by Dr Philip Yip (Dell Community Rockstar and Microsoft Windows Insider MVP)
Windows 7 OEM – Applying OEM System Locked Preinstallation Activation
Code of Authenticity (CoA) and Windows (OEM) Sticker
Systems manufactured before 2012 were sold with a Windows 7 CoA. This contained the Edition of Windows 7 and a 25 Digit Product Key.
Systems sold after 2012 have the following sticker to identify that they have a Windows OEM License.
Windows 8.1 Home with Bing Windows 8.1 Home Single Language with Bing
MSDM 25 Digit Product Key Compatible with Windows 10 Installation Media which will select Windows 10 Home or Windows 10 Home Single Language Respectively
Windows 8 Home Windows 8.1 Home Windows 8 Home Single Language Windows 8.1 Home Single Language
Downgrade Rights
Windows 10 Home
MSDM 25 Digit Product Key Compatible with Windows 10 Installation Media
What is OEM System Locked Preinstallation?
Original Equipment Manufacturers like Dell preinstall Windows on millions of Devices. In order to avoid having to manually type an alpha-numeric 25 digit product key and calling Microsoft for Product Activation on every single computer they manufacture they activate their devices using a different mechanism called OEM System Locked Preinstallation (OEM SLP).
MSDM – Microsoft Digital Marker
For systems sold with Windows 8 OEM and Windows 10 OEM the 25 digit product key is not seen printed on a label but is embedded in the MSDM table of the UEFI BIOS. Windows 10 Installation Media downloadable from Microsoft will automatically input these product keys during installation and as it’s multi-edition it will automatically select the correct Edition corresponding to the Windows Product Key. Although most people shouldn’t need to, one can check if they have a MSDM by installing RWEverything. The ACPI tables should load by default (if not select Access → ACPI Tables).
SLIC – System License Internal Code
For Windows 7, the 25 digit product key was printed on a CoA but it is typically not used during Windows 7 Installation. Instead Windows 7 is activated from Factory using OEM System Locked Preinstallation. For Windows 7 OEM SLP three things are required:
The System has a SLIC Version of 2.1
The Installation Media Inputs:
A xrm-ms File.
A Generic OEM SLP Key (Generic for the OEM e.g. Dell and the Edition of Windows 7 e.g. Professional).
If all three requirements are satisfied OEM SLP is applied. Although most people shouldn’t need to, one can check if they have a SLIC by installing RWEverything. The ACPI tables should load by default (if not select Access → ACPI Tables).
A SLIC Version of 1.0 is for Windows XP, a SLIC Version of 2.0 is for Windows Vista and a SLIC Version of 2.1 is for Windows 7. Systems shipped with Windows 8.1 Pro and Windows 10 Pro will have a SLIC Version of 2.1 in addition to the MDSM because they are eligible for OEM Downgrade Rights to Windows 7 Pro OEM.
Installation Media
Windows 10 (Version 1511 and Later)
Accepts Windows 10 MSDM
Accepts Windows 8.1 MSDM and Windows 8 MSDM
Accepts Windows 7 CoA Key
One Time Activation Use
System Motherboard Hardware Profile Registered with a Microsoft Product Activation Server No Key Required for Reinstall
Does Not Activate from a Clean Install using the SLIC
Upgrade Install from SLIC Works
Genuine Ticket Generated on Windows 7 Activated SLIC Works
Windows 7 OEM Media
Major OEM Media e.g. Dell Activates Using the OEM SLP
Has a sources\$OEM$\$$\system32\OEM folder which contains the OEM.xrm-ms file.
Has a sources\$OEM$\$$\setup\scripts folder which contains an OOBE script and SLP script.
The Out of the Box Experience (OOBE) script calls the System Locked Preinstallation Script (SLP) script. The SLP script has two lines the first line installs the OEM.xrm-ms file and the second line inputs the generic OEM SLP key. This is the key for Dell Windows 7 Professional.
This is the SLP script from a Dell unmodified Dell Windows 7 Professional Reinstallation ISO:
HTML
Windows 7 Retail Media or System Builder OEM Media does not contain an $OEM$ folder and will not apply OEM SLP and will instead ask for a Retail Product Key During Installation. This has caused a lot of confusion regarding OEM SLP.
Applying Windows 7 OEM SLP Using Retail Media
Retail Installation Media asks for a Product Key During Installation. We can uncheck “Automatically Activate Windows when I’m Online”.
Post Installation we can apply the OEM System Locked Preinstallation. Download the following:
Extract, select your OEM and then Edition of Windows 7. Copy the OEM folder directly to the C:\Drive. Right click the SLP.cmd file and select run as administrator, this will apply OEM SLP as per the factory settings.
The slp.cmd script for Dell Windows 7 Professional is shown below. Note the OEM folder must be copied to the C:\ Drive directly so the script can find the OEM.xrm-ms file.
HTML
OEM SLP Key Collection – For Information Only
Many people on forums are instructed to use key finders to find their OEM Product Key and instead will find the OEM SLP key and fail to activate using it. These keys will only activate using OEM SLP, they do not activate using the activation methods of Retail Product Keys.
Note the first 5 digits of the Product ID listed below will differ corresponding to the language installed.
