Formatting Windows XP Pro

[Dyrewolph]

Okay peoples I gots a question!

My computer is starting to show signs of old age, and is further hindered by the occasional use by a... :shock:... dare I say it... Mac user... (I swear my PC's anti-mac.... he comes within 10 feet of it and it instantly starts to show problems!).

So... After a year of smooth sailing, and then the last month of some slightly stormy seas, I've decided to give my 'ship' a refit before sending it back out into hopefully calm waters.

And on to my question. Microsoft... Windows... Activation. I figure I shouldn't have to phone them up every time I decide to format my computer... nor should I have to keep a piece of paper containing the activation codes (and you know how big these codes are... so it's not a small piece of paper) for years on end on the off chance that I may have to format in the future.

My question is, is there somewhere in the registry, or in a file that I can access, that I can locate both parts (you know... the parts you enter in on the phone... and the parts you enter in on the PC as they read them back)... so that I can copy them down and enter them without having to explain to some dopey MS customer support person that the reason I'm using a copy of windows XP that has already been activated is because I formatted my PC and... yaddah yaddah yaddah... and of course this person barely speaks english and barks off instructions instead of listening to you...

And before you ask... I am using a legitimate original cd for installation... which I purchased with my PC when I bought it.

Thanks guys/gals

DW

[Brian]

I am fairly sure that there is a tool you can download that will tell you your current Windows XP activation code. Not sure what it is called or where to find it. But I have 6 copies (legal) of XP and I had to identify which copy went to which computer, so I downloaded this tool and it told me the key which I matched with the proper Installation CD.

[Dyrewolph]

Thanks Brian,

not possible to file transfer it to me via yahoo or msn?

Really appreciate your quick answer. Am planning on the format tomorrow morning.

DW

[Brian]

I did it in the past, I don't currently have it sorry.

I think this might be of help though (just googled it):

http://www.techsupportforum.com/archive/index.php/t-3125.html

http://www.digitalnowhere.com/filelib/winxp/viewkeyxp.exe

[Dyrewolph]

Thanks Brian.

I also found this whilst searching on a number of different sights

Self-reactivation of Windows XP

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, you can store the two files that contain the product activation data on a floppy disk, and copy them to the system after reinstalling Windows so that no activation is required from Microsoft on the web or by phone. The two files are called Wpa.dbl and Wpa.bak. (WPA stands for Windows Product Activation.) And they're located in the C:\Windows\system32 folder if Windows is installed to its default Windows folder and not to one of the user's choosing. You should press the F8 key to boot into Safe Mode when Windows reboots after being installed and rename the existing files something else, such as XWpa.dbl and XWpa.bak. You can then copy the files on the floppy disk to the C:\Windows\system32 folder.

So I hope that works. Now I'm looking for the same thing for OfficeXP and Publisher :-D

[dump_it_here]

Thats interesting information.

I didn't know you could re-activate Windows XP that way. That really will simplify things if you need to reformat your computer.

[Bio-Hazard]

This explains it all pretty good.............. :shock:
http://www.iamnotageek.com/a/43-p1.php