XP PID and UPDATE, Please Help

Hello and thanks for reading,

Dell Vostro 1000 Laptop / XP SP2 Home

After JUST rebuilding my entire laptop system from scratch (thanks to
a rootkit, I had to wipe/reformat/reinstall the OS), I did something
stupid and disabled Userinit.exe from running, which meant the shell
wouldn't load at boot.

After trying many things (using my desktop to research, making
PEBuilder, etc...) I decided a repair using the XP CD was my only
hope. Only the Dell OEM CD that came with the laptop kept turning the
boot process over to the system as soon as it detected Windows was
installed. ARGH! It would not boot from the CD no matter what I tried.
(I was looking for that EGA DOS-style screen that asks if I want to
boot to Recovery Console or install a new Windows OS... and if you
choose the latter you get to a screen where it will allow you to
install over the last one to repair it.)

So again I get online with the desktop and find out that OEM CDs are
not like genuine MS CDs, and the OEM CD won't do anything for me but
boot me into my bad OS wth no shell, no mouse, no toolbars, no
keyboard, no way to fix the problem.

So I booted from my genuine XP CD which I bought off the shelf a few
years back when I built my desktop. (Luckily I had all the Dell
drivers backed up on a separate drive.) Okay, fine. So I install
Windows XP SP2 Home, and it comes time to enter the Product ID#. So I
dig out my Dell OEM XP CD and enter THAT number, cause that's the CD
that belongs on the Dell, and the genuine XP CD is installed on my
laptop. Only the laptop won't accept the Dell PID. It will only accept
the genuine MS XP CD PID. So NOW both my laptop and desktop have the
same PID, and I'm afraid if I use Windows Update service to install
much-needed updates, it will associate the PID with the laptop... then
when I try to update the desktop later, the MS database will already
have that PID associated with the hardware on my laptop, and it will
look like I pirated it.

So my uestion is, is there any way I can manually change the PID on
the laptop to the Dell PID?

Thanks much.


was screwed. I used my desktop to investigate what I could do to get
userinit.exe loaded again.... used PEBuilder to access the NTFS
partitions, etc. but in the end what I needed to do was a repair with
the XP CD.

I'm answering my own post to correct this:

Okay, fine. So I install
Windows XP SP2 Home, and it comes time to enter the Product ID#. So I
dig out my Dell OEM XP CD and enter THAT number, cause that's the CD
that belongs on the Dell, and the genuine XP CD is installed on my
laptop.

That's supposed to read DESKTOP. The genuine XP CD is installed on my
desktop, and the OEM CD belongs on the laptop.

There is an option on the "Phone a Microsoft rep" page of Activation to
change the installation key.

Or:
http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/sel...tructions.aspx

"What Now" wrote:

Hello and thanks for reading,

Dell Vostro 1000 Laptop / XP SP2 Home

After JUST rebuilding my entire laptop system from scratch (thanks to
a rootkit, I had to wipe/reformat/reinstall the OS), I did something
stupid and disabled Userinit.exe from running, which meant the shell
wouldn't load at boot.

After trying many things (using my desktop to research, making
PEBuilder, etc...) I decided a repair using the XP CD was my only
hope. Only the Dell OEM CD that came with the laptop kept turning the
boot process over to the system as soon as it detected Windows was
installed. ARGH! It would not boot from the CD no matter what I tried.
(I was looking for that EGA DOS-style screen that asks if I want to
boot to Recovery Console or install a new Windows OS... and if you
choose the latter you get to a screen where it will allow you to
install over the last one to repair it.)

So again I get online with the desktop and find out that OEM CDs are
not like genuine MS CDs, and the OEM CD won't do anything for me but
boot me into my bad OS wth no shell, no mouse, no toolbars, no
keyboard, no way to fix the problem.

So I booted from my genuine XP CD which I bought off the shelf a few
years back when I built my desktop. (Luckily I had all the Dell
drivers backed up on a separate drive.) Okay, fine. So I install
Windows XP SP2 Home, and it comes time to enter the Product ID#. So I
dig out my Dell OEM XP CD and enter THAT number, cause that's the CD
that belongs on the Dell, and the genuine XP CD is installed on my
laptop. Only the laptop won't accept the Dell PID. It will only accept
the genuine MS XP CD PID. So NOW both my laptop and desktop have the
same PID, and I'm afraid if I use Windows Update service to install
much-needed updates, it will associate the PID with the laptop... then
when I try to update the desktop later, the MS database will already
have that PID associated with the hardware on my laptop, and it will
look like I pirated it.

So my uestion is, is there any way I can manually change the PID on
the laptop to the Dell PID?

Thanks much.


was screwed. I used my desktop to investigate what I could do to get
userinit.exe loaded again.... used PEBuilder to access the NTFS
partitions, etc. but in the end what I needed to do was a repair with
the XP CD.