Dell/Alienware
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM -8992707-00082
36Q3Y-BBT84-MGJ3H-FT7VD-FG72J
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50258
36T88-RT7C6-R38TQ-RV8M9-WWTCY
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00095
6RBBT-F8VPQ-QCPVQ-KHRB8-RMV82
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00524
32KD2-K9CTF-M3DJT-4J3WC-733WD
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx -OEM-8992662-00400
342DG-6YJR8-X92GV-V7DCV-P4K27
Windows Vista Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-7332166-00096
3YMR2-WMV49-4WD8X-M9WM7-CH4CG
Windows Vista Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-7332157-00204
4GPTT-6RYC4-F4GJK-KG77H-B9HD2
Windows Vista Business
xxxxx-OEM-7332141-00054
368Y7-49YMQ-VRCTY-3V3RH-WRMG7
Windows Vista Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-7332132-00141
2QBP3-289MF-9364X-37XGX-24W6P
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00008
V3Y2W-CMF9W-PGT9C-777KD-32W74
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00188
4CFBX-7HQ6R-3JYWF-72GXP-4MV6W
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00008 xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00120
4HMYB-6YHYT-TW2J6-FQBC3-6GBFW
Lenovo/IBM
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30169
xxxxx-OEM-8992702-00153
273P4-GQ8V6-97YYM-9YTHF-DC2VP
22P26-HD8YH-RD96C-28R8J-DCT28
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50213
22MFQ-HDH7V-RBV79-QMVK9-PTMXQ
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00249
27GBM-Y4QQC-JKHXW-D9W83-FJQKD
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00437
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00537
237XB-GDJ7B-MV8MH-98QJM-24367
6K2KY-BFH24-PJW6W-9GK29-TMPWP
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00537
6K2KY-BFH24-PJW6W-9GK29-TMPWP
HP/Compaq
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows Vista Starter
xxxxx-OEM-7332204-00603
223JH-DDMFR-3WBTR-H3V93-28JK8
Windows Vista Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-7332166-00021
2VX48-BVXT6-GD2PK-BD3R2-44MV3
Windows Vista Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-7332157-00174
HW7V9-XYT4W-PFR9Q-2DKGJ-RR4TD
Windows Vista Business
xxxxx-OEM-7332141-00039
2Q2WM-VCB98-8C6BG-C9BT2-3XDRY
Windows Vista Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-7332132-00015
23CM9-P7MYR-VFWRT-JGH7R-R933G
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30008
RH98C-M9PW4-6DHR7-X99PJ-3FGDB
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50008
DX8R9-BVCGB-PPKRR-8J7T4-TJHTH
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00010
4FG99-BC3HD-73CQT-WMF7J-3Q6C9
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00008
74T2M-DKDBC-788W3-H689G-6P6GT
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00010
MHFPT-8C8M2-V9488-FGM44-2C9T3
ASUS
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30005
6K6WB-X73TD-KG794-FJYHG-YCJVG
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50005
89G97-VYHYT-Y6G8H-PJXV6-77GQM
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00007
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00118
2QDBX-9T8HR-2QWT6-HCQXJ-9YQTR
7JQWQ-K6KWQ-BJD6C-K3YVH-DVQJG
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00407
2WCJK-R8B4Y-CWRF2-TRJKB-PV9HW
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00173
2Y4WT-DHTBF-Q6MMK-KYK6X-VKM6G
Acer/Gateway/Packard
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30004
RDJXR-3M32B-FJT32-QMPGB-GCFF6
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50004
MB4HF-2Q8V3-W88WR-K7287-2H4CP
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00006
VQB3X-Q3KP8-WJ2H8-R6B6D-7QJB7
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00004
YKHFT-KW986-GK4PY-FDWYH-7TP9F
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00006
FJGCP-4DFJD-GJY49-VJBQ7-HYRR2
Samsung
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30013
PV9BD-YBRX6-CTMG6-CCMJY-X8XG7
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50013
2P6PB-G7YVY-W46VJ-BXJ36-PGGTG
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00015
CQBVJ-9J697-PWB9R-4K7W4-2BT4J
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00013
GMJQF-JC7VC-76HMH-M4RKY-V4HX6
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00015
49PB6-6BJ6Y-KHGCQ-7DDY6-TF7CD
Sony
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992707-00016
32J2V-TGQCY-9QJXP-Q3FVT-X8BQ
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50014
YV7QQ-RCXQ9-KTBHC-YX3FG-FKRW8
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00016
H4JWX-WHKWT-VGV87-C7XPK-CGKHQ
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00014
H9M26-6BXJP-XXFCY-7BR4V-24X8
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00016
YJJYR-666KV-8T4YH-KM9TB-4PY2W
Toshiba
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30015
TGBKB-9KBGJ-3Y3J6-K8M2F-J2HJQ
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50015
9H4FH-VD69Y-TGBD2-4PM4K-DRMMH
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00057
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00017
6B88K-KCCWY-4F8HK-M4P73-W8DQG
6GF36-P4HWR-BFF84-6GFC2-BWX77
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00137
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00015
2V8P2-QKJWM-4THM3-74PDB-4P2KH
W2PMW-T7DBH-YHKRM-DXXF6-KP4KT
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00459
2XQ63-J3P67-9G3JC-FHQ68-8Q2F3
MSI
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992707-00121
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30271
2W4DJ-JFFJV-DMCPP-2C3X8-883DP
2YKPV-BFXFW-X8GJQ-9KQFF-KCXGD
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50179
2TY7W-H4DD4-MB62F-BD9C3-88TM6
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00246
4G3GR-J6JDJ-D96PV-T9B9D-M8X2Q
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00503
2W3CX-YD4YJ-DF9B2-V27M6-77GMF
Fujitsu
Edition
Product ID
OEM SLP Key
Windows 7 Starter
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-30007
PMXH9-M23P9-QJJMB-2FWRC-7CDKP
Windows 7 Home Basic
xxxxx-OEM-8992752-50007
8W3JQ-BP2HY-F47QX-6CQ94-2BKQB
Windows 7 Home Premium
xxxxx-OEM-8992687-00009
C6MHH-TRRPT-74TDC-FHRMV-XB88W
Windows 7 Professional
xxxxx-OEM-8992671-00007
PT9YK-BC2J9-WWYF9-R9DCR-QB9CK
Windows 7 Ultimate
xxxxx-OEM-8992662-00009
9CW99-79BBF-D4M3X-9BK9M-4RPH9
This is a legacy guide.
Activation Backup and Recovery Program
As ABR only applies OEM System Locked Preinstallation it will only work on eligible systems. If the cert file and OEM SLP key is used on an illegal system you will be given 9 days to input a valid product key.
This tool is useful if there is a product activation issue and Dell/HP OEM SLP needs to be reapplied without reinstallation or if one has a Retail Installation DVD.
Download Links and System Locked Preinstallation Keys
Most major OEMs are supported with this collection:
Alienware/Dell
Lenovo/IBM
HP/Compaq
ASUS
Acer
Samsung
Sony
Toshiba
MSI
Fujitsu
These were obtained from here which covers a few more less common major OEMs.
Restore
Download ABRbeta (Windows 7) and the Activation Files.
The following steps may look a bit more complicated than they actually are. Essentially all you are doing is extracting two folders. One has two programs activation_backup.exe and activation_restore.exe. The cert and product key files must be copied to this extracted folder so the activation_restore.exe can be launched.
Extraction
Right click the “Dell/HP ABR Activation Files Vista and 7” and select extract all.
Opt for the extracted files to be in downloads.
Select to open the folder and snap it to the right. Next snap downloads to the left. Extract ABRbeta.exe (Windows 7) or ABR.exe (Windows Vista) by double clicking it.
Accept the warnings to run it
Again select the default location of downloads and select extract
You will now have a folder called ABR, open it to the left and open the ABR activation files to the right.
Activation-Restore.exe
Select your version of Windows.
I will use Professional as an example. Move the backup-cert.XrML and backup-key.txt file to the ABR folder.
Once these files are copied across run activation-restore.exe by double clicking it and accept any user-account control. It will input the Major OEM SLP key from the backup-key.txt and use this with the backup-cert.XrML to activate Windows Vista or Windows 7.
Note: You may be prompted to continue press [y] and [enter] if asked (usually you are asked this only if you entered a product key during installation which was not recommended).
Product Activation Check
Restart your computer and check your activation status by pressing [Windows] and [Pause|Break]. Windows 7 should be activated in the exact same manner as the OEM factory install.
The rest of this guide is just additional information… and won’t be required in most cases…
Backup
In the rare cases where the Cert file is not downloadable or you wish to backup your own one.
Check to see if your computer is running an OEM license by looking at the product ID in System Properties (press [Windows] and [Pause|Break]:
Look at your Product ID; the product ID of a major Windows 7 OEM license with OEM SLP will have the form of xxxxx-OEM-899xxxx-xxxxx and for a major Windows Vista OEM license the SLP will have the form xxxxx-OEM-733xxxx-xxxxx. The ABR backup will not work for a system without such a product ID.
Download ABRbeta (Windows 7) or ABR (Windows Vista). Extract ABRbeta.exe (Windows 7) or ABR.exe (Windows Vista) by double clicking it.
