Is it legal to download Windows XP from internet?

[henry_d]

I would like to re-install xp on my laptop but i dont have the original disc. Is it legal to download a windows xp iso and burn it to disc just like you would do with ubuntu.

I have an activation key on the bottom of the laptop and i have been told before that it is legal to use a friends disc as long as you have your own key but it dont know if it applies to downloading and burning your own cd.

Any help would be appreciated

[dicecca112]

Neither instance is legal, your only legal recourse is to buy another disk or call your laptop manufacturer and request a new disk

[Dr Small]

Call Microsoft for this type of legal advice.

[henry_d]

But i was told by ubuntu staff (i think) that the borrowing from a friend option was legal as you had your own key so you had a license. He/She also pointed me to a official microsoft website forum where there was a forum staff member who said it was legal.

Im not sure about the downloading?

[fiddledd]

It would be legal to download it from Microsoft, but I don't think that's possible. If you download it from another source it will be an illegal copy of Windows and may well contain Trojans and/or Viruses.

So even though it could be argued it would be legal (as you have a valid Key), it would be a huge risk to take.

[smoker]

downloading a copy of windows is illegal, the only legal way to get an install cd of windows is to buy one. that said, if you borrow a friends disk to install, and it accepts your legal and valid key and activates, then i don't see a problem. whether this is legal according to the eula on windows, i don't know, and wouldn't even attempt to decipher, follow Dr Small's advice and contact microsoft for clarification.

[marsmissionaries]

When you buy a copy of windows you are NOT buying the CD. You are buying to Certificate of Authenticity and/or product key.

You can download windows as long as you activate it with your own key. However, you can take your computer to most computer stores, show them the COA, and they can replace the disc.

[zeiz]

What disk they would replace? OEM "System restore" that would wipe out everything on HDD?

Guys, I have another question: how to rip OS from that OEM CD? Legally speaking I had to buy the license because my laptop was sold with
pre-installed Vista. In fact I don't need it but if I paid for it I'd like to have it. Just OS without OEM's tricks.
I'm sure that it would be quite legal to retrieve the OS I paid for from my own CD :) and yes enter my own key located on the bottom of laptop :) if I need to install it.
I just don't know how :confused:

[I-75]

What disk they would replace? OEM "System restore" that would wipe out everything on HDD?

Guys, I have another question: how to rip OS from that OEM CD? Legally speaking I had to buy the license because my laptop was sold with
pre-installed Vista. In fact I don't need it but if I paid for it I'd like to have it. Just OS without OEM's tricks.
I'm sure that it would be quite legal to retrieve the OS I paid for from my own CD :) and yes enter my own key located on the bottom of laptop :) if I need to install it.
I just don't know how :confused:

A system restore does not wipe the hard drive, it merely restores your computer to a prior date when it was working with no issues. Its like taking your computer back in time.

A reinstall is a complete wipe of the hard drive as you reinstall Windows. Some use this as a last resort if the computer has way too much viruses to fix.

I believe that a OEM license is for only one computer only and taking that OS by some means and installing it into another computer at a later date cannot be done.

If you had Vista Ultimate or Vista Business you can legally (or could legally) get a downgrade for XP Pro.

[SunnyRabbiera]

legal is such a funny word these days, arr! :lolflag: :D

[del_diablo]

The install disk is not and NEVER will be illegal to download. It is just there to install, you would still need a valid key to install.
Getting a pirate key on the other hand is illegal, so after what i hear you got a legal key.

So go ahead and download, its just the installer not the key to unlock and use the software(the key is illegal to get non-legal).

[I-75]

I would like to re-install xp on my laptop but i dont have the original disc. Is it legal to download a windows xp iso and burn it to disc just like you would do with ubuntu.

I have an activation key on the bottom of the laptop and i have been told before that it is legal to use a friends disc as long as you have your own key but it dont know if it applies to downloading and burning your own cd.

Any help would be appreciated

Some companies such as E-machines and Gateway used to include a restore disc, like others said call your computer manufacturer. Some computers allow you to make a restore disc, but only once...again contact the manufacturer.

There is another problem to "getting another disc" to reinstall Windows. A straight install disc will not have the drivers required by your system, such as wireless, ethernet, video. You might have to manually install them after doing a fresh install of Windows.

But a RESTORE disc has the OS and the drivers built in the disc as a RESTORE disc is machine specific.

[fiddledd]

The install disk is not and NEVER will be illegal to download. It is just there to install, you would still need a valid key to install.
Getting a pirate key on the other hand is illegal, so after what i hear you got a legal key.

So go ahead and download, its just the installer not the key to unlock and use the software(the key is illegal to get non-legal).

If that is true you might want to post a link to where the OP can legally download an original, unaltered, Windows XP cd iso from.

Most of us here know where to download Windows XP from, but we also know the images are altered to bypass WGA. Many of these downloads are both illegal and infected with Viruses and/or Trojans. Notice how I said "many", not "all".

I apologise in advance if Microsoft has now made XP available for a free download. In fact I'd be interested to see a link to a legal Microsoft XP download.

[maybeway36]

I've used Windows XP CDs downloaded from the Internet before to install on computers with valid COAs. I always try to find CDs that are unaltered except for an SP3 slipstream. This way, they still ask for a COA and activate it with Microsoft.

[rosv]

I'm pretty sure it's illegal.

[xouns]

It really depends where you live and where you download the file. I know that in some countries, like the Netherlands, it is perfectly legal to download anything. However, when using most p2p systems, a download is often automatically an upload, and uploading is ALWAYS illegal (except, perhaps in Canada, you'd have to ask your lawyer or a friend for advice. Anyone?).

I would IMAGINE using a authentic CD key with an illegal copy is possible and perhaps legal, I'd doubt the doability. Microsoft is very uptight (had a very unpleasant phone call with MS Help desk for this problem): OEM keys are different from keys for "clean" windows versions, just like XPSP0, XPSP1, and XPSP2 keys are different. At my parents, I have a folder with three different install CD's, one for each computer (because different codes)...

My advice: call the vendor or go back to the store, they can help you. Don't waste time on installing and then finding out your key's not gonna work.

[lukjad]

Best advice: Install Ubuntu and live without Windows. ;)
Second best advice: Contact Microsoft.
Third best Advice: Buy a new copy.
Bonus: Try buying a copy with the license secondhand.

[rick08]

As far as I know, downloading any Windows OS from the internet is illegal unless offered through Microsoft. If you borrowed an XP disk from a friend and it excepted your code then I don't see a problem with it, but I would not take the chance downloading it from the internet unless you are feeling lucky.:) You are also facing a wipe of your entire hard drive and other system failure if you get a bad copy of XP from the internet.

[Canis familiaris]

Did you contact Microsoft?
Maybe they will give you a private link for you to download? Or maybe they can ship a copy for you with some nominal fee for shipping?
Keep us updated though about Microsoft's Response.

[xpod]

As long as i`ve had the Product Key i`ve never been too fussy about where i get the i386 directory from.In fact i`m still using the same copy i took from a fellow forum user who sent me a lend of his original disc some 2 years ago.That and nlite have done me ever since and i`ve re-installed Windows countless times for people now.