XP SP2

If both of these pc's use the same key and you start to update them often enough, MS will eventully block that cetain activation key from being able to access updates. I have heard of people getting letters from MS about software piracy, but i have never heard of the M$ patent lawyers beating down someones door unless they are out on the street selling 100's of copies. The only sure way to upgrade both pc's is to have two legal copies with two different activation keys, there are ways people get around this, but they are illegal (i know you think it shouldn't be ). This has been a long standing debate between users and M$, but until they are no longer the kings of the OS market place, you are pretty much under there terms. To answer the question about whether or not MS checks your key everytime, the article is dead on, they do.

Microsoft may or may not send the cops at your friends,they may send a letter to them explaining the consequences for using the same copy on multiple machines.

The activation key was created to protect against this very situation.

So,your friends have to live with themselves.

If they are so worried about the procedure of reporting after installing SP2,they have a choice of installing or not.

This would be a good time to go to confession,if this worries them so much then they should try buying individual copies.

While I agree that it's stupid to have to buy copies of an OS for each PC you own, "Big Brother" is making us do it. It wouldn't be a big deal if the price was reasonable for home users. I don't know about you, but I don't have $600 to put a copy on my 3 machines. That's why I have 98SE, W2K and XP home on mine.

Anyways... I heard that by month end, the update will be avail for "free" (shipping and handling not included). Since I heard that even with Broadband, it could take over an hour to download, I'm getting the CD.

Hope "Bill and company" sleep well. Big Brother is watching.

Great answers.

I agree about it being best to avoiding ANY problems to have legal copies, but people with kids (I got none yet) do not have $99 a pop for each copy of XP Home. This is why they did on their kids PCs. If I tell them they can get letters, instead of Software Cops, at their door, they will still freak. Wonder how I am going to break the bad news to them. (Janelle, Bill's sister, has 3 kids, 4 PCs, and a bad heart). Gulp!

As I stated, I only have one working PC now (my other 2 blew up, literally) with my XP Pro on it. I plan to download the full Network Admin version. I always do. That is just me. A nice 2xxM download. Let it run over night. Still going to wait for others to try it first for a few months or so.

Now, how does M$ know WHO? runs a cracked copy of XP? Wait, i just answered my question. They monitor the IP, find out what broadband provider issued it, threatens them with a big M$ lawsuit for the user who used it, then goes to the user.

If this is all going to be the case, their home versions should be lic per home, not PC. We all live in a day of home networks (your PC, your spouse, you kids, etc). This is just a way for them to make even more selling their products.
Please, keep sending me more info. Let us share with everyone (before I share it with my friends).

The first 3 answers are very helpful. Anymore? Anyone?

I agree with with all the others but I dont think M$ is too concerned about the home user there biggest concern are the companies who have 300 desktops and only have about 275 licenses. The only thing they are doing different is with previous SP you could not install if your key was no good.

I am burning a copy of the XP SP2 to put on all the XP computers in my network system. They all have their own key code and I'm sure MS will check the status with the Auto-Update function that they are recommending to turn on. Could you turn off the auto-update on the kids systemafter you put SP2 on their computer??

What is wrong with the people and companies in this country. When you installed the program you accepted M$ licensing conditions and it is unlawfull and a sin against the Creator to not follow your agreement! Romans 13:1-7.

yeah. don't steal winxp. steal windows 2000 instead.
if you really want to beat microsoft at their game, then get linux on these folks machines, with OpenOffice and lots of lovely free stuff that will work great and be cool and good for your career and the *kids* career and be good influence on kids all the way around. bet they can play sims on linux box. and email and chat.
if parents want winxp so all games can be played no hassle, essentially, they want machine to babysit kids, they should cough up to microsoft for services rendered imho. cheap for what you get. sorry to be righteous yucky. i am no saint, you know that...i just agree with those who say, doesn't it matter what we say and do? inf front of our kids? doesn't it matter what we give our word about? doesn't private property matter. i think we all think it does and we all should act like it. you got a bitch with microsoft don't use product. two wrongs don't make a right.

First of all, I am surprised that your friend was able to activate a second PC with the same Windows XP product code.

SP 1 did include some new code to block installing Windows Updates on systems using a product code from a list of specific codes that were known to be "loose" in the wild.

IMHO, at $90 for Home, and $145 for Pro, getting an OEM version of XP for each computer is high, but reasonable.

Can one really expect Microsoft (or any other company) to spend the millions required to update and improve their product if users just steal it?

Another way to look at this, is what kind of lessons are we teaching to our children if we say it's okay for Daddy to copy this software, but it is not okay for you to take an extra candy bar?

What is the real difference?

As far as SP2 itself goes, I recommend waiting at least 2 weeks before installing it on anything but a test system.
Give the hardware and application companies some time to write the patches that will be required for their devices and programs to operate properly.

The download for the off-line installer version of SP2 is 275MB.
How long it will take to download it will depend on network traffic.

Here is a link to a discussion on SP2:

https://www.techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=4&threadID=157097&start=0

It includes the link to the installer download and a few problems that people have had with SP2.

Chas

Since XPSP2 is brand new, repercussions from installing SP2 on multiple PCs with same installation key are unknown. However, I can't fathom MS taking legal action against home users unless they passed a copy on to a bunch of their friends.

I reinstall XP (both home and pro) frequently using product key from original installation. When XP was first released, almost invariably, a call to MS was required to complete activation. In the last year or so, Web activation completes without any problems. It appears that activation tracking has been relaxed. That may explain ability to install multiple copies with same product key.

I can not even remember when I have ever received 10 answers to anything. Wow. I wish I got this many answers when I ask problems.
Loving what I have seen. I download the 2xxM file myself but will store it until I see if any bugs have been reported from the wild.
As with Bill, I still can not break the new to him.
However, I have shown this thread to a few other people. Some are going to upgrade to SP2 anyway and maybe one day spend money to buy seperate versions. Others are skipping it for now). They use 3rd party firewalls, AV, etc.
I was actually thinking last night, what about people... Okay, that gets confusing as I think of it so let me give this situation:
Barbara have her mother of 73yrs a computer to just do basic things: a little email, some games Barb installed (Pac-man, etc), and word processing. Now Barb is in Ireland again. Her mother (can not even remeber her name) I know has the automatic updates on because I told Barb to do it. Now this PC has a copy of Barb's XP Home, Word 97, and NAV2k4. If the M$ hounds see this PC, and Barb's laptop, both using the same XP Home code, will they makes $xxxxxxxx lawsuits threats again a 70something woman who probably has no idea what is even going on?
This made me think of the people who received PCs from famaily/friends without knowing anything about registration codes, the cost of Windows, or anything about computing as we do. Would M$ send a code to disable these innocent victims' PCs?
Just a thought.
I hope some more answers come on by. Like to see where all this will lead.

This question was closed by the author