Accept the warnings to run it
Select the default location to extract.
This will extract to an ABR folder, open it.
Launch the activation_backup.exe
Accept any UAC prompts, you will now have a backup-cert.XrML file and backup-key.txt file created.
Copy the ABR Folder to a safe place for later use. These can be used later to restore your OEM product activation.
If you have the cert file for any OEM thats not Dell or HP you may add the files to a zip file and save this to OneDrive and share it in the comments section. It can help other users with Vista or 7 from your OEM which wish to clean install and whose hard drive or installation has failed and have no recovery media.
Ineligible System Example Test
This is just a demonstration to show that the Activation Backup Recovery program or Dell Windows 7 Reinstallation DVD won’t work on ineligible systems.
A Dell Latitude D820 was used with an Vista Business COA in this test. It has a genuine Windows 7 Upgrade license and was later activated using it.
This system was only sold by Dell with Windows XP and Windows Vista, hence the latest BIOS revision only has markers for Windows XP and Windows Vista. If one tries installing with a Dell Windows 7 Professional Reinstallation DVD or using the ABR files for Windows 7 which mimic the activation mechanism of the Reinstallation DVD on this system, Windows 7 will not activate. Instead you will get a 9 days until automatic activation as shown below.
When you click to activate now you will be unable to activate with the Dell SLP key and will be prompted to enter another product key. After 9 days you will get:
System Locked Preinstalaltion Key and Product ID List
55 thoughts on “Windows 7 OEM – Applying OEM System Locked Preinstallation Activation”
Hi,
Have downloaded the Win7 Ultimate SP1 and did all what you said here. Once I start the installation in a new HDD of my Inspiron M5040 an error come up saying:
Have tried to find a driver for the HDD in DELL support site but the one available driver is not working. Tried the HDD site, not luck.
You’re right. I made the error entry in caps and was deleted by the blog. Anyways, what the error say is: No drivers available, etc…This is a brand new Hitachi HDD with the new Advance Format system file.
Obviously you are finding that you do. Its the AMD A50M Chipset family so you need the AMD AHCI drivers.
They might be obtained within the Chipset driver listed by Dell R313347. Once extracted with 7zip there is a folder called packages and within it a folder called drivers. I would try selecting this folder to load during the Windows setup. However I am not sure if the Dell driver will cover an AF HDD so I would go for the one direct from AMD: http://support.amd.com/en-us/download/chipset?os=Windows
Try the top one. Once extracted with 7zip select the drivers folder:
13-4_vista_win7_win8_32-64_sb\$_OUTDIR\Packages\Drivers
I have completed a hardware upgrade on a Dimension E510 and purchased a Dell reinstallation DVD for Windows 7 Pro. The installation went fast and smooth but the Product Activation Code I’ve purchased from a noted online software retailer is not working. I wrote them and they sent a second PAC which did not work either. I’m a bit confused right now about the article above but is it possible that I need to buy the PAC from Dell to activate the copy of W7 Pro or will the procedures outlined in your article above work for me?
In your case you have purchased a Reinstallation DVD and a COA so phone activation may work: http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/microsoft-product-activation/phone-activation-windows-vista-7/
In reality a Dell Windows 7 COA should not be sold separately from a Dell system so it is also possible you were sold a non-genuine license. Theres lots of piracy of fake Windows 7 COAs and for these reasons COAs are removed in Windows 8 and later. The system builder OEM license is usually just Microsoft branded.
Thanks. This is pretty frustrating since I had upgraded my wife’s PC at her office which was from the same era as this one but was of the OptiPlex variety, I think. The cases were shaped the same except my wife’s was taller. It runs W7 with no problems at all and validated itself. The little E510, so far, runs W7 just fine, too.
The PAC was purchased from buycheapsoftware.com, not one of those on ebay that I looked at prior to the purchase and didn’t trust in the slightest. I can’t see them selling fake licenses but they may not know about the markers you speak of.
So phone activation through Microsoft is the only possible way you see to activation? Your link above points to a page that is no longer there but it is one of the options available after the activation attempts I’ve made have failed.
“When buying Microsoft software as a digital download, we recommend that you avoid auction sites and peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing sites. At the moment there are a limited number of sites where you can legally purchase digital downloads of Microsoft software. One example is the online Microsoft Store, where you can buy a wide variety of genuine software and hardware directly from Microsoft (in select markets). Additionally, you can purchase a digital download of Windows at http://www.windows.com/shop.
With the exception of Product Key Cards distributed with Certificates of Authenticity (COA’s), Microsoft does not distribute products keys as standalone products. If you see a listing on an auction site, online classified ad, or other online page advertising product keys, it’s a good indication that these keys are likely stolen or counterfeit.” http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/howtotell/Software.aspx
i.e. Microsoft don’t simply allow giving out of product keys via telephone.
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We were in town today and I looked at my wife’s old computer again and it’s actually a Dimension 9200.
The PAC I bought for the E510 was this one: http://www.buycheapsoftware.com/details.asp?productID=5748. They’ve been around for a long time and we’ve purchased a lot of software from them personally as well as for my wife’s office an the plaice I used to work as well. The PAC was sent via e-mail and they attached this to the reply I got when I asked them the first time about the first PAC not working:
Product Key : XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-RJ3PX (my X’s)
Validity : Valid
Product ID : XXXXX-OEM-9309671-17961
Activation ID : da22eadd-46dc-4056-a287-f5041c852470
Edition Type : Professional
Description : Windows 7 Professional OEM:COA
Edition ID : X15-37341
Key Type : OEM:COA
Crypto ID : 186
I’ve finally arrived at a point where I can try the phone activation. If it doesn’t work I guess I’m just out of luck on the upgrades and whatever. Just hope I can get my money back on the W7 Pro license.
The BIOS SLP activation is the main activation mechanism of the Dell Reinstallation DVD. Inputting the unique 25 digit product key on the COA and activating by phone is a secondary activation mechanism usually reserved to the rare cases when the SLP mechanism doesn’t work. You should be fine provided that site doesn’t sell the same PAC to multiple customers.- I’m still not sure if its a legitimate license you have and have reported the site to Microsoft Support.
Fine by me. I KNOW there’s quite a few that need to be reported on Ebay.
When starting the phone activation procedure how is the, I think, 36 digit code that you read off to Microsoft derived? Does it come from the PAC I tried to use to activate it or the embedded OEM PAC that was not working to begin with?
Philip – great site. Thank you for putting this together.
Unfortunately I am stuck. I feel like I have been going in circles trying to activate Windows 7 on this Machine.
Inspiron 545s Desktop came with Vista Home Premium with a free Upgrade to Windows 7. This worked well for years. After heavy use I was advised to reinstall Windows.
I have gone through reinstalling several times and always find Windows 7 needs to be activated with a product key. No product key given with the Dell upgrade disks. I am back at this same spot now.
