Hard disc died, need to reinstall XP Pro, activation problems?

Hi,

My computer froze up last night during some video editing and I think the
hard disc has died, probably due to overheating. It is either that or a
BIOS problem that
won't detect the drive so the machine can't boot. The PC is in the repair
show as I type this having someone check it out.

It is a bit weird as both drives are detected by the BIOS on initial
start-up but it won't go on and boot
giving a strange PXE-E61 error further down the startup sequence.

I have XP pro (OEM) on the machine which has two hard drives. An 80 gb
and a 160 gb. The 80GB has two partitions
on it C & D and this is the one that I think is dead. The 160 normally
appears as drive E.

I tried using XP recovery and it recognised the E drive as the C drive so
it just could not see the 80 gb drive.

The upshot is I reckon I will either need a new hard drive or maybe a new
motherboard if the BIOS is corrupt.

If I need a new hard drive (most likely) then I will need to replace it
and re-install XP Pro.

If I do with will I have any product activation problems? I activated it
over the Internet on purchase about two years ago.

If I replace the motherboard should that be the problem, the same question
applies. Will XP require me to re-activate and will that be a problem?

Thanks,

Dave

In newsp.szyzb6vh7jl04a@r251.corp.efunds.com,
Dave Oddie <daveoddie@yapoo.co.uk> had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

> Hi,
>
> My computer froze up last night during some video editing and I think
> the hard disc has died, probably due to overheating. It is either
> that or a BIOS problem that
> won't detect the drive so the machine can't boot. The PC is in the
> repair show as I type this having someone check it out.
>
> It is a bit weird as both drives are detected by the BIOS on initial
> start-up but it won't go on and boot
> giving a strange PXE-E61 error further down the startup sequence.
>
> I have XP pro (OEM) on the machine which has two hard drives. An 80
> gb and a 160 gb. The 80GB has two partitions
> on it C & D and this is the one that I think is dead. The 160
> normally appears as drive E.
>
> I tried using XP recovery and it recognised the E drive as the C
> drive so it just could not see the 80 gb drive.
>
> The upshot is I reckon I will either need a new hard drive or maybe a
> new motherboard if the BIOS is corrupt.
>
> If I need a new hard drive (most likely) then I will need to replace
> it and re-install XP Pro.
>
> If I do with will I have any product activation problems? I
> activated it over the Internet on purchase about two years ago.
>
> If I replace the motherboard should that be the problem, the same
> question applies. Will XP require me to re-activate and will that be
> a problem?
> Thanks,
>
> Dave

You shouldn't have any problems at all with that. If you do then you can
just use the phone option and call in and it *should* be okay. As it's OEM
if there's any activation problems over the phone (if the internet
activation didn't work though it may very well go through without a hitch)
then just call IBM (or Lenovo now maybe?) for help and they should get you
squared away.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/

Please note that if you're reading this in a browser and the domain is
not owned by Microsoft then this work is being used without permission.

Access MS Newsgroups :
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On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 12:11:03 -0000, Galen <galennews@gmail.com> wrote:


>
> You shouldn't have any problems at all with that. If you do then you can
> just use the phone option and call in and it *should* be okay. As it's
> OEM
> if there's any activation problems over the phone (if the internet
> activation didn't work though it may very well go through without a
> hitch)
> then just call IBM (or Lenovo now maybe?) for help and they should get
> you
> squared away.
>
Thanks for the reply. Hopefully it will be OK on-line.

However if it isn't and the phone option proves a problem, why would I
call IBM?

What have they got to do with it?

Dave


--
Using Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/mail/

Galen wrote:
> You shouldn't have any problems at all with that. If you do then you
> can just use the phone option and call in and it *should* be okay.
> As it's OEM if there's any activation problems over the phone
> (if the internet activation didn't work though it may very well go
> through without a hitch) then just call IBM (or Lenovo now maybe?)
> for help and they should get you squared away.
>
> Thanks for the reply. Hopefully it will be OK on-line.

Dave Oddie wrote:
> However if it isn't and the phone option proves a problem, why would I
> call IBM?
>
> What have they got to do with it?


They are the OEM that sold you the computer and the copy of Windows XP.
Being an OEM and selling the OEM copy of Windows XP - they have taken on all
support roles for the product - you cannot go to Microsoft for your (free)
support. You need to go to IBM (or Lenovo or whatever) for support issues
on this computer - even concerning the OS - since they sold you the OEM
copy.

--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

In newsp.szy7xwd67jl04a@r251.corp.efunds.com,
Dave Oddie <daveoddie@yapoo.co.uk> had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

> On Wed, 09 Nov 2005 12:11:03 -0000, Galen <galennews@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>>
>> You shouldn't have any problems at all with that. If you do then you
>> can just use the phone option and call in and it *should* be okay.
>> As it's OEM
>> if there's any activation problems over the phone (if the internet
>> activation didn't work though it may very well go through without a
>> hitch)
>> then just call IBM (or Lenovo now maybe?) for help and they should
>> get you
>> squared away.
>>
> Thanks for the reply. Hopefully it will be OK on-line.
>
> However if it isn't and the phone option proves a problem, why would I
> call IBM?
>
> What have they got to do with it?
>
> Dave

As Mr. Stanley said... You bought it from them and they, as OEM, are able to
sell you the OS at a lesser price than you would pay for it for full retail.
One of the reasons that they get this price is because they are then in
charge of support. They must also produce the disks. There's a lot they have
to do in order to be an OEM and they are the ones who will have to fix it.
(It really shouldn't be a problem.)

In some cases, which is why I made you aware that you might need to contact
them, there's an issue with some OEM COA numbers since the addition of
Genuine Advantage and, once in a while, it's been known to not activate.
Both of which issues the OEM is generally fluent in getting fixed for you.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/

Please note that if you're reading this in a browser and the domain is
not owned by Microsoft then this work is being used without permission.

Access MS Newsgroups :
http://kgiii.info/windows/all/general/msnewsgroups.html