Windows fails to accept product keys - XP, Vista and 7(!)

[comradec]

I encountered a problem while re-partitioning my computer the other day, shortly after installing Windows 7, and now I'm unable to reinstall *any* version of Windows on any of the three hard drives in my computer.

When I try to install from scratch - which I'm only doing because it's proved impossible to reinstall over the top of existing installations - using the Windows installation disks, I'm informed that "Your product key cannot be validated. Review your product key and make sure that you have entered it correctly."

That specific wording is from the Vista installation routine, but a similar formulation comes up in all three versions I have - XP, Vista and 7.

I know that the product keys are in fact correct - I've used them before on the same computer - and all of these versions of Windows are authentic, the original disks and purchased through officially approved channels.

Looking up this issue on the web, none of the scenarios mentioned appear to apply. One suggested for Vista is that the installation disk is pre-service pack 1 and the product key was issued after that, but that can't be the cause here as the same thing is happening in XP and 7 too.

Looking in the BIOS, everything appears to be normal. And looking at the disks using a boot CD for the two partioning programs I have - TeraByte BootIt NG and Acronis Disk Director 10 - nothing appears to be out of the ordinary. All three internal disks are functioning and their booting order in the BIOS is the same as I had them set up originally.

The system spec, by the way, is as follows: Intel Core2 Duo E6600 @ 2.4GHz, 4GB RAM; Intel Desktop Board D975XBX2; ATI Radeon X1050 graphics; three Seagate Baracuda hard drives (80GB, 250GB and 1,500GB); Microsoft Windows 7, Vista and XP.

[EzyStvy]

I always hit the CAPS Lock key when typing in codes so that I'm more certain I'm typing 8's and not B's and G's and not 6's etc...

[comradec]

Originally Posted by EzyStvy I always hit the CAPS Lock key when typing in codes so that I'm more certain I'm typing 8's and not B's and G's and not 6's etc...

I know what you mean, but that doesn't apply in this situation as Windows automatically converts these product keys into capital letters.

Sure, I'm as prone to typos as anyone else, but I've checked what's been typed in very carefully and the codes are definitely correct. And typos wouldn't account for multiple failures across all three operating systems.

[EzyStvy]

I wonder if the network adaptor isn't working so windows can't connect to the outside world.

[comradec]

Originally Posted by EzyStvy I wonder if the network adaptor isn't working so windows can't connect to the outside world.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't think that can be a factor here as the product key validation process always takes place at a stage before Windows has been configured to go online anyway. I've done this numerous times before and the operating system gets set up to connect to the outside world well after this point.

Whatever Windows uses to reference the validity of product keys, it isn't an online source. That part comes when Windows is activated, which can be done via the internet or with a phone call. In Vista and 7, validating the product key enables Windows to be used for 30 days without requiring activation. In XP, the product key alone should be sufficient, as that operating system was designed without the assumption that everyone would be using it online.

(Btw, are you the same person who just replied to me in the Virtual Dr forum?)

[comradec]

In the end I have managed to resolve this issue but I'm still not sure what exactly it was that caused the problem.

The product keys I'd been entering were correct but I got numerous further rejections of keys from both XP and Vista after I posted my query here before I got one to take.

The installation operation finally worked only after I completely wiped all content from the first hard drive (HD0) and then repartitioned and formatted it from scratch.

I had already deleted the partitions on this drive without it making any difference so I can only imagine that something problematic was erased this time round that had failed to be erased the first few times I tried - presumably related to the booting side of things.

I'm using BootIT NG for its booting functions. I don't use the boot manager in Acronis Disk Director as I've found it to be somewhat temperamental.

But thanks for the replies and advice.