I installed Vista first which showed as authentic and activated. Then I used the Dell upgrade disks that were provided originally to upgrade, then installed all of the Windows updates. The machine is working great. But I am stuck with 29 days left and I can not figure out how to activate. I am going nuts. I considered staying with Vista but cant use Office 365, ++
What BIOS revision do you have? You will need to have the latest A12 installed before using the ABR program. http://downloads.dell.com/bios/I545-A12.EXE
Earlier versions of the BIOS will not be accepted for the system locked preinstallation mechanism of Windows 7.
If you have BIOS A12 and it still doesn’t activate then Dell hasn’t added the SLP activation mechanism to this machine. Usually if Dell have Windows 7 drivers the latest BIOS should work with the Dell Windows 7 SLP activation.
Upgrade discs should have came with a retail upgrade product key.
I have a Dell latitude laptop on which I fully erased the Windows 7 with an Arch Linux for two years.
I now want to switch back to Windows 7 but I have nothing backed up from the original Dell install. I also could have flashed the BIOS before even if I don’t remember doing it (does it erase the OEM license?).
Do you think it could be a problem for reactivation? Should I prefer the dell installation media over the retail one when following your “clean install of windows” guide?
The Dell Windows Reinstallation DVD applies the Activation Mechanism automatically. For retail media you need to use the ABR program to apply the same activation.
The ABR program will work on any Dell BIOS which came with a system shipped by Dell with Windows 7 (including any legitimately updated Dell BIOS). It’ll also work on any Dell systems shipped with Windows 8.0/8.1 Professional.
You should have no problems using either for activation.
How will this work on Dell Vostro 220s factory installed VBus OEM COA label with downgraded rights to XP Pro? Never obtained Dell’s FREE Win 7 Pro upgrade disk…..
For that model, Dell never released Windows 7 drivers which is why I made an unofficial set: http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/driver-sets/vostro-desktops/vostro-220s-windows-7-64-bit/
This means the latest BIOS for that model only has markers to accept the Dell Windows Vista Business SLP key and Windows XP Professional SLP key. i.e. was not upgraded to have Windows 7 Professional markers so a Dell Windows 7 Professional Reinstallation DVD or the ABR program with Dell cert files on a Windows 7 Professional install will be rejected and hence fail to activate.
If you want to run Windows 7 on it you will need a retail license (these are quite pricey as Windows 7 has stopped being sold). It will work with the Windows Vista Business.
My advice is to install Windows 10 Technical Preview and use it to evaluate Windows 10 64 Bit until its finally released. At which point you should be able to purchase Windows 10 at a promotional price.
Thank you Philip. I have purchased a Win 7 Pro OEM from BestBuys. I will try to activate the OS with that OEM Disk Key. Will post results at later time.
It’s a shame Dell doesn’t always appreciate your valuable assistance to us ‘untechies’ at large…
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The OEM disc from Best Buy will be a generic OEM disc and not a Dell OEM disc. It therefore won’t require the SLP markers in the BIOS and will activate with its own 25 digit product key. The generic OEM is similar to the retail license however has 2 limitations; once installed on the desktop it is non-transferable (forever tied to the desktops motherboard). The second is that the product key will not work with Microsoft’s Software Recovery Tool (which is pretty non-functional anyway).
The Windows 7 Generic OEM license will be eligible for the free upgrade to Windows 10 in Late Summer.
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I recently purchased a new Dell Inspiron 3847 from Amazon. It came with Windows 7 Professional installed, and included a Windows 8.1 disc in the box. The listing said something about a downgrade package. Before I mess up a perfectly functioning Windows 7 system, how do I go about installing 8.1 from the disc? It has no COA numbers anywhere that I have found.
Also, I have no Windows 7 disc, but assume the restore partition currently holds that info. I have never had one of these two OS ‘downgrade’ deals before so I am more than a bit confused.
Thanks for any info.
For Windows 7 Professional the OEM SLP activation is used and if you need to download Windows 7 Professional Media follow the instructions here: http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/download-microsoft-windows-and-office/download-microsoft-windows/windows-7-sp1-iso-download/
You need the ABR program and cert files aswell as the .iso as you have no unique Windows 7 Professional product key and must use the OEM SLP. I explain whats going on in the tutorial video. Media made from Dell Backup and Recovery will also work but it depends if you want a clean install or factory settings. If your factory settings are working well theres no need to clean install.
The system should be licensed for Windows 8.1 Professional and the Windows 8.1 Professional product key resides within the system BIOS. A utility like RWEverything can readout the MSDM tab from ACPI tables to get the product key. I explain this in great detail in the tutorial video I made here: http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/download-microsoft-windows-and-office/download-microsoft-windows/download-windows-8-1-retail-and-oem-iso/
In general the key should be automatically input and there should be no need for the end user to know it. There are the few (very rare) cases where the BIOS loses the product key so I advise taking a note of it just in case.
Philip Trying to re-activate a Windows 7 Home Premuim install following the installation of SSD on a Studio 1555. Although I installed the Product Key that I recovered Using Belarc I did not notice that it had not been accepted as a valid Product ID. When I was re-installing the machine I used the Windows 7 iso image linked to from this site, but for some reason did not see the instructions for backing up the BIOS Certs. Now when I attempt to re-install I get the error 0xC004F063 Computer BIOS missing required licence. I have attempted to follow the instructions over the ABRBeta but the program failed to run windows reporting that it was not a valid Windows 32 program. (McAfee also wared me that the site was not trusted, but I continued with your directions). I no longer seem to have the COA KEY. I do though still have the orginal OS re-installation CD. Do I have any options that to go and buy another Retail copy of Windows 7? Is there an alternative ABR program available now? Or do I risk it and go on the Windows 10 beta. (but this my wifes machine not mine….)
When I upgraded the same way another Dell machine ealier this year I dont recall such issues.
Update your BIOS to the latest version A13. I advise removal of McAfee before updating the BIOS: http://downloads.dell.com/published/pages/studio-1555.html
Then reattempt using the ABR program with the cert files I list. This will re-apply the OEM SLP. Redownload the files once McAfee has been removed as McAfee has likely corrupted the ABR.exe.
Reinstallation with the Dell OEM Reinstallation DVD will automatically apply the OEM SLP activation mechanism, so thats your alternative to the ABR program.
Also your COA should be under your battery in that model. Dell put it there to prevent it from fading. You can input that key and call Microsoft to activate but I prefer the OEM SLP activation.
I have a Dell Latitude E4300 laptop that came preinstalled with windows 7 32 bit professional. I plan to do a clean install of windows 7 64 bit professional. I already have the retail media. Will this method work to properly activate the 64 bit version of windows or will it only work for the 32 bit version the computer originally came with? I plan to back up the cert and key files first before reformatting the drive but those backups will be from the 32 bit version. How do you suggest I proceed?
Thank you so much for your work and this very informative website!
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I have a HP dv9620us. does it have bios markers for both Vista and Windows 7? I had lost my recovery disks sometime ago and found a vista install disk from a Toshiba machine and it workded but now would like to see if could go reinstall all HP original configurations. I noticed on another page that Microsoft broke all Digital River ISO. Does that effect this fix?
I am not as familiar with HP systems as I am with Dell systems. Did it ship with Windows Vista or Windows 7? If it shipped with Windows 7 then it has the BIOS markers for Windows 7.