I've been reading online and it's the Product Key I'm trying to change
(not PID). I tried this method:

1. Run regedit and go to:
HKey_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Cu rrent
Version\WPAEvents, on the right double click on "oobetimer" and change
at least one digit of this value to deactivate windows.

2. Choose run from start menu and type in this command:
%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a to get the activation screen
and go to the second option which is activate by phone.

3. In the new screen choose the option to change product key, and type
in the new product key...

....but it doesn't work b/c the fields that come up to enter the new
poduct key won't take the OEM key.

"What Now" wrote:

I've been reading online and it's the Product Key I'm trying to change
(not PID). I tried this method:

1. Run regedit and go to:
HKey_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Cu rrent
Version\WPAEvents, on the right double click on "oobetimer" and change
at least one digit of this value to deactivate windows.

2. Choose run from start menu and type in this command:
%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a to get the activation screen
and go to the second option which is activate by phone.

3. In the new screen choose the option to change product key, and type
in the new product key...

....but it doesn't work b/c the fields that come up to enter the new
poduct key won't take the OEM key.

Go into the BIOS and change the boot order to boot first from CD, then use
your Dell reinstallation CD to boot and reinstall Windows.

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:14:09 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:

Go into the BIOS and change the boot order to boot first from CD, then use
your Dell reinstallation CD to boot and reinstall Windows.

Thanks, but that's the first thing I tried. As soon as the OEM detects
a version of Windows is installed, it turns the process over to
Windows. Then it says it cannot "upgrade" the current Windows
installation [because OEM CDs apparently don't let you do that]. And
it's not even an upgrade; they're both XP SP2 Home.... just that the
OEM is a newer CD than the MS CD, so maybe it has more hotfixes
incorporated or whatever, I don't know. I know it has Dell drivers
incorporated, but I installed those myself manually after installing
with the retail MS CD.

When MS charges people to buy machines that come with an OS, they
should provide a CD that will work in ALL situations, meaning it
should have the same features as a retail MS CD. :-/

FTR, I also tried RockXP4, XPPID.exe, and Magic Jelly Bean Keyfinder.
None will work in this situation. Looks like XP has a built-in
mechanism to keep someone from changing a genuine XPCD install to an
OEM XP install... even though both product keys are completely
legitimate.

On Dec 15, 7:40*pm, What Now wrote:
On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:14:09 -0800, Mark Adams

wrote:
Go into the BIOS and change the boot order to boot first from CD, then use
your Dell reinstallation CD to boot and reinstall Windows.

Thanks, but that's the first thing I tried. As soon as the OEM detects
a version of Windows is installed, it turns the process over to
Windows. Then it says it cannot "upgrade" the current Windows
installation [because OEM CDs apparently don't let you do that]. And
it's not even an upgrade; they're both XP SP2 Home.... just that the
OEM is a newer CD than the MS CD, so maybe it has more hotfixes
incorporated or whatever, I don't know. I know it has Dell drivers
incorporated, but I installed those myself manually after installing
with the retail MS CD.

When MS charges people to buy machines that come with an OS, they
should provide a CD that will work in ALL situations, meaning it
should have the same features as a retail MS CD. *:-/

Your system needs to boot off the CD in order to install the OEM
version. There would usually be "Press any key to boot from CD...."
If Windows starts up, you will get the message you are getting.


You re-installed from a retail CD, you OEM key will never be
accepted. OEM key will only be accepted by an OEM CD, or recovery
system.

OEM versions are sold with the support provided by the company whom
made the PC. OEM versions are generally exactly the same as the
retail versions but the company who made the PC (Dell) has the right
to make custom changes to the install process.

As for Del recovery system, these would erase the installed version of
XP and place back the exact version that was installed on the hard
drive at the time the PC left the factory.

"What Now" wrote:

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:14:09 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:

Go into the BIOS and change the boot order to boot first from CD, then use
your Dell reinstallation CD to boot and reinstall Windows.

Thanks, but that's the first thing I tried. As soon as the OEM detects
a version of Windows is installed, it turns the process over to
Windows. Then it says it cannot "upgrade" the current Windows
installation [because OEM CDs apparently don't let you do that]. And
it's not even an upgrade; they're both XP SP2 Home.... just that the
OEM is a newer CD than the MS CD, so maybe it has more hotfixes
incorporated or whatever, I don't know. I know it has Dell drivers
incorporated, but I installed those myself manually after installing
with the retail MS CD.

When MS charges people to buy machines that come with an OS, they
should provide a CD that will work in ALL situations, meaning it
should have the same features as a retail MS CD. :-/

I sounds like you are trying to reinstall Windows from within Windows; you
can't do that. You must set the boot order in the BIOS to boot first from CD.
You said in your original post that you "had to wipe/reformat/reinstall the
OS". How did you do this, and how come you can't do exactly the same again?

