Alias <> wrote:
>Technogeek wrote:
>> Like DP said, you could have some issues if your using OEM. Changing
>> the MB is considered a new computer in Vista. You can even get into
>> some issues if you start changing to many things, like CPU, HDD's and
>> other devices all at once.
>Do you always make up things as you do along? The word "motherboard" is
>not mentioned once in the Vista EULA. Can you prove what you're saying?
An OEM version of Vista (or XP or ...) is licensed only to the first
computer it's installed on. It cannot (legally) be installed on
another machine, even if the first one ceases to exist.
As to what constitutes a new computer....OEM licenses are administered
by the OEM, not by Microsoft. So if you bought a Dell computer, Dell
decides when you have a "new computer". And nearly all computer makers
will decide you have a new computer when you switch motherboards,
especially if you didn't buy the new motherboard from them. Indeed,
preloaded OSs are usually locked to the BIOS. When you switch mobos,
you switch the BIOS, and the magic number in it is no longer the one
the OS wants to see.
--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(Shell/User)
http://members.cox.net/slatteryt