How many times have you activated Vista?

I'm at 3 so far in less than a month since I started using Vista. The first time was during the initial installation, the second was after I followed the Vista tips in the sticky, and the third time was just now which was a couple days after installing a new hard drive.

 

just once for me.. tweaked it a few times but must have missed the tweaks which would have triggered the reactivation thing. I also pulled out a secondary HDD and put in a different one and that didn't trigger it either.. I guess it being secondary was the key there.
This is with an OEM copy of Vista HP x64 on a home build machine.

 

Only once during initial install, and i have OEM. I already have a big enough HD, and no tweaks i've installed have required a re-activation.

 

I dont see the point of this thread?

 

Me neither but i just posted because i could.

 

I guess the results would differ by the OEM & Retail version factor.

For me, twice (if you count the initial factory install before my immediate reformat).

 

Three so far in a little over a month, one initial one and two due to driver screwups. I would like to upgrade the hard drive but I don't want to run out of activations too fast.

 

Thanks to the OP for the thread I think it's needed.

Can you please explain how Vista's activation works? You say you don't want to run out, is that because Vista counts how many times the drive has been reformatted, i'm sort of confused. Or is it because of the changes you've done to the system.

Isn't DRM grand, you're afraid to make changes to your system because Vista might call the Microsoft cops on you. Well i'm glad to say I have never registered my legal copy of Vista nor will I ever. They can stuff it.

 

Twice, no big deal.

 

Online or offline activation?

I have done no online activation. But I did several offline activations with my OEM key.

 

What exactly is an online activation?

 

When you activate Windows through Microsoft's online server.

 

Yeah i kind of guessed that but what exactly is it? How is it different from an offline activation?

 

Online activation: you need to have the internet connection and get activation from Microsoft servers, or you need to call Microsoft and get the activation code.

Offline activation: you do not need to connect to Microsoft server, or call Microsoft. But you need to find out the key your computer manufacturer used to make the factory installation.

 

Okay, i see now. Thanks for the info Toucan.

 

A: No, because I don't know how it works.

B: I'm not afraid MS will call cops on me, only afraid that they have some sort of limit on the number of times you can activate before they brick that copy of Vista. I wonder if this activation stuff has had any real effect whatsoever on pirates? I would guess not.

 

That's what I'm worried about. My second time I called to activate, and I would've called again earlier today, but I was in the library. I'll be pissed if they kill my Vista license because they're OS isn't robust enough to remember that it's been activated.

 

They won't kill it unless you get much too happy with activations... you give your code to one person and they to another person and next thing you know it is in the wild... then MS will kill it. And rightfully so.

But the generic, it reactivated itself, no, I've not seen that on any forum yet... not that I hang out at every forum either..

Question is what are you doing (if anything) to trigger it? Not a trick question, mine requested an activation once and all I did was boot. But that was the last time....

 

I think i've hit 5 activations (i format once a month somehow) and when i tried to activate it last month it says that the product key is in use. It's Vista x64 Business. What can i do to resolve this activation problem without calling up the MS reps?

 

System 64. It says that if you innadvertantly read them one letter wrong in your 49 letter readout; at least I believe it is 49.
They will then tell you to contact you PC manufacturer which is wrong. Ask them to assist you in creating a new activation code (which they will) just in case you typed one of the letters wrong.

They simply assist you in having the OS (that is in your system and registered with the proper number of course) reset the activation key sequence. You read the new sequence to them, they give you the numbered sequence response and voila.

 

I think that's the message I got last time, and that's why I called Microsoft to reactivate. Unfortunately you may have to call as well. It actually went very quickly....except I read off some of the numbers wrong the first time...

I suspect my multiple activations are due to having the MBR restored. I used Acronis True Image to do a backup and create a restore partition the first time, and the second time I used it to backup the old HD and restore it to the new hard drive.....and both times I had to pull out the Vista disc to repair the MBR.

 

I have had to activate 2 times. My original install was a DELL OEM home basic I purchased from craigslist. I had to call MS. Then I upgraded to Ultimate OEM (the original user went back to xp) I had to call again. Both times was a nice eastern indian who was eager to get me/themselves off the phone