Thanks for all the information. I guess in all my years using other OSes I gave them the benefit of the doubt that it could be as crazy as people said--I never had any idea their licensing was restrictive to that degree.
It's really not a big deal though, they've got a billion other customers--they don't need me and I'm fine without them. It just seems so... silly.
Not an analogy per se, but for some reason it makes me think of the scene in the movie A Hard Day's Night where the Beatles are running around on an unused field having a lark, and a grumpy old man goes over and says they are not allowed and must get off immediately. One of the lads says "Sorry if we hurt your field, mister."
It's certainly anyone's prerogative to be a grumpy old man and/or to protect their field, but it's also kind of sad and foolish to kick people off it when it's just sitting there not even being used.
Whilst what others have said about Windows OEM licensing is true AFAIK, it actually comes down to your country's consumer law. MS can put whatever they like into a EULA but if it doesn't comply with local consumer law then its not technically legal and therefore unenforceable.
I have encountered a somewhat similar situation to yours. I live in Australia and know of an IT guy who had Server 2k3 OEM installed and then migrated the OS to a Linux based hypervisor with the Win OS as a VM (on the same hardware). Obviously it wouldn't activate so he rang MS to active it and they refused. I don't recall the intricacies but basically MS' OEM license doesn't comply with Australian consumer law and so is not enforceable by them. It took them a bit of convincing but they came through eventually. One fundamental difference though, this was a DIY PC, with a retail OEM copy of Win. A retail notebook is purchased as a single unit (with OEM OS preinstalled) so those sort of laws may not apply the same way under that circumstance?
Check out your local laws and/or try speaking with consumer affairs type people.
Small correction. The facts given are for the EULA from Vista PREVIOUS. Personally I think all this is crap, but what can you do.
An OEM install, which shipped with your machine, is tied to that hardware. However, Windows 7 ships with 2 liscences, a regular and a virtual. They both are tied to the hardware though, so you could never use either liscence on any other machine, however Microsoft does not care if you are installing virtually or not. So installing Ubuntu and running your copy of Win 7 on the hardware it was originally installed on is legal. The question is how to do it.
OEM install disks are different from any other install disk and use different keys, so there is no way you are going to be able to use another CD to run. However the easiest thing to do is likely to convert your current hard drive to an ISO image and load that in VBOX. One big note, Windows installs are keyed to the IDE controller they were installed on. There is a registry change that needs to be made to before the ISO is created that will allow the windows iso to boot.
I don't have a ton of time to give you links, but let me know if your interseted in going this route and I will try to give you links ASAP.
sorry for spelling, really rushed
Alternately, an OEM retail version of Windows is relatively inexpensive (around $100) and will allow you to fully comply with the Microsoft EULA (if you fear prosecution under the laws of your home country).
An analogy that may help you understand Microsoft's thinking on this issue: When you purchase a home (your computer), it comes with a gas stove in the kitchen (the OEM Windows license) that allows you to cook meals. If you want to cook meals out on your deck (the virtual machine), you need to purchase a grill (an additional Windows license). You could theoretically disconnect the gas range in your kitchen and drag it out to the deck (never activate the Windows license on your HDD but rather try to use it in the VM), but this may not be permitted under the zoning laws or building codes of your home town.
Please understand I am not endorsing or defending Microsoft, merely helping to clear up a confusing issue. It is important to realize that Microsoft does not actually make money by selling the Windows operating system, but rather by selling licenses to install/use that operating system on a particular machine (physical or virtual). Seen in this light, their EULA is a logical business decision to maximize sales and profit.
It is also important to understand that Ubuntu uses a completely different business model, and you are free to install Ubuntu on as many virtual machines as you like, at no charge.
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