Solved Use Different product Key

jeepers

New Member
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6
I Had Windows 8 Pro with Media Center Installed, I did the Upgrade to Windows 8.1 Pro via the Windows Store (silly me :() and of course i soon found out that i could not Create a Rescue/Recovery disc as i usually do, I contacted Microsoft and was told that i cannot create an Removable Recovery disk and if i had problems i had to reinstall Windows 8 then re-do the upgrade to 8.1 .

I followed the Windows Eight Forums tutorial on how to get a Legitimate copy of the Windows 8.1 .iso, it worked brilliantly, I now have Windows 8.1 on DVD.

I think i might have made a mistake when i entered the Product code in the download Windows 8 step ( i used my genuine Windows 8 key ), But when i originally installed Windows 8 after a week or so i took advantage of Microsofts offer to install Windows Media Centre for $9.00 ( i think ) and i when i had installed it i got a different Product key to the one i installed with.

The Windows 8.1 on DVD is using the original Windows 8 Key, So If some Catastrophe befalls my Laptop and i have to do a reinstall (clean...?) Once i have done the reinstall can i then change the Product Key to the one i'm using now (Media Center). Or will i have to re=download WMC again.

Sorry for being long winded...:D

Cheers
Jeepers
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    AMD K140 Cores 2 Threads 2 Name AMD K140 Package Socket FT1 BGA Technology 40nm
    Motherboard
    Manufacturer Gateway Model SX2110G (P0)
    Memory
    Type DDR3 Size 8192 MBytes DRAM Frequency 532.3 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics
    Sound Card
    AMD High Definition Audio Device Realtek High Definition Audio USB Audio Device
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name 1950W on AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x76
    Screen Resolution
    Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    AMD K140
    Cores 2
    Threads 2
    Name AMD K140
    Package Socket FT1 BGA
    Technology 40nm
    Specification AMD E1-1200 APU with Radeon HD Graphics
    Family F
    Extended Family 14
    Model 2
    Extended Model 2
    Stepping 0
    Revision ON-C0
    Instruction
    Browser
    Opera 24.0
    Antivirus
    Avast Internet Security
You could image your drives & avoid all that.

Macrium Reflect FREE Edition - Information and download

I have Macrium (Free) installed, but i all i want is some sort Rescue/Recovