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Windows 7 computer image question

B

bman

Flightless Bird
Sorry if this is the wrong group. I have a broken thinkpad laptop. I
want to take the windows 7 image (ghost 8 or an open source drive
image xml program don't remember which) I have for it and put it on
another laptop. Problems? (not much experience with windows 7 yet). I
don't have the install disk or license number anymore, misplaced,
can't find. Don't want to loose the license.

Any help would be appreciated.
 
B

BillW50

Flightless Bird
In
news:b328ed4f-4a01-4319-b0e4-b7df187c007a@r27g2000yqn.googlegroups.com,
bman typed on Sat, 20 Mar 2010 10:44:58 -0700 (PDT):
> Sorry if this is the wrong group. I have a broken thinkpad laptop. I
> want to take the windows 7 image (ghost 8 or an open source drive
> image xml program don't remember which) I have for it and put it on
> another laptop. Problems? (not much experience with windows 7 yet). I
> don't have the install disk or license number anymore, misplaced,
> can't find. Don't want to loose the license.
>
> Any help would be appreciated.


It only works if you image it to the same like laptop with the same
motherboard chipset. Both Paragon and Acronis True Image claims to be
able to image to unlike machines. Although I never tested their results.
It is suppose to be easy with Vista and Windows 7 as you shouldn't need
an install disc to do so. Unlike Windows 2000 and XP which you do just
to grab the generic drivers.

--
Bill
Gateway MX6124 ('06 era) 1 of 3 - Windows XP SP2
 
B

Barry Watzman

Flightless Bird
Vista and Windows 7 are not readily transferred with classical imaging
software, unless you have a late version that is "Vista aware". There
are critical difference in how Vista and later OS' boot (they do not use
"master boot records", or the boot scheme that had been in use from the
IBM-PC XT and DOS version 2.0 all the way through Windows XP).

Beyond that, the image (or, for that matter, the original drive)
probably won't work unless recipient computer uses almost identical
hardware.

And, finally, if this was an OEM installation, you may find that it was
"BIOS locked" and won't work in any laptop other than a Thinkpad.

So there could be a lot of problems with your plan, but there is also
still some chance that you might be able to do it.

Re: "Don't want to loose the license."

Without regard to whether it works or not, you ***HAVE*** lost the
license. Assuming that this was the OS factory installed, the license
was an OEM license, and as such it dies and is lost when the computer dies.


bman wrote:
> Sorry if this is the wrong group. I have a broken thinkpad laptop. I
> want to take the windows 7 image (ghost 8 or an open source drive
> image xml program don't remember which) I have for it and put it on
> another laptop. Problems? (not much experience with windows 7 yet). I
> don't have the install disk or license number anymore, misplaced,
> can't find. Don't want to loose the license.
>
> Any help would be appreciated.
>
>
 
B

BillW50

Flightless Bird
In news:ho3omd$kdj$1@news.eternal-september.org,
Barry Watzman typed on Sat, 20 Mar 2010 20:19:23 -0400:
> Vista and Windows 7 are not readily transferred with classical imaging
> software, unless you have a late version that is "Vista aware". There
> are critical difference in how Vista and later OS' boot (they do not
> use "master boot records", or the boot scheme that had been in use
> from the IBM-PC XT and DOS version 2.0 all the way through Windows
> XP).


Yes Vista and Windows does use a boot record, just the code is
different. And yes, imaging software that can copy Windows XP as well as
Linux should have no problems copying the BCD boot record (what Vista
and Windows 7 uses). All it needs to do is a simple sector by sector
imaging.

> Beyond that, the image (or, for that matter, the original drive)
> probably won't work unless recipient computer uses almost identical
> hardware.


When you install Windows the first time, it grabs generic drivers until
it figures out what you have there and then deletes the generic drivers.
Same thing happens with Vista or Windows 7, except it just disables the
generic drivers and doesn't delete them.

And Paragon and Acronis True Image have come up with a way to transfer
any Windows image to another totally different machine. How they pull
this off is by putting back the generic drivers that Windows install
first uses. Or in the case of Vista or Windows 7, to just re-enable them
once again.

> And, finally, if this was an OEM installation, you may find that it
> was "BIOS locked" and won't work in any laptop other than a Thinkpad.
>
> So there could be a lot of problems with your plan, but there is also
> still some chance that you might be able to do it.


Maybe.

> Re: "Don't want to loose the license."
>
> Without regard to whether it works or not, you ***HAVE*** lost the
> license. Assuming that this was the OS factory installed, the license
> was an OEM license, and as such it dies and is lost when the computer
> dies.


