NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Dell Forums › Dell Home (Inspiron, XPS, Studio) › Dell Vista - require activation?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Dell Vista - require activation?

post #1 of 26
2/25/07 at 10:42pm
Thread Starter 
Hey everyone,

I know that the Dell OEM XP never required activation as long as it was installed on a Dell.

Is Dell's OEM Vista the same way?
Reply
Reply
post #2 of 26
2/26/07 at 4:28pm
Ive got hold of a dell vista dvd and it didnt need activation at all.
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 26
2/26/07 at 6:22pm
Dell OEM Vista installer will not require activation if you have a newer Dell model.

http://support.dell.com/support/topi...gen&redirect=1

Older models that use the same installer WILL be asked to activate.

This is because the DVD checks the BIOS of your system for what is called a Vista SLIC table that contains a special activation key. Newer BIOSes do have it and Vista will not need to be activated. Older BIOSes (such as the one on my Inspiron 9300) do not have it and Vista will require that you activate it even if you used an OEM Vista install.

A work in progress is being done to manually patch system BIOSes in order to add the SLIC tables...
For more info go here:

http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/0...ows-vista-oem/

Syldaril
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 26
2/27/07 at 6:13pm
Anyone willing to send me a Dell OEM Vista DVD (Business or Ultimate) for a small fee? ^^
Just getting tired of that express upgrade thing to be ever shipped..
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 26
2/27/07 at 7:22pm
Guess I leeched it for nothing, my M170 modded Gen2 surely won't swallow it.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 26
2/28/07 at 1:57am
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the info everyone. I don't suppose my XPS 600 will work then?
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 26
2/28/07 at 8:33am
I think it's safe to assume that any model that has never been sold with vista will not "auto-activate" using the Dell OEM CD.
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 26
2/28/07 at 9:51am
Are there any M1710's that don't autoactivate?
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 26
2/28/07 at 12:10pm
My m1710 did "activate" when I told it to use the Dell OEM Key. It is tied to the bio so if you have the latest bios you should be fine with the current range of Inspiron 6400/9400, XPS M1210,M1710, Precision M90, etc.
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 26
2/28/07 at 6:03pm
On my M170 modded Gen2 validation failed obviously. But I never found any way to 'tell' the system to use any key.
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 26
2/28/07 at 6:37pm
So, does all this mean that I should forget trying to install the Dell upgrade on my 9300?
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 26
2/28/07 at 7:42pm
The upgrade will work as long as you have a valid key. What people are talking here is using the dell branded vista CD or DVD to install vista and have it automagically "activate" without having to call home or entering a valid key.
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 26
3/1/07 at 10:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rbailey644
So, does all this mean that I should forget trying to install the Dell upgrade on my 9300?
Yep :\\
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 26
3/1/07 at 10:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tijgert
On my M170 modded Gen2 validation failed obviously. But I never found any way to 'tell' the system to use any key.
I would never promote trying to bypass the system but here are two resources:
http://url.vg/mydigitallife/c7eec6
This will likely not work soon due to the fact that the embedded key will prob not work forever
or
http://url.vg/mydigitallife/72a987

Hope that helps
Reply
Reply
post #15 of 26
3/1/07 at 11:25pm
I got my Vista upgrade today. I was able to install Home Premium and Ultimate with out a key, and with no imediate signs of having to activate it, despite being told i might have to during the install (when i skipped putting the key in) and this was on my custom built PC, not a Dell. I only used both installs for a little while basically just to try Vista out, ill probably end up buying a retail version anyway. If anyone knows why, or if i will have to activate it, clue me in. I know when i tried to install a Dell XP on a non-Dell machine, it would prompt for activation with in minutes of completing the OS install, and the keys i had wouldnt even work, however i used each install for a good few hours with no sign of activation, yet it still DL-ed the updates and worked just fine.
Reply
Reply
post #16 of 26
3/2/07 at 1:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nissanztt90
I got my Vista upgrade today. I was able to install Home Premium and Ultimate with out a key, and with no imediate signs of having to activate it, despite being told i might have to during the install (when i skipped putting the key in) and this was on my custom built PC, not a Dell. I only used both installs for a little while basically just to try Vista out, ill probably end up buying a retail version anyway. If anyone knows why, or if i will have to activate it, clue me in. I know when i tried to install a Dell XP on a non-Dell machine, it would prompt for activation with in minutes of completing the OS install, and the keys i had wouldnt even work, however i used each install for a good few hours with no sign of activation, yet it still DL-ed the updates and worked just fine.

In my experience it was a little sneaky. I saw the same thing as you, no indication at all, updates worked fine and everything, but if you go to: Control Panel\\System and Maintenance\\System
You will probably see the same thing I did under Windows activation it states that you have 30 days to activate (at wich time I assume it will quick working).
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 26
3/2/07 at 1:08am
From what I've read, the Vista disks are pretty much all the same (all versions are on the disk). The version you get is determined by the CD key you enter. If you don't enter a key during installation, you can pick from the various versions to install but you will only be able to use it for 14 days. After that, you will need to enter a valid key. So, if you installed Ultimate using a Home disk, once you reach the 14 days and enter your Home key, you will be downgraded to your Home version.

I haven't tried any of this myself but this is how I understand it works.
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 26
3/2/07 at 2:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nissanztt90
I got my Vista upgrade today. I was able to install Home Premium and Ultimate with out a key, and with no imediate signs of having to activate it, despite being told i might have to during the install (when i skipped putting the key in) and this was on my custom built PC, not a Dell. I only used both installs for a little while basically just to try Vista out, ill probably end up buying a retail version anyway. If anyone knows why, or if i will have to activate it, clue me in. I know when i tried to install a Dell XP on a non-Dell machine, it would prompt for activation with in minutes of completing the OS install, and the keys i had wouldnt even work, however i used each install for a good few hours with no sign of activation, yet it still DL-ed the updates and worked just fine.
To know whether your Dell copy is activated or require activation, just click on Start and right-click Computer and select Properties. On the bottom of the window under Windows Activation you'll see if it's activated or how much time left before activation is required.
I'd be interested to know whether Dell Vista disks need activation or not.
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 26
3/2/07 at 9:15am
No They Don't!!!!
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 26
3/2/07 at 9:19am
vista sucks!!!
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
NotebookForums.com › Forums › Notebook Manufacturers › Dell Forums › Dell Home (Inspiron, XPS, Studio) › Dell Vista - require activation?