If you haven't backed up your Windows XP system, or haven't
created a master image that you can restore in the event of an
irrecoverable system failure, and you haven't made any changes
to the hardware that would invalidate the old activation code
and make it necessary to reactivate Windows XP, you can store
the two files that contain the Windows Product Activation (WPA)
data on a floppy disk, and copy them to the system after
reinstalling Windows so that no activation is required from
Microsoft's site or by telephone.
The two files are called Wpa.dbl and Wpa.bak. And they're
located in the C:\Windows\system32 folder (if Windows is
installed to its default Windows folder and not to a folder with
a different name of the user's choosing).
You should reinstall Windows XP. During the process, you should
refuse the option to "Activate now". You should then restart the
computer and press the F8 key to bring up the Advanced Boot
Options menu, and then choose to boot into Minimal Safe Mode.
You can then open My Computer, click on the A: drive and copy
the two files on the floppy disk to the C:\Windows\system32
folder.
Note well that you should not do this if you have made changes
to the system's hardware that would require Windows XP to be
reactivated on the web or by obtaining the new code from
Microsoft over the telephone.
The two files contain a description of the system's hardware and
the activation code that Microsoft generated from its site or
provided by telephone, both of which are encrypted. At each
system start-up, Windows XP decrypts (unencrypts) the
description and checks to make sure that the hardware matches
the recorded description. The details that are recorded include
the serial numbers of the hard disk drive(s), and the MAC
address that every Ethernet network card has. A user therefore
cannot copy the two activation files from a system that has the
same hardware, because although the make and models of the
hardware are the same, the identification numbers are different.
A newly installed copy of Windows XP allows its user to activate
it automatically from Microsoft's site without having to obtain
the activation code from Microsoft over the telephone. But if
you attempt to reactivate the same copy of Windows XP within 120
days, you have to obtain the activation code over the telephone.
To do that you need to know what the Windows XP product key
(also known as the CD key) is. It should be recorded on the
licence sticker that is provided with with the Windows CD, which
its user is supposed to stick on the computer's case. If this
has been lost then it's not as easy as it was in Windows
95/98/Me to find out what the key is, because in Windows XP and
Windows 2000 it is encrypted and not stored in plain text, as it
is in the Windows 9.x versions. To find out what it is, you can
use a utility specially designed to do so, such as Magical Jelly
Bean's Keyfinder from http://www.magicaljellybean.com/. |
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Win XP Optimization
Add A SafeBoot menu item to your XP Boot Menu
Disable Unneeded Startup Services
End XP Grouping Applicattions
How to Defragment A Windows XP Hard Disk Drive
How to Speedup Browsing of XP Folders
How-To use Hibernation and Standby in Windows XP
Optimize and Defragment your XP Hard Disk Drive
Optimize XP and Remove XP Indexing Service
Speed up XP Network Browsing
Windows XP Disk Cleanup Util
XP TO DO after Install
Common XP Errors:
Auto close hanging applications on your XP box
Error 1327. Invalid Drive: E:\
Insufficient system resources exist to complete the API
Internet Connection Firewall Prevents File Sharing And Browsing
NTLDR Is Missing on Upgrade
Operating System not Found or Invalid Media Type
Print job stuck in Que or Printer Spooler
Repair your XP Boot Sector
Selecting Shutdown Restarts the Computer XP
Stop 0x0000007B
TroubleShooting XP System Restore
XP System Restore Is Not Working
Your system is low on virtual memory size
More XP FAQ links
XP Commands |
