmoir.co.uk Virtual PC 2004 FAQ - http://www.robertmoir.co.uk/win/VirtualPC2004FAQ.html Kazaa - Software update services for your Viruses and Spyware. |
#13
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Reactivation -- Why?
Gene Goldenfeld wrote:
I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2 years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Interesting discussion to follow. Thanks. I have to admit when I called to reactivate the rep and I got into a discussion about my time in India. However, even without that, time was taken discussing why this might have happened, and then I was passed to a second rep who let me know that the missing activation code in step 3 was a stopper until I shut down for 5 minutes and restarted and tried again. Repeat and success via the slow automated line. That's no one-minute process. There must be something not quite right in my Windows setup (Internet options?) that prevented the connection by cable or dial-up, since the former is working all the time and I can use the dial-up (to another ISP) manually as needed. I noticed it happens in this kind of situation, where the app makes its own attempt to connect. With other apps (Norton updates, Windows Update, etc.), there is no problem. Gene |
#14
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Reactivation -- Why?
"Gene Goldenfeld" wrote in message ... Gene Goldenfeld wrote: I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2 years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Interesting discussion to follow. Thanks. I have to admit when I called to reactivate the rep and I got into a discussion about my time in India. However, even without that, time was taken discussing why this might have happened, and then I was passed to a second rep who let me know that the missing activation code in step 3 was a stopper until I shut down for 5 minutes and restarted and tried again. Repeat and success via the slow automated line. That's no one-minute process. There must be something not quite right in my Windows setup (Internet options?) that prevented the connection by cable or dial-up, since the former is working all the time and I can use the dial-up (to another ISP) manually as needed. I noticed it happens in this kind of situation, where the app makes its own attempt to connect. With other apps (Norton updates, Windows Update, etc.), there is no problem. Gene Oddly enough, I've seen exactly the opposite a number of times -- where a program can connect for activation or updates or whatever, but IE and OE won't work. Not that it helps you any, but it does show that the two can be somewhat disconnected from each other. |
#15
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http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/activation_faq.mspx
"Gene Goldenfeld" wrote in message ... I've been using a legit, activated copy of XP (upgrade) for about 2 years now and have the updates installed, including SP2. The last hardware change was a new monitor in December, and before that a new hard drive well over a year ago. Yesterday, I installed a Nero Ultra 6 and downloaded and installed all of its updates that I could before having to reboot. Upon reboot, I was instructed to activate XP within 3 days because hardware changes had been made. Any guesses why? Gene |
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