Will Microsoft rip me off again?

[GOD666]

maybe someone is stealing your key and activating on another machine

Doubt it.

I've used both full version and Oem. An oem wouldn't be able to activate on a different hardware. Also it doesn't explain the volume license key I had from HP... When I had bought a computer from HP and both HP and Microsoft kept arguing who's fault it was that my key became invalid. Those bundle disk also install only on the approved hardware.

[GOD666]

I can't understand why you wouldn't have an activated image to restore to if you reformat so often.

Your methodology is poor given your experience

Lots of reasons why...

Each Hard Drive often has different OS's, I dual-boot

I never bought an imagine software

The process is slower vs just slapping on a fresh install

I use different configurations for different testing

[GOD666]

LOL -

OK - now we know the truth

This isn't a professional beta - tester debugger.  This is someone who breaks stuff because he doesnt know what hes doing, and then makes excuses and to why his "method" doesnt work -

You are using your primary machine as your testing platform, are doing multiple clean OS installs every month - and dont see an issue ?

You ever talk to any professional tester that this issue ?  NO....... ever wonder why you're the only one.

LOL _ I love it when the truth comes out in a thread - then everything else makes sense.

There is no "truth" in that statement. Again, me formating and reinstalling shouldn't be an issue because it's the same hardware. Microsoft claims they can ID the hardware and so long as its the same... You should be good.

I don't use an image...

Each Hard Drive often has different OS's, I dual-boot

I never bought an imagine software

The process is slower vs just slapping on a fresh install

I use different configurations for different testing

 

I could fix things, but often I don't want to waste the time and just start fresh.

[Nick H. Supervisor]

Lots of reasons why...

Each Hard Drive often has different OS's, I dual-boot

I never bought an imagine software

The process is slower vs just slapping on a fresh install

I use different configurations for different testing

Whether you have your reasons for not going down the imaging route or not, the fact is that if you insist on putting yourself in a situation where you're having to wipe your machine twice a day, you will have to change the way you do things. Yes it may be inconvenient, but so was learning how to get to grips with Windows 8 (in my experience.) However, I realised that I had little choice in the matter and got on with it.

 

Technology and the way we use it is always changing. No one will force you to update your methodologies if you don't want to, but we also can't help or even recommend that you continue with a process that is outdated for what you do.

[seeprime]

Our small shop has worked on over 1000 different PC's in our rural area over the years. We never had an activation issue that wasn't resolved with a phone call, as long as the Windows product key was only on one computer. Always call MS to resolve activation issues, and if you get a human be civil. 

[GOD666]

Whether you have your reasons for not going down the imaging route or not, the fact is that if you insist on putting yourself in a situation where you're having to wipe your machine twice a day, you will have to change the way you do things. Yes it may be inconvenient, but so was learning how to get to grips with Windows 8 (in my experience.) However, I realised that I had little choice in the matter and got on with it.

 

Technology and the way we use it is always changing. No one will force you to update your methodologies if you don't want to, but we also can't help or even recommend that you continue with a process that is outdated for what you do.

Let me finally dismiss the whole format issue....

 

The last copy of Windows 8 I purchased... I formated only once a month.  It too became invalid.

 

I'm Windows 10 Insider....  It too is already telling me its invalid.  

 

How the hell is that possible?

 

Windows 10 is a free test copy and it too is becoming invalid.

[Intersect]

some how your product key is getting used far to much,(do any of your friends know it, do you keep a copy of this key on your external HDD that might be connected to the cloud? you would not beleave how many people have there external hdds open to the web that have info like this on them that end up getting indexed by google/bing etc. so it may have been stolen by some on who was savy enough to search for it )

 

If this is an OEM key then if you are trying to install it on systems other than what it came with then

the activation will fail and MS have every right to black list the key it does not happen often ( my launch copy of XP pro OEM had been used on around 5 different systems and had around 30 activations and all i had to do was call the activation hotline in order to activate the install and i still can) yes i know that was wrong but

 

Anyhow if your product keys are retail then it looks like you are using them out side of what a normal user would do.

if you are indeed a software tester then I would suggest that you use a VM for your testing (make the install and activate it) save this VMD image some where safe so when you need to test new software you can import it and use it like before with out doing a full reinstall it really is basic stuff when software testing,

 

Yes the windows 10 TP is going to be come invalid so i don't see what the worry here is as you will get a free upgrade to it as long as you have a system that meets the requirements (ie) the OS that is on your system needs to be licensed properly.

 

If you are still having problems with your Product Key not activating then you need to contact either the OEM who supplied the system to you or Microsoft so they can issue you a key that works, but i have a feeling that there is more to this than what you are letting on, sadly it makes no difference how long you have been alfa/beta testing MS products or for example how well known you were as a MSN butterfly! at the end of the day if you are using the software out side of the terms which are set out in the agreement then you only have your self to blame when something goes wrong.