The Digital River .isos highly influence this fix because they are the only downloadable source of installation media. However if you have the .iso downloaded in advance or a retail Windows 7 Installation DVD to hand it may be used instead.
I just used this to put 64-bit Vista Business on a Dell Latitude E5500 that only shipped with 32-bit media, and it worked! I’m preparing several of these laptops for a client for surplussing and eventual sale and wanted an image that would look as much like the original OOBE as possible, including factory activation. This will be extremely handy!
Unfortunately, the links to the backed up HP certificates have gone dead.
Great glad it helped and glad you had the generic installation media to install with. The OneDrive link to the HP certificates worked just there when I attempted to download them.
For the Latitude E5500 perhaps even Windows 7 64 Bit Professional and the ABR files would work (most these systems were out in Late 2008 and would have been eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 7 Professional) providing the BIOS is updated to the latest version. If you had Windows 7 64 Bit installed then you could even install Dell Backup and Recovery after the system drivers and after applying the Dell OEM logos to make a near identical factory install.
I was able to download and use a Vista Business x64 SP2 ISO from Volume Licensing and apply the methods you described. Microsoft had once said that VLK media can be used to reload a system with an OEM license, you just needed to use the OEM keys and activate. Fortunately, I’ve hoarded several of the Dell Windows 7 x64 restore disks. All my hoarded Vista disks are x86 with SP1.
The Latitudes were purchased in batches, and all with the XP Downgrade option enabled. Some came with Vista Business licenses (and attached COA) and some later units came with 7 Pro licenses (and attached COA), just depending on which phase of the rollout they were purchased. Some of the line of business software applications weren’t qualified for Vista or 7 until XP support was nearly expired. Hell, some of the web-based applications still don’t work with IE 10. If these were going back into service, I’d probably use the Windows 7 disk, claim the licenses were under the Windows 7 Volume License, send them on. But these will be surplussed, so I figured it would just be easier in the long run to load it with the OS indicated on the COA and send them off to their new homes. No support calls for activation issues down the line and such.
I may go looking for the Dell logos and branding information. Getting a proper OOBE was my main concern, including licensing and activation. I do have plenty of the Dell Vista x86 disks, so obtaining the OEM images shouldn’t be difficult. I haven’t had to apply branding since we stopped getting unbranded Dell Optiplex GX series desktops, back when they had the CPS program. Going to have to brush up on that again!
As for the links for the HP certs, I was somehow in an older version of Opera (I keep it around for getting into older routers and such that don’t play well with newer IE or other browsers) which no longer plays nice with OneDrive. When I switched over to IE, I was able to get them. I’ll squirrel those away for the occasional HP that comes through depot.
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Amazing, was scratching my head after reformatting the disk of my HP/COMPAQ CQ61 and realising the key on the underneath had worn off.. Now restored with key same as prior to formatting according to Belarc. Saved time and worries, thankyou.
Hi, I have a few Dell Optiplex with SLIC/SLP 2.1 BIOS, and also the Windows 7 reinstallation DVD that came with Optiplex. Should I use ABR-beta and backup-cert.XrML and backup-key.txt ? Can I use the same DVD to reinstall all PCs? I will need to change the key? I would like to do a fresh clean install before upgrading to WIndows 10… Thanks!
The Dell Windows 7 Reinstallation DVD will work with all Optiplex systems newer than 2009 including the OptiPlex 360/760 (if they have the latest BIOS present).
No need to use ABR as the activation mechanism will automatically be applied from the Reinstallation DVD. Don’t change key.
My factory purchased Dell XPS-8100 hard drive died – replaced it with an SSD and reinstalled using Dell supplied OS disc. Windows not auto-activated. I spent over 3 hours with 3 calls EACH to Microsoft AND Dell and had them each pointing the finger at one another (and with most of the tech support reps clueless). I also spent hours searching Google. I finally stumbled across your site. After reading your article, I was up and activated in less than 10 minutes. THANK YOU!!
You’re welcome, I’ve been in that situation before hence the reason I looked for and wrote up these workarounds hopefully things will be better with Windows 10. 🙂
thanks so much for being active on the dell forums & posting this info! my laptop has an SSD, but silly Dell installed the OS onto the HDD… your keys did not work for me, but I still have windows running on the HDD as I slowly migrate (I’ve had the computer 2 years) and so was able to backup my own keys and restore them without a problem 🙂
XPS 8700? Its a known problem with Dell Backup and Recovery and we have made Dell aware of it.
Dell Backup and Recovery by default installs on the largest drive. For a 256 GB SSD and a 2 TB drive if both are installed during the time Dell load the factory image it goes onto the wrong drive.
hello im sanoop, recently i formatted my dell latitude e 6410 laptop.. actually i dont have oem dvd disk and windows product key.. i already noted my windows product key with using a third party software called magical jellybean keyfinder before formatting.. then i installed the same version of windows but later i tried to activate windows but unfortunately it is getting an error.. is there any hope to activate windows on my laptop without purchasing a new windows??
Without Windows 7 Reinstallation/Installation Media there is no way to reload Windows 7. Microsoft have removed the Digital River Downloads and replaced them with a non-functional Microsoft Software Recovery Tool which blocks Dell Windows 7 OEM licenses.
can i download windows 7 pro 64 bit dell oem .iso??
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No not from official sources.
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Thank you so much! I wasted so much time on the phone and got nowhere, and this tool totally saved me! Now I can stay on the best looking system MS has ever made with no cloud crap from MS.
Hi, I have a Dell Inspiron Mini 10 (1018) that I am attempting to re-install Windows 7 Starter edition on. I have installed Windows with no issues. I am now tripping over the activation process. I have noticed a couple of thing that I am unclear about. When I run the ABR executable it changes OEM product ID to a non OEM product ID and the Dell OEM SLP keys listed above are the same for Windows 7 Starter and Windows 7 Home Basic. Is this behaviour expected? Thanks
Whoops looks like I’ve made a couple of mistakes here…
Open up the backup-key.txt file in notepad and change 36T88-RT7C6-R38TQ-RV8M9-WWTCY (the key for Home Basic) to 36Q3Y-BBT84-MGJ3H-FT7VD-FG72J (the key for Starter). The cert file is the same for all Dell Windows 7 OEM (so can remain unchanged).
Can you let me know if the Product ID becomes XXXXX-OEM-8992707-00082 I think I made a second mistake calling it XXXXX-OEM-8992702-00082.
Hi,
Have downloaded the Win7 Ultimate SP1 and did all what you said here. Once I start the installation in a new HDD of my Inspiron M5040 an error come up saying:
Have tried to find a driver for the HDD in DELL support site but the one available driver is not working. Tried the HDD site, not luck.
Any suggestions as to how resolve this?
Thanks!
Saying what? I assume you are not on the product activation stage and that you are the Windows installation stage. If I’m correct have a look at these videos:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows-7/downloading-preparing-and-loading-sata-drivers/
You’re right. I made the error entry in caps and was deleted by the blog. Anyways, what the error say is: No drivers available, etc…This is a brand new Hitachi HDD with the new Advance Format system file.
