Currently I have a problem with a dead guys computer that I bought the original copy of XP Pro from one of MS's resellers and these are the major wholesalers not the little low volume wholesalers which I've killed the DSL connection as the computer only has to be kept for about 5 years till the Tax Cycle ends and there is no possibility of the Tax Man coming after a Deceased persons Estate.

Now as this is a free job I'm not overly happy with the current problem I've had to turn off Windows Updates because they where hogging all the available Bandwidth and slowing down dramatically the ability to collect E-Mail that was left over from prior to the death of this guy and open Web Pages.

On the 26-6-2006 I turned off Windows Update and last night when I tried to open the computer to apply some AV Updates I got a lovely This Is A Pirate Copy of Windows display that I can not work around.

Out of desperation I rang MS Tech Sup[port and was promptly told that A This is really a Pirate copy of XP Pro or B I must be mistaken as this Can Not Happen.

Now as I built the computer and know exactly what was put into it I know that there is a perfectly Genuine Copy of Windows installed and I know that the thing isn't working properly & I'm totally locked out of the system so there is no chance of a Quick Fix. The fact that both SP1 &2 as well as WGA installed without a single problem is beside the point either I have a Pirate Copy of XP Pro which it most certainly is not or I'm an Idiot That may be correct but I was only telling them what came up on the screen.

Now MS answer is to do a repair Install and see if that works and if not try an In place Install and in 2 days time they will ring back and see how I'm going. I'm not actually overly concerned with the actual immediate problem but I don't want to see it happen every few months as the wife who is still under heavy medication is very fragile and falls apart at every slight problem. I personally don't need to contribute to these problems that she has but I have to keep the computer running and as I'm not getting paid for my trouble I really don't want top spend 100's of hours finding a solution.

In this one case WGA is a very real problem that is adversely impacting on the health of the surviving family member and it's something that I really don't need to deal with. Crying women are not my first choice and this one is anything but stable.

Sure I could quite rightly walk away saying It's Not My Problem but as the owner has been a excellent customer for over 15 years I feel obliged to help out. This should only involve a few minutes every few months to keep running and nothing else should be required. Unfortunately it's not working out that way and I really don't want to put more problems on this poor woman.

However if this was a copy loaded from an Action Pack this problem wouldn't be arising. Either way I just see it as wrong and I'm far less than happy about the entire incident.

Col