[GOD666]

some how your product key is getting used far to much,(do any of your friends know it, do you keep a copy of this key on your external HDD that might be connected to the cloud? you would not beleave how many people have there external hdds open to the web that have info like this on them that end up getting indexed by google/bing etc. so it may have been stolen by some on who was savy enough to search for it )

 

If this is an OEM key then if you are trying to install it on systems other than what it came with then

the activation will fail and MS have every right to black list the key it does not happen often ( my launch copy of XP pro OEM had been used on around 5 different systems and had around 30 activations and all i had to do was call the activation hotline in order to activate the install and i still can) yes i know that was wrong but

 

Anyhow if your product keys are retail then it looks like you are using them out side of what a normal user would do.

if you are indeed a software tester then I would suggest that you use a VM for your testing (make the install and activate it) save this VMD image some where safe so when you need to test new software you can import it and use it like before with out doing a full reinstall it really is basic stuff when software testing,

 

Yes the windows 10 TP is going to be come invalid so i don't see what the worry here is as you will get a free upgrade to it as long as you have a system that meets the requirements (ie) the OS that is on your system needs to be licensed properly.

 

If you are still having problems with your Product Key not activating then you need to contact either the OEM who supplied the system to you or Microsoft so they can issue you a key that works, but i have a feeling that there is more to this than what you are letting on, sadly it makes no difference how long you have been alfa/beta testing MS products or for example how well known you were as a MSN butterfly! at the end of the day if you are using the software out side of the terms which are set out in the agreement then you only have your self to blame when something goes wrong.

I'm not using the software outside the terms of the agreement.  

 

Same PC

Both retails, oem, and pre-installed by manufacturer (HP).

 

With the last copy of Windows 8 I bought... I only formated once a month or so.

 

I'm already having problems with Windows 10 Technical Preview telling me its not genuine 

[c.grz]

Lots of reasons why...

Each Hard Drive often has different OS's, I dual-boot

I never bought an imagine software

The process is slower vs just slapping on a fresh install

I use different configurations for different testing

 

None of these are good reasons to not have a base image of an OS handy for testing.

 

I don't know how often you've used the method that you're so set against using but restoring an image of a base OS install with updates takes less time than what it would take to install an OS the old fashion way...before installing updates.

 

Also, all our developers here test in VM's constantly creating/destroying them to test what they need.  They do this for a living and don't seem to have the issues you have.

[GOD666]

None of these are good reasons to not have a base image of an OS handy for testing.

 

I don't know how often you've used the method that you're so set against using but restoring image of a base OS install with updates takes less time than what it would take to install an OS the old fashion way...before installing updates.

 

All our developers here test in VM's.  They do this for a living and don't seem to have the issues you have.

I'm not developer

I'm just a guy who likes to test new toys.

 

VM's are slower and I prefer dedicated hardware.

[joddie191]

Let me finally dismiss the whole format issue....

 

The last copy of Windows 8 I purchased... I formated only once a month.  It too became invalid.

 

I'm Windows 10 Insider....  It too is already telling me its invalid.  

 

How the hell is that possible?

 

Windows 10 is a free test copy and it too is becoming invalid.

 

This is outdated information, but I think it's mostly the same for any version of windows:

 

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb457054.aspx

 

Basicly your "unique id" COULD (not saying it will) change any time you install windows on a different hard drive on same computer, reconfigure your drives (remove some, add some). If this ID keeps changing too much MS will flag your key. Like I mentioned before, I never had any issues calling them up and getting my windows activated the times this happened to me.

 

 

If you feel that reinstalling something is quicker than restoring an image, have you ever tried to boot directly into a VHD ? 

After you've set up your VHD like you want, you can basicly copy it to a safe location and just restore that copy whenever you want a clean install. It doesn't run in a VM, it's near native speed. 

some more info: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh825691.aspx

[c.grz]

I'm not developer

I'm just a guy who likes to test new toys.

 

VM's are slower and I prefer dedicated hardware.

 

You test software, yes?  They do too.  VM's are slower?  Our developers testing "heavy" resource intensive applications and they don't seem to mind the VM over dedicated hardware.  They actual prefer it because once they test they can delete the VM and start fresh next time they need to test another application.

[GOD666]

Let's get away from the whole formating is evil thing.

Because I do have another computer that I rarely format, if ever... And it too had this problem (it's using Linux now).

[firey]

You test software, yes?  They do too.  VM's are slower?  Our developers testing "heavy" resource intensive applications and they don't seem to mind the VM over dedicated hardware.  They actual prefer it because once they test they can delete the VM and start fresh next time they need to test another application.

As a Developer.. this x1000.   It's much easier to create a set of VM's with varying OS's and Configurations.  At one point we had 8 VM's  (XP Home, XP Pro,  Vista Home x86, Vista Home x64, 7 home x86, 7 pro x64, 8 (RC1) x64, and some other).  We had a backup clean image of each one, we would test, collect results dump them and restore the clean images.   