M5040 is an AMD system and not an Intel one. I am less experienced with AMD than Intel systems as I prefer Intel. According to WD you shouldn’t need a driver for AMD:
http://www.wdc.com/global/products/features/?id=7&language=1
Obviously you are finding that you do. Its the AMD A50M Chipset family so you need the AMD AHCI drivers.
They might be obtained within the Chipset driver listed by Dell R313347. Once extracted with 7zip there is a folder called packages and within it a folder called drivers. I would try selecting this folder to load during the Windows setup. However I am not sure if the Dell driver will cover an AF HDD so I would go for the one direct from AMD:
http://support.amd.com/en-us/download/chipset?os=Windows
Try the top one. Once extracted with 7zip select the drivers folder:
13-4_vista_win7_win8_32-64_sb\$_OUTDIR\Packages\Drivers
I have completed a hardware upgrade on a Dimension E510 and purchased a Dell reinstallation DVD for Windows 7 Pro. The installation went fast and smooth but the Product Activation Code I’ve purchased from a noted online software retailer is not working. I wrote them and they sent a second PAC which did not work either. I’m a bit confused right now about the article above but is it possible that I need to buy the PAC from Dell to activate the copy of W7 Pro or will the procedures outlined in your article above work for me?
Thanks for your answer.
Neither the Reinstallation DVD or the ABR program (which mimics the activation mechanism of the Reinstallation DVD) will work on your system.
The Dimension 5100 was sold by Dell with only Windows XP and maybe in some cases Windows Vista. Thus Dell have only placed the markers for Windows XP and possibly Windows Vista in the system BIOS. They have not placed the Windows 7 markers in the BIOS and the activation mechanism will therefore sees an invalid BIOS and hence will not activate. See notes on ineligible systems:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/microsoft-product-activation/the-activation-backup-and-recovery-program-windows-vista-7-version/#Ineligible
A retail license should activate directly. See here for details describing the differences between OEM and Retail:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/the-oem-or-retail-license/
In your case you have purchased a Reinstallation DVD and a COA so phone activation may work:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/microsoft-product-activation/phone-activation-windows-vista-7/
In reality a Dell Windows 7 COA should not be sold separately from a Dell system so it is also possible you were sold a non-genuine license. Theres lots of piracy of fake Windows 7 COAs and for these reasons COAs are removed in Windows 8 and later. The system builder OEM license is usually just Microsoft branded.
Thanks. This is pretty frustrating since I had upgraded my wife’s PC at her office which was from the same era as this one but was of the OptiPlex variety, I think. The cases were shaped the same except my wife’s was taller. It runs W7 with no problems at all and validated itself. The little E510, so far, runs W7 just fine, too.
The PAC was purchased from buycheapsoftware.com, not one of those on ebay that I looked at prior to the purchase and didn’t trust in the slightest. I can’t see them selling fake licenses but they may not know about the markers you speak of.
So phone activation through Microsoft is the only possible way you see to activation? Your link above points to a page that is no longer there but it is one of the options available after the activation attempts I’ve made have failed.
Thanks again.
Sorry I updated that link, it should work:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/microsoft-product-activation/phone-activation-windows-vista-7/
If your wifes was an OptiPlex 760, Dell sold it with Windows 7 so the latest BIOS does have the markers for Windows 7 Dell OEM activation. The OptiPlex 745 and 755 do not similar to the Dimension E510.
I would be very cautious of buying software like this:
http://www.buycheapsoftware.com/details~productID~5975.asp
“When buying Microsoft software as a digital download, we recommend that you avoid auction sites and peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing sites. At the moment there are a limited number of sites where you can legally purchase digital downloads of Microsoft software. One example is the online Microsoft Store, where you can buy a wide variety of genuine software and hardware directly from Microsoft (in select markets). Additionally, you can purchase a digital download of Windows at http://www.windows.com/shop.
With the exception of Product Key Cards distributed with Certificates of Authenticity (COA’s), Microsoft does not distribute products keys as standalone products. If you see a listing on an auction site, online classified ad, or other online page advertising product keys, it’s a good indication that these keys are likely stolen or counterfeit.”
http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/howtotell/Software.aspx
i.e. Microsoft don’t simply allow giving out of product keys via telephone.
We were in town today and I looked at my wife’s old computer again and it’s actually a Dimension 9200.
The PAC I bought for the E510 was this one:
http://www.buycheapsoftware.com/details.asp?productID=5748. They’ve been around for a long time and we’ve purchased a lot of software from them personally as well as for my wife’s office an the plaice I used to work as well. The PAC was sent via e-mail and they attached this to the reply I got when I asked them the first time about the first PAC not working:
Product Key : XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-RJ3PX (my X’s)
Validity : Valid
Product ID : XXXXX-OEM-9309671-17961
Activation ID : da22eadd-46dc-4056-a287-f5041c852470
Edition Type : Professional
Description : Windows 7 Professional OEM:COA
Edition ID : X15-37341
Key Type : OEM:COA
Crypto ID : 186
I’ve finally arrived at a point where I can try the phone activation. If it doesn’t work I guess I’m just out of luck on the upgrades and whatever. Just hope I can get my money back on the W7 Pro license.
Thanks again.
I can’t believe it! Using the phone activation procedure the activation was a success! Did it override the BIOS markers or something?
The BIOS SLP activation is the main activation mechanism of the Dell Reinstallation DVD. Inputting the unique 25 digit product key on the COA and activating by phone is a secondary activation mechanism usually reserved to the rare cases when the SLP mechanism doesn’t work. You should be fine provided that site doesn’t sell the same PAC to multiple customers.- I’m still not sure if its a legitimate license you have and have reported the site to Microsoft Support.
Fine by me. I KNOW there’s quite a few that need to be reported on Ebay.
When starting the phone activation procedure how is the, I think, 36 digit code that you read off to Microsoft derived? Does it come from the PAC I tried to use to activate it or the embedded OEM PAC that was not working to begin with?
will this method work with Dell Vostro 1440 laptop. Please reply
The Vostro 1440 came with Windows 7 OEM and its BIOS is valid for Windows 7 so this will work on it.
Philip – great site. Thank you for putting this together.
Unfortunately I am stuck. I feel like I have been going in circles trying to activate Windows 7 on this Machine.
Inspiron 545s Desktop came with Vista Home Premium with a free Upgrade to Windows 7. This worked well for years. After heavy use I was advised to reinstall Windows.
I have gone through reinstalling several times and always find Windows 7 needs to be activated with a product key. No product key given with the Dell upgrade disks. I am back at this same spot now.
I installed Vista first which showed as authentic and activated. Then I used the Dell upgrade disks that were provided originally to upgrade, then installed all of the Windows updates. The machine is working great. But I am stuck with 29 days left and I can not figure out how to activate. I am going nuts. I considered staying with Vista but cant use Office 365, ++
Can you point me in the right direction?
What BIOS revision do you have? You will need to have the latest A12 installed before using the ABR program.
http://downloads.dell.com/bios/I545-A12.EXE
Earlier versions of the BIOS will not be accepted for the system locked preinstallation mechanism of Windows 7.
I do have A12.
If you have BIOS A12 and it still doesn’t activate then Dell hasn’t added the SLP activation mechanism to this machine. Usually if Dell have Windows 7 drivers the latest BIOS should work with the Dell Windows 7 SLP activation.