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:57:37 -0800 (PST), smlunatick
wrote:

Your system needs to boot off the CD in order to install the OEM
version. There would usually be "Press any key to boot from CD...."
If Windows starts up, you will get the message you are getting.

When I do that, the OEM CD turns the process over to the hard drive
and boots from the installed OS, even if "Boot from CD ROM" is
selected in BIOS.

Then when Windows loads, the OEM CD Screen tells me it cannot
"upgrade" the installed version of Windows.

You re-installed from a retail CD, you OEM key will never be
accepted. OEM key will only be accepted by an OEM CD, or recovery
system.

So I have learned.... but I had no choice. The OEM CD would not repair
Windows. Only a genuine MS CD offers that choice. This is documented
online and I'd get example links for you, but have to run my Dad to
the doctor. I'll post some when I get back...


OEM versions are sold with the support provided by the company whom
made the PC. OEM versions are generally exactly the same as the
retail versions but the company who made the PC (Dell) has the right
to make custom changes to the install process.

To add drivers and whatnot, yes. But the problem here is that the OEM
CD that Dell gave me does NOT have the repair option available that is
initiated when you boot from a CD, like the genuine MS CD does. If the
OEM *did* have that option, I would have repaired the OEM installation
with the OEM disk and would not be posting here. But the only way to
fix my OEM installation at the time, was to boot from a genuine MS CD,
which offered me the choice to reinstall Windows over the old install
in order to repair it. WHen it did that, it put back my userinit.exe
and I could boot into the OS again with all of my programs,
preferences and tweaks intact. I had just rebuilt my system, as
explained in the OP, and was not about to do it again just b/c the OEM
CD wouldn't work. I had no idea it would turn into a problem.

As for Del recovery system, these would erase the installed version of
XP and place back the exact version that was installed on the hard
drive at the time the PC left the factory.

..... but *IF* this OEM CD will even do that (and as I said, I don't
believe it will/can), would it retain my settings and installations
and all??

Thanks -

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 12:15:01 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:


I sounds like you are trying to reinstall Windows from within Windows;

No, as explained, I tried repeatedly to boot from the OEM CD, but it
kept turning the proces over to the intalled OS.

you
can't do that. You must set the boot order in the BIOS to boot first from CD.
You said in your original post that you "had to wipe/reformat/reinstall the
OS". How did you do this, and how come you can't do exactly the same again?

Because THAT is what I want to AVOID. It took me a month to rebuild my
system after I got that rootkit. I'm not going to waste another month
of my life for something that should never have been a problem in the
first place. The OEM CD should have the repair option built in, and it
should have booted from my CD and asked to repair my installation when
userinit.exe got disabled. Instead, no matter what BIO settings I
used, it kept booting into the broken OS with no shell... no mouse, no
kybd, no way to fix the problem... hence the genuine MS CD which got
me back up and running without another wipe/reformat on a system I had
JUST rebuilt.

Again, this is why I hate MS.... this is just such a waste of valuable
time, all b/c Gates wasn't happy being a multi-billionaire, but wanted
MORE. (Sorry,but this really ****es me off!) Thank you for trying to
help, though. It isn't your fault.

"What Now" wrote:

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 12:15:01 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:


I sounds like you are trying to reinstall Windows from within Windows;

No, as explained, I tried repeatedly to boot from the OEM CD, but it
kept turning the proces over to the intalled OS.

you
can't do that. You must set the boot order in the BIOS to boot first from CD.
You said in your original post that you "had to wipe/reformat/reinstall the
OS". How did you do this, and how come you can't do exactly the same again?

Because THAT is what I want to AVOID. It took me a month to rebuild my
system after I got that rootkit. I'm not going to waste another month
of my life for something that should never have been a problem in the
first place. The OEM CD should have the repair option built in, and it
should have booted from my CD and asked to repair my installation when
userinit.exe got disabled. Instead, no matter what BIO settings I
used, it kept booting into the broken OS with no shell... no mouse, no
kybd, no way to fix the problem... hence the genuine MS CD which got
me back up and running without another wipe/reformat on a system I had
JUST rebuilt.

Again, this is why I hate MS.... this is just such a waste of valuable
time, all b/c Gates wasn't happy being a multi-billionaire, but wanted
MORE. (Sorry,but this really ****es me off!) Thank you for trying to
help, though. It isn't your fault.

Oh, I see. From your original post it sounded like a fresh install that you
wanted to correct, not one you've been using for a while with all your
applications loaded. If Dell had provided you with a genuine Microsoft OEM
install disk, you would have a repair option. Sounds like you have an imaged
"rescue" disk that can only return the computer to "as shipped" condition and
has no repair features. Looks to me like Dell ripped you off for a
handicapped OS, not Microsoft. Your beef is with Dell. If you can borrow a
generic Microsoft OEM CD, not one that is branded, you should be able to do a
repair install and use the product key that came with the laptop.