So says Microsoft. But Microsoft isn't a legal justice system. Microsoft
has no power over the justice system whatsoever. And no software company
has ever won a case against a shrink-wrap license yet. As how can you
agree to something you cannot read until you open it and thus already
agreeing to it by opening it? Hell they can state you must give them
your first male child or something. And you wouldn't know until you
agree to the unknown first.

Look if anybody needs Microsoft licenses, I have two unopened Windows XP
and two unopened Windows 7 boxes up on the shelf. So if you need a
license, just email me (use COM instead of KOM). I am sure there are
tons of unused Microsoft licenses out there to go around.

> bman wrote:
>> Sorry if this is the wrong group. I have a broken thinkpad laptop. I
>> want to take the windows 7 image (ghost 8 or an open source drive
>> image xml program don't remember which) I have for it and put it on
>> another laptop. Problems? (not much experience with windows 7 yet). I
>> don't have the install disk or license number anymore, misplaced,
>> can't find. Don't want to loose the license.
>>
>> Any help would be appreciated.


--
Bill
Gateway MX6124 ('06 era) 1 of 3 - Windows XP SP2
 
B

bman

Flightless Bird
Appreciate everyones help. Not sure of the existing license type but
not a license that came with the laptop (it was purchased with the
current install) I can try and use bartpe's xml based drive image
software to install on another T60. Sounds like with some prep work
that should work.

Not all that much wrong with the machine it's on now, the LCD has a
small scratch in the corner on it and no one wants it so just part it
out i guess.(once the license is moved)


On Mar 20, 9:12 pm, "BillW50" <Bill...@aol.kom> wrote:
> Innews:ho3omd$kdj$1@news.eternal-september.org,
> Barry Watzman typed on Sat, 20 Mar 2010 20:19:23 -0400:
>
> > Vista and Windows 7 are not readily transferred with classical imaging
> > software, unless you have a late version that is "Vista aware".  There
> > are critical difference in how Vista and later OS' boot (they do not
> > use "master boot records", or the boot scheme that had been in use
> > from the IBM-PC XT and DOS version 2.0 all the way through Windows
> > XP).

>
> Yes Vista and Windows does use a boot record, just the code is
> different. And yes, imaging software that can copy Windows XP as well as
> Linux should have no problems copying the BCD boot record (what Vista
> and Windows 7 uses). All it needs to do is a simple sector by sector
> imaging.
>
> > Beyond that, the image (or, for that matter, the original drive)
> > probably won't work unless recipient computer uses almost identical
> > hardware.

>
> When you install Windows the first time, it grabs generic drivers until
> it figures out what you have there and then deletes the generic drivers.
> Same thing happens with Vista or Windows 7, except it just disables the
> generic drivers and doesn't delete them.
>
> And Paragon and Acronis True Image have come up with a way to transfer
> any Windows image to another totally different machine. How they pull
> this off is by putting back the generic drivers that Windows install
> first uses. Or in the case of Vista or Windows 7, to just re-enable them
> once again.
>
> > And, finally, if this was an OEM installation, you may find that it
> > was "BIOS locked" and won't work in any laptop other than a Thinkpad.

>
> > So there could be a lot of problems with your plan, but there is also
> > still some chance that you might be able to do it.

>
> Maybe.
>
> > Re: "Don't want to loose the license."

>
> > Without regard to whether it works or not, you ***HAVE*** lost the
> > license.  Assuming that this was the OS factory installed, the license
> > was an OEM license, and as such it dies and is lost when the computer
> > dies.

>
> So says Microsoft. But Microsoft isn't a legal justice system. Microsoft
> has no power over the justice system whatsoever. And no software company
> has ever won a case against a shrink-wrap license yet. As how can you
> agree to something you cannot read until you open it and thus already
> agreeing to it by opening it? Hell they can state you must give them
> your first male child or something. And you wouldn't know until you
> agree to the unknown first.
>
> Look if anybody needs Microsoft licenses, I have two unopened Windows XP
> and two unopened Windows 7 boxes up on the shelf. So if you need a
> license, just email me (use COM instead of KOM). I am sure there are
> tons of unused Microsoft licenses out there to go around.
>
> > bman wrote:
> >> Sorry if this is the wrong group. I have a broken thinkpad laptop. I
> >> want to take the windows 7 image (ghost 8 or an open source drive
> >> image xml program don't remember which) I have for it and put it on
> >> another laptop. Problems? (not much experience with windows 7 yet). I
> >> don't have the install disk or license number anymore, misplaced,
> >> can't find. Don't want to loose the license.

>
> >> Any help would be appreciated.

>
> --
> Bill
> Gateway MX6124 ('06 era) 1 of 3 - Windows XP SP2
 
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