can i "borrow" another notebook cd key to do clean install?

i have a few hp notebooks running vista home premium and my thinkpad is only running vista basic. Can i use the cd key (on the bottom of my hp notebook) and do a clean install in my thinkpad? Call Microsoft and tell them that my system crash and I provide them the cd key to do a a phone activation. Thus, my thinkpad will be able to run vista premium instead of vista basic. will this work?

 

Since your ThinkPad has a COA for Basic, Microsoft is not going to let you upgrade to premium for free. I think it unlikely the key from your HP will work on your ThinkPad. If you are using the disc from your HP, I don't that likely to work either.

 

its sort of a touchy subject, but you can definitely do it. you probably wont even have to do phone activation. but you really should uninstall vista premium from the hp notebook first just to be legit about it.

 

I'm sure it will work. I don't think it's legal, but I think it will work and I don't see how you could every get caught. Nothing to loose but your time if it doesn't.

I'm sure you can find some information in this thread to avoid telephone activation as well. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=2102068#post2102068

 

its definitely not legal, i tried using a dell oem vista ultimate cd on my pc. it worked just fine, but the dell logos built into the OS all over the place really annoyed me. Immediatedly uninstalled it and went back to vista basic.

 

Nooooo!, don't use any other OEM cd to do a clean install. Just use the anytime upgrade DVD to do a clean install. I was just saying that the windows product key from another pc should work. I would not recommend ever using another manufacturers OEM install disks. If you don't have an anytime update DVD just buy one from CompUSA for $5.

 

lenovo included one in the box, the only thing that i worry about is that if perform an anytime upgrade, would I have to reinstall all the lenovo tools again?

 

Maybe, but you would be better off with a clean install anyway... http://jstigall.googlepages.com/t61clean.html

 

OEM licenses are not transferable and are specific to the machine they are "attached" to.

This is true even between hardware from the same manufacturer.

 

ummm i have a silly question. so... all returned and demoed notebooks from stores have high chances cd key (bottom notebook) already used from previous buyers? and why one even bother to crack vista?

 

If you're going to go that far why not just pirate it?