Upgrade discs should have came with a retail upgrade product key.
The ABR program worked!!! You are the man.
Great! Thanks for posting back your success. 🙂
Hi Philip,
I have a Dell latitude laptop on which I fully erased the Windows 7 with an Arch Linux for two years.
I now want to switch back to Windows 7 but I have nothing backed up from the original Dell install. I also could have flashed the BIOS before even if I don’t remember doing it (does it erase the OEM license?).
Do you think it could be a problem for reactivation? Should I prefer the dell installation media over the retail one when following your “clean install of windows” guide?
By the way, thanks for these awesome guides.
The Dell Windows Reinstallation DVD applies the Activation Mechanism automatically. For retail media you need to use the ABR program to apply the same activation.
The ABR program will work on any Dell BIOS which came with a system shipped by Dell with Windows 7 (including any legitimately updated Dell BIOS). It’ll also work on any Dell systems shipped with Windows 8.0/8.1 Professional.
You should have no problems using either for activation.
Perfect, thank you again !
How will this work on Dell Vostro 220s factory installed VBus OEM COA label with downgraded rights to XP Pro? Never obtained Dell’s FREE Win 7 Pro upgrade disk…..
huskyone
For that model, Dell never released Windows 7 drivers which is why I made an unofficial set:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/driver-sets/vostro-desktops/vostro-220s-windows-7-64-bit/
This means the latest BIOS for that model only has markers to accept the Dell Windows Vista Business SLP key and Windows XP Professional SLP key. i.e. was not upgraded to have Windows 7 Professional markers so a Dell Windows 7 Professional Reinstallation DVD or the ABR program with Dell cert files on a Windows 7 Professional install will be rejected and hence fail to activate.
If you want to run Windows 7 on it you will need a retail license (these are quite pricey as Windows 7 has stopped being sold). It will work with the Windows Vista Business.
My advice is to install Windows 10 Technical Preview and use it to evaluate Windows 10 64 Bit until its finally released. At which point you should be able to purchase Windows 10 at a promotional price.
Thank you Philip. I have purchased a Win 7 Pro OEM from BestBuys. I will try to activate the OS with that OEM Disk Key. Will post results at later time.
It’s a shame Dell doesn’t always appreciate your valuable assistance to us ‘untechies’ at large…
The OEM disc from Best Buy will be a generic OEM disc and not a Dell OEM disc. It therefore won’t require the SLP markers in the BIOS and will activate with its own 25 digit product key. The generic OEM is similar to the retail license however has 2 limitations; once installed on the desktop it is non-transferable (forever tied to the desktops motherboard). The second is that the product key will not work with Microsoft’s Software Recovery Tool (which is pretty non-functional anyway).
The Windows 7 Generic OEM license will be eligible for the free upgrade to Windows 10 in Late Summer.
I recently purchased a new Dell Inspiron 3847 from Amazon. It came with Windows 7 Professional installed, and included a Windows 8.1 disc in the box. The listing said something about a downgrade package. Before I mess up a perfectly functioning Windows 7 system, how do I go about installing 8.1 from the disc? It has no COA numbers anywhere that I have found.
Also, I have no Windows 7 disc, but assume the restore partition currently holds that info. I have never had one of these two OS ‘downgrade’ deals before so I am more than a bit confused.
Thanks for any info.
For Windows 7 Professional the OEM SLP activation is used and if you need to download Windows 7 Professional Media follow the instructions here:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/download-microsoft-windows-and-office/download-microsoft-windows/windows-7-sp1-iso-download/
You need the ABR program and cert files aswell as the .iso as you have no unique Windows 7 Professional product key and must use the OEM SLP. I explain whats going on in the tutorial video. Media made from Dell Backup and Recovery will also work but it depends if you want a clean install or factory settings. If your factory settings are working well theres no need to clean install.
The system should be licensed for Windows 8.1 Professional and the Windows 8.1 Professional product key resides within the system BIOS. A utility like RWEverything can readout the MSDM tab from ACPI tables to get the product key. I explain this in great detail in the tutorial video I made here:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/download-microsoft-windows-and-office/download-microsoft-windows/download-windows-8-1-retail-and-oem-iso/
In general the key should be automatically input and there should be no need for the end user to know it. There are the few (very rare) cases where the BIOS loses the product key so I advise taking a note of it just in case.
Philip Trying to re-activate a Windows 7 Home Premuim install following the installation of SSD on a Studio 1555. Although I installed the Product Key that I recovered Using Belarc I did not notice that it had not been accepted as a valid Product ID. When I was re-installing the machine I used the Windows 7 iso image linked to from this site, but for some reason did not see the instructions for backing up the BIOS Certs. Now when I attempt to re-install I get the error 0xC004F063 Computer BIOS missing required licence. I have attempted to follow the instructions over the ABRBeta but the program failed to run windows reporting that it was not a valid Windows 32 program. (McAfee also wared me that the site was not trusted, but I continued with your directions). I no longer seem to have the COA KEY. I do though still have the orginal OS re-installation CD. Do I have any options that to go and buy another Retail copy of Windows 7? Is there an alternative ABR program available now? Or do I risk it and go on the Windows 10 beta. (but this my wifes machine not mine….)
When I upgraded the same way another Dell machine ealier this year I dont recall such issues.
I advise staying clear from McAfee, it is usually problematic for legitimate things and doesn’t detect actual treats in many cases. You can see negative McAfee reviews all over:
http://download.cnet.com/McAfee-Total-Protection/3000-2239_4-10763479.html
http://www.amazon.com/McAfee-Total-Protection-3PC-2014/product-reviews/B00E6OPDUS
I prefer Malwarebytes’ AntiMalware. McAfee has likely caused some issue with the ABR program hence it not working.
Update your BIOS to the latest version A13. I advise removal of McAfee before updating the BIOS:
http://downloads.dell.com/published/pages/studio-1555.html
Then reattempt using the ABR program with the cert files I list. This will re-apply the OEM SLP. Redownload the files once McAfee has been removed as McAfee has likely corrupted the ABR.exe.
Reinstallation with the Dell OEM Reinstallation DVD will automatically apply the OEM SLP activation mechanism, so thats your alternative to the ABR program.
Also your COA should be under your battery in that model. Dell put it there to prevent it from fading. You can input that key and call Microsoft to activate but I prefer the OEM SLP activation.
I have a Dell Latitude E4300 laptop that came preinstalled with windows 7 32 bit professional. I plan to do a clean install of windows 7 64 bit professional. I already have the retail media. Will this method work to properly activate the 64 bit version of windows or will it only work for the 32 bit version the computer originally came with? I plan to back up the cert and key files first before reformatting the drive but those backups will be from the 32 bit version. How do you suggest I proceed?
It’ll work with either architecture, the activation is identical for both.
Thank you so much for your work and this very informative website!
I have a HP dv9620us. does it have bios markers for both Vista and Windows 7? I had lost my recovery disks sometime ago and found a vista install disk from a Toshiba machine and it workded but now would like to see if could go reinstall all HP original configurations. I noticed on another page that Microsoft broke all Digital River ISO. Does that effect this fix?