Let's get away from the whole formating is evil thing.

Because I do have another computer that I rarely format, if ever... And it too had this problem (it's using Linux now).

Dude.. then you are doing something different/wrong.  Maybe some of this software you are installing is no good and stealing ###### from you.  If this was really an issue there would be mass reports of it.. assuming people did what you do....which they don't...

[GOD666]

As a Developer.. this x1000.   It's much easier to create a set of VM's with varying OS's and Configurations.  At one point we had 8 VM's  (XP Home, XP Pro,  Vista Home x86, Vista Home x64, 7 home x86, 7 pro x64, 8 (RC1) x64, and some other).  We had a backup clean image of each one, we would test, collect results dump them and restore the clean images.   

Dude.. then you are doing something different/wrong.  Maybe some of this software you are installing is no good and stealing ###### from you.  If this was really an issue there would be mass reports of it.. assuming people did what you do....which they don't...

Things I install

Steam (games from there)

nvidia drivers

LibreOffice

ccleaner

Google Chrome

Firefox

Opera Browser

Malwarebytes

Avast or Kaspersky

Notepad +++

Filezilla

Putty

That is all.

[firey]

Things I install

Steam (games from there)

nvidia drivers

LibreOffice

ccleaner

Google Chrome

Firefox

Opera Browser

Malwarebytes

Avast or Kaspersky

Notepad +++

Filezilla

Putty

That is all.

So every time you reformat.. you install all of that?? SMH.   Install Sandboxie or something.

[GOD666]

So every time you reformat.. you install all of that?? SMH.   Install Sandboxie or something.

That is what I install on the computer that I don't use for testing... ie... I keep it simple and stable.

 

Microsoft on the other hand doesn't, as it eventually deactivates things.

 

I do not think anyone is stealing my key.  I just think Microsoft activation blows (sucks).

[firey]

That is what I install on the computer that I don't use for testing... ie... I keep it simple and stable.

 

Microsoft on the other hand doesn't, as it eventually deactivates things.

 

I do not think anyone is stealing my key.  I just think Microsoft activation blows (sucks).

Millions of people would disagree with you bro.  Any issue I have ever had a quick call and it's sorted.. even if everything I tell them is a lie.. so...

[exotoxic]

Its most likely the reformatting thing, it should not be a problem but it is.

 

You could try google to see if the keys were posted (publicly) somewhere.

[PsYcHoKiLLa]

"I just think Microsoft activation blows (sucks)."

 

No, I don't think they considered the "I want to re-install Windows 15 times a day" scenario, you're definitely doing it wrong because if you're using the same hardware there should be no problems with the activation.

 

Also there are tons of third party solutions for imaging drives to a backup, why not just buy a cheap hard drive, create an image of the full install on that, burn a boot CD from Norton Ghost or similar and use that to reset.

 

The way you're doing it is obviously wrong somewhere and causes you lots of headaches so try something simpler.

[+Eternal Tempest MVC]

Obviously PEBKAC -

What is more likely ?

A 300 BILLION dollar company makes a habit of screwing people over for nickles and dimes ?

 

When a company is that big, the small things can fall through the cracks.

Is it subcontracted, Vender handled, etc.

 

Not enough info to be able to make a judgement myself.

[Aergan]

 

I hate Microsoft asking people to activate.  I paid for my copy of Windows XP and it suddenly became inactive.  My computer came with Windows Vista pre-installed and both HP and MS argued on who's fault it was that my install became invalid.  I bought Windows 7 and faced much of the same problem.

 

After all this... I decided to buy my copy DIRECTLY from Microsoft themselves when Windows 8 came out.  You can see the order yourself (see screenshot)

 

http://postimg.org/image/zczj4c243/

 

I even got that cool deal where you could get Microsoft Media Center 

 

http://postimg.org/image/3m577aekd/

 

Bought it directly from Microsoft... Guess what...

 

Being valid only means I watch my money get wasted and I have to find ways around them.  As Windows 10 comes around the corner.... I wonder...

 

 

If you have an activation failure or reinstallation issue and you have purchased your product key from Microsoft (or an authorised reseller), I have always been able to activate over the phone.

 

I've had to do that recently with re-installations of Windows 8.1 + WMC.

[xWhiplash]

What is wrong with using Clonezilla and making an image? Restoring an image is slower than an OS install? Nope. It takes me 10 minutes to restore an image from an external hard drive. Windows alone takes more than 10 minutes. Then you have to update.

Also, what is wrong with a VM? Do you only have 1-2 GB of RAM?

[GOD666]

Its most likely the reformatting thing, it should not be a problem but it is.

 

You could try google to see if the keys were posted (publicly) somewhere.

Google`d it... Did not find my keys... Thank God. lol

 

Again, let's move away from the formating.... Because I do have more than 1 computer and only 1 of them I use for testing.  The others I left "as is" and so that doesn't explain them.

[xendrome]

Are you swapping hardware in the systems frequently?