XP product key / service pack idiocy

[Bookworm]

Re: XP product key / service pack idiocy

Product key rejection _does_ have to do with the service pack level, but not on all machines, weirdly enough.

There's probably a 'range' of serial numbers that were associated with levels like 'Gold', 'SP1', and 'SP2'. Some manufacturers used them, some didn't.

I've had machines made in 2002 use the OEM cd from SP2, but I've had machines made in 2005 that wouldn't work with anything but the 'Gold' CD - although it -will- work with a slipstreamed SP2 made from a Gold.

So it's not the service packs themselves, it's the microsoft construction of the actual CD's that use the service packs.

I find it easiest to keep a pile of the system restore CD's if I can. At least of the 'from the factory' XP install disks.

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Mind you, Windows 2000 can be that picky as well. I've seen the same 'This key won't work with an SP4 CD, you need an SP2 CD' there.

[acstech]

Re: XP product key / service pack idiocy

Now this makes sense. They just used the "service pack" as the cutoff point. Good info.

[Per Hansson]

Re: XP product key / service pack idiocy

Very many corporate keys got leaked when XP SP0/RTM was out, Microsoft blacklisted these in SP1

However with the drawback that very many corporate customers licenses where no longer valid!

So in SP2 this number of blacklisted keys was greatly reduced again...