I am not as familiar with HP systems as I am with Dell systems. Did it ship with Windows Vista or Windows 7? If it shipped with Windows 7 then it has the BIOS markers for Windows 7.
The Digital River .isos highly influence this fix because they are the only downloadable source of installation media. However if you have the .iso downloaded in advance or a retail Windows 7 Installation DVD to hand it may be used instead.
I just used this to put 64-bit Vista Business on a Dell Latitude E5500 that only shipped with 32-bit media, and it worked! I’m preparing several of these laptops for a client for surplussing and eventual sale and wanted an image that would look as much like the original OOBE as possible, including factory activation. This will be extremely handy!
Unfortunately, the links to the backed up HP certificates have gone dead.
Great glad it helped and glad you had the generic installation media to install with. The OneDrive link to the HP certificates worked just there when I attempted to download them.
For the Latitude E5500 perhaps even Windows 7 64 Bit Professional and the ABR files would work (most these systems were out in Late 2008 and would have been eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 7 Professional) providing the BIOS is updated to the latest version. If you had Windows 7 64 Bit installed then you could even install Dell Backup and Recovery after the system drivers and after applying the Dell OEM logos to make a near identical factory install.
I was able to download and use a Vista Business x64 SP2 ISO from Volume Licensing and apply the methods you described. Microsoft had once said that VLK media can be used to reload a system with an OEM license, you just needed to use the OEM keys and activate. Fortunately, I’ve hoarded several of the Dell Windows 7 x64 restore disks. All my hoarded Vista disks are x86 with SP1.
The Latitudes were purchased in batches, and all with the XP Downgrade option enabled. Some came with Vista Business licenses (and attached COA) and some later units came with 7 Pro licenses (and attached COA), just depending on which phase of the rollout they were purchased. Some of the line of business software applications weren’t qualified for Vista or 7 until XP support was nearly expired. Hell, some of the web-based applications still don’t work with IE 10. If these were going back into service, I’d probably use the Windows 7 disk, claim the licenses were under the Windows 7 Volume License, send them on. But these will be surplussed, so I figured it would just be easier in the long run to load it with the OS indicated on the COA and send them off to their new homes. No support calls for activation issues down the line and such.
I may go looking for the Dell logos and branding information. Getting a proper OOBE was my main concern, including licensing and activation. I do have plenty of the Dell Vista x86 disks, so obtaining the OEM images shouldn’t be difficult. I haven’t had to apply branding since we stopped getting unbranded Dell Optiplex GX series desktops, back when they had the CPS program. Going to have to brush up on that again!
As for the links for the HP certs, I was somehow in an older version of Opera (I keep it around for getting into older routers and such that don’t play well with newer IE or other browsers) which no longer plays nice with OneDrive. When I switched over to IE, I was able to get them. I’ll squirrel those away for the occasional HP that comes through depot.
Amazing, was scratching my head after reformatting the disk of my HP/COMPAQ CQ61 and realising the key on the underneath had worn off.. Now restored with key same as prior to formatting according to Belarc. Saved time and worries, thankyou.
Glad it helped. 🙂
Hi, I have a few Dell Optiplex with SLIC/SLP 2.1 BIOS, and also the Windows 7 reinstallation DVD that came with Optiplex. Should I use ABR-beta and backup-cert.XrML and backup-key.txt ? Can I use the same DVD to reinstall all PCs? I will need to change the key? I would like to do a fresh clean install before upgrading to WIndows 10… Thanks!
The Dell Windows 7 Reinstallation DVD will work with all Optiplex systems newer than 2009 including the OptiPlex 360/760 (if they have the latest BIOS present).
No need to use ABR as the activation mechanism will automatically be applied from the Reinstallation DVD. Don’t change key.
My factory purchased Dell XPS-8100 hard drive died – replaced it with an SSD and reinstalled using Dell supplied OS disc. Windows not auto-activated. I spent over 3 hours with 3 calls EACH to Microsoft AND Dell and had them each pointing the finger at one another (and with most of the tech support reps clueless). I also spent hours searching Google. I finally stumbled across your site. After reading your article, I was up and activated in less than 10 minutes. THANK YOU!!
You’re welcome, I’ve been in that situation before hence the reason I looked for and wrote up these workarounds hopefully things will be better with Windows 10. 🙂
thanks so much for being active on the dell forums & posting this info! my laptop has an SSD, but silly Dell installed the OS onto the HDD… your keys did not work for me, but I still have windows running on the HDD as I slowly migrate (I’ve had the computer 2 years) and so was able to backup my own keys and restore them without a problem 🙂
XPS 8700? Its a known problem with Dell Backup and Recovery and we have made Dell aware of it.
Dell Backup and Recovery by default installs on the largest drive. For a 256 GB SSD and a 2 TB drive if both are installed during the time Dell load the factory image it goes onto the wrong drive.
Follow the instructions here to migrate the factory settings to the correct drive:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/dell-backup-and-recovery-1-8-1-71/
My guide has instructions on multiple drive configurations.
it’s an alienware laptop m14 r2
hello im sanoop, recently i formatted my dell latitude e 6410 laptop.. actually i dont have oem dvd disk and windows product key.. i already noted my windows product key with using a third party software called magical jellybean keyfinder before formatting.. then i installed the same version of windows but later i tried to activate windows but unfortunately it is getting an error.. is there any hope to activate windows on my laptop without purchasing a new windows??
Without Windows 7 Reinstallation/Installation Media there is no way to reload Windows 7. Microsoft have removed the Digital River Downloads and replaced them with a non-functional Microsoft Software Recovery Tool which blocks Dell Windows 7 OEM licenses.
At this stage the only important thing is getting the free upgrade to Windows 10. This can be done via the Windows 10 Insider 10130 .iso:
http://dellwindowsreinstallationguide.com/a-clean-install-of-windows/a-clean-install-of-windows-10/windows-xpvista-%e2%86%92-windows-10-free-upgrade/
However you may need to find this .iso in an unofficial location as Microsoft no longer facilitate its download.
can i download windows 7 pro 64 bit dell oem .iso??
No not from official sources.
Thank you so much! I wasted so much time on the phone and got nowhere, and this tool totally saved me! Now I can stay on the best looking system MS has ever made with no cloud crap from MS.
Hi, I have a Dell Inspiron Mini 10 (1018) that I am attempting to re-install Windows 7 Starter edition on. I have installed Windows with no issues. I am now tripping over the activation process. I have noticed a couple of thing that I am unclear about. When I run the ABR executable it changes OEM product ID to a non OEM product ID and the Dell OEM SLP keys listed above are the same for Windows 7 Starter and Windows 7 Home Basic. Is this behaviour expected? Thanks
Whoops looks like I’ve made a couple of mistakes here…
Open up the backup-key.txt file in notepad and change 36T88-RT7C6-R38TQ-RV8M9-WWTCY (the key for Home Basic) to 36Q3Y-BBT84-MGJ3H-FT7VD-FG72J (the key for Starter). The cert file is the same for all Dell Windows 7 OEM (so can remain unchanged).
Can you let me know if the Product ID becomes XXXXX-OEM-8992707-00082 I think I made a second mistake calling it XXXXX-OEM-8992702-00082.