Windows 7 reinstall

[#1]

Your laptop will have a separate recovery partition, possibly hidden.  You can reset the laptop to its factory-supplied state by re-installing from this recovery partition.  It's perfectly straightforward but the way to initiate the process may vary according to the manufacturer.  You can do this for free without any debates about the legality of bought-in versions of Windows.

The activation of your Windows will be locked to the BIOS.  Therefore the licence key obtained by key recovery software will be something generic and will not work for a re-install from a disk.  You can use the licence key on the sticker but you will probably have to call Microsoft and activate by telephone if you go down this route.  There is no need to do this unless your hard drive fails and you lose the recovery partition.

[#2]

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@ReedRichards wrote:

The activation of your Windows will be locked to the BIOS.  Therefore the licence key obtained by key recovery software will be something generic and will not work for a re-install from a disk. 

I stand corrected - thank you for adding to my knowledge and apologies to any-one that I have misled.

I am assuming that this means that if I use a key recovery application on an OEM machine, the activation code reported will be different to that on the label. It's something to very much keep in mind if a HDD is replaced with an SDD, Presumably one way is to clone the SDD with the HDD including the hidden partition. I guess this is possible by first 'unhiding' it? Alternatively it may be necessary to ring Microsoft.

Do you know what happens in the case where an OEM installation has been upgraded? For example I have a Win 7 laptop that I have updated to Win 10. If I use a key recovery programme on the Win 10 installation, will the activation code that is identified be another generic key that will not work if I re-install Win 10? Presumably failing that the thing to do is install Win 10 but use the Win 7 key from the label and contact Microsoft if it doesn't activate?

[#3]

@Baldrick1, if you had bought your own OEM copy of Windows and installed it on a computer then a key recovery app would correctly report the licence key you originally used, the one on your sticker.  Commercial manufacturers cannot faff around activating each machine they make individually so it's done differently and the key reported by an app would be something generic that would not work for re-activation.

With Windows 10, the key is locked to the hardware so if you re-install Windows 10 on a computer that has already run Windows 10 it will re-activate automatically.  I think a recovery app would find a generic key. 

[#4]

Whilst my problem is solved following the advice given I am a little puzzled about a few issues mentioned by others, such as a change of hardware say from HDD to SSD might give you issues when trying to reinstall.

Surely you could reinstall 100 times or more changing any hardware in your computer you liked providing you have an original installation disk and key ?

Ok I accept you might have to use some commercial software to wipe your HDD or use the software provided with your SSD to wipe it so if you then reinstall windows using a disk and key how can windows know you have made any changes to hardware ?

Perhaps someone could clarify these points just from a point of interest.

[#5]

@gleneagles

I'm sorry if it's me that's confusing you. As I understand it there are rules about which components can be changed without upsetting Microsoft, you can certainly change an HDD to SDD and re-install Windows from the original installation media and licence held by you. What I was questioning were issues where the operating system was installed by the computer manufacturer and the installation media was held on a hidden partition on the HDD, which is a different scenario altogether.

When you activate Windows the computer configuration I believe is reported to Microsoft. This can be checked as part of any update installation process so they do know about changes.

[#6]

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@gleneagles wrote:

Surely you could reinstall 100 times or more changing any hardware in your computer you liked providing you have an original installation disk and key ?

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You would only have the original installation disk if you bought it yourself and you would only do that if you were building your own computer or paying for an upgrade to your version of Windows.  Only a tiny minority of Windows users do either of these things.

If you bought an OEM copy of Windows (on disk) and changed the motherboard then Microsoft would see the new motherboard as a new and different computer.  In principle Microsoft says this contravenes their licence for OEM software but I'm not sure this is defensible in law so I suspect if you were prepared to jump through a few hoops they would eventually let you activate.  

[#7]

Where can i download an original WinXP 64bit iso from? - My CD is scratched to bits but the MS site doesn't seem to offer this. I've found a few websites that claim to offer it but you can never be entirely sure with them.

Thanks.

[#8]

This is hardly a big financial risk https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WINDOWS-XP-64-BIT-PROFESSIONAL-SP2-Licence-Key-Code-Operating-System-PRO/....

Let's be honest you're not going to get anything from a mainstream supplier, it's been obsolete for years. You might of course find some-one on here who can knock you off a copy.