yes,another license question

[timewarped72]

well i searched this topic and i'm still a little confused regarding using windows on another or new pc, so i'm asking this anyway to avoid any complications as i'm a newbie to all this and would like to keep it simple.....
ok here's the deal.....i have a dell p3 550, i bought it refurbed and purchased xp oem home and installed it on the dell.
i was going to upgrade it but said forget that i want to build my own, so, i'll be building a computer from scratch.
now, can i simply re register my windows to the new computer, or do i have to buy a license to do so??
also, i will probably be giving the old computer to my parents, if i left xp registered to that computer can they use it or would they have to buy a license or a new xp cd??
either way i know i'll be buying one operationg system i'm just trying to figure out if i can do anything with the one i have in this situation..
any help appreciated.................

[glc]

Technically (legally), the copy of XP that is on the Dell must stay with it, but it CAN be reactivated on a new computer and nobody is going to complain if you wipe the Dell. The easiest thing to do is give the Dell to your parents with the XP disk you have, and buy another copy of XP for your new build.

[timewarped72]

thats what i was thinking of doing.........so they can just re register it in their name????
also......since the new computer will be a home built one, how or does microsoft register it to a computer like that??? i assume they cant (yet) and thats the idea of the sticker they give you to put on the computer....

[sdkfz]

The OEM license is differnent from the retail version, the OEM license links the OS to the machine it was installed on. This is because the Original Equipment Manufacturer bought the OEM software to install on it's new builds. Yeah I know YOU bought it and you did not build the PC but this is the versioin and this is the license.

Q1 so they can just re register it in their name???? Yup

Q2since the new computer will be a home built one, how or does microsoft register it to a computer like that??? we are talking within the parameters of the license here. OEM is linked to a single PC within th everbiage of the EULA you agree to on install.

Q3 i assume they cant (yet) and thats the idea of the sticker they give you to put on the computer.... yes - the sticker is placed on the computer by the OEM manufacturer to link it to the OS. You should have placed the sticker on the PC to remain in compliance with the EULA you agreed to.

[timewarped72]

thanks for the info......makes sense now.
ok so when i get my new pc built and my new os for it, and stick that sticker on the case........what does microsoft consider other than the case, what is the original computer??...
i know i'm nit picking i'm just curious. i bought one of those aspire x super alien case's and figure it will have many differnt upgrades over the years.....

[glc]

There is no need to re-register XP on the Dell when you give it to your parents. There is no legal requirement to register it in the first place - you only have to activate it. This is a different process. If you make any hardware changes in the Dell, it may require re-activation, which is a painless process.

When you build the new computer, all you have to do is activate XP. If you don't want to mess up your new case with a sticker, don't put it on - but don't lose it either! It's not Microsoft's intent to prevent you from moving the software from computer to computer, as long as it's only installed on ONE computer at a time. Bottom line - one license, one computer.

Preinstalled XP on a name brand computer with a restore CD provided is a different story - it can NOT be moved to a different computer, it is licensed to that specific machine. This is a very fine line of distinction, and exactly how you handle generic OEM software is a gray area. You COULD move the generic OEM you installed on the Dell onto a new build and be able to activate it, but if you do not wipe the Dell, you are illegal.

Here's an example. Our 3rd party builder preinstalls XP on the machines, and provides a restore disk. The restore disk is keyed to the bios. If we have to replace the motherboard, we have to use a bios editor on the new board in order to get the restore disk to install.