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:06:11 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:


Oh, I see. From your original post it sounded like a fresh install that you
wanted to correct, not one you've been using for a while with all your
applications loaded. If Dell had provided you with a genuine Microsoft OEM
install disk, you would have a repair option. Sounds like you have an imaged
"rescue" disk that can only return the computer to "as shipped" condition and
has no repair features.

I don't know but it's a purple/off-white Dell CD that says "Operating
System" across the top, then "Already installed on your computer" then
the words, "Reinstallation CD" and the OSs name. On either side of the
hole it has statements about being distr. by Dell and only for use
with a Dell PC, blah blah, plus the usual copyrights and P/N at the
bottom. Like I said, it came with the Vostro directly from Dell. (That
is, I didn't buy the laptop second hand or anything.)

Looks to me like Dell ripped you off for a
handicapped OS, not Microsoft. Your beef is with Dell. If you can borrow a
generic Microsoft OEM CD, not one that is branded, you should be able to do a
repair install and use the product key that came with the laptop.

That's a good idea, if it would work (not that I know anyone offhand
with an OEM CD), but I'm doubting that any OEM will work after reading
about my problem on the Web. Here's a few examples of
people/sites/discussions where it's a given that OEM CDs do not
cooperate. It seems to be widely known that an OEM CD will not give
you the choice to do a repair. WHO WOULDA THUNK IT!

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repa...ing%20Setu p:

http://www.pcabusers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=277560

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/86...-option-repair

http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_10...sageID=2839119
(this one says you have to BUY a special install disc from Dell for
$10, or apparently you get a crappy one like I did...)

....and there are many more references. I guess next stop is Dell. I
agree with your point that they should provide a PROPER install CD
with every system, but if MS didn't have this ridiculous scheme that
only inconveniences honest people, it wouldn't be an issue to begin
with. So my beef is with BOTH companies that are getting rich at the
expense of the honest working stiff who has to jump through hoops and
pay for operating systems TWICE to get ONE good working copy. I can
totally see why people hack MS OSs. The company begs for it.

Thanks for your help, though. I think you're right that Dell is at
fault as much as MS.

How about if I slipstream the repair option files from the retail MS
XP CD, to a CD with the OEM image? Would that be possible? I already
made one slipstream of the OEM Dell CD back when I got it, to install
Windows with certain themes and options I like, and the updated Dell
drivers. I could make another and add the repair option routine if
it's handily findable from ISO-Busting the retail MS CD...??

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 16:43:32 -0800, What Now
wrote:

On Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:06:11 -0800, Mark Adams
wrote:


Oh, I see. From your original post it sounded like a fresh install that you
wanted to correct, not one you've been using for a while with all your
applications loaded. If Dell had provided you with a genuine Microsoft OEM
install disk, you would have a repair option. Sounds like you have an imaged
"rescue" disk that can only return the computer to "as shipped" condition and
has no repair features.

I don't know but it's a purple/off-white Dell CD that says "Operating
System" across the top, then "Already installed on your computer" then
the words, "Reinstallation CD" and the OSs name. On either side of the
hole it has statements about being distr. by Dell and only for use
with a Dell PC, blah blah, plus the usual copyrights and P/N at the
bottom. Like I said, it came with the Vostro directly from Dell. (That
is, I didn't buy the laptop second hand or anything.)

Looks to me like Dell ripped you off for a
handicapped OS, not Microsoft. Your beef is with Dell. If you can borrow a
generic Microsoft OEM CD, not one that is branded, you should be able to do a
repair install and use the product key that came with the laptop.

That's a good idea, if it would work (not that I know anyone offhand
with an OEM CD), but I'm doubting that any OEM will work after reading
about my problem on the Web. Here's a few examples of
people/sites/discussions where it's a given that OEM CDs do not
cooperate. It seems to be widely known that an OEM CD will not give
you the choice to do a repair. WHO WOULDA THUNK IT!

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/repa...ing%20Setu p:

http://www.pcabusers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=277560

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/86...-option-repair

http://forums.cnet.com/5208-10149_10...sageID=2839119
(this one says you have to BUY a special install disc from Dell for
$10, or apparently you get a crappy one like I did...)

...and there are many more references. I guess next stop is Dell. I
agree with your point that they should provide a PROPER install CD
with every system, but if MS didn't have this ridiculous scheme that
only inconveniences honest people, it wouldn't be an issue to begin
with. So my beef is with BOTH companies that are getting rich at the
expense of the honest working stiff who has to jump through hoops and
pay for operating systems TWICE to get ONE good working copy. I can
totally see why people hack MS OSs. The company begs for it.

Thanks for your help, though. I think you're right that Dell is at
fault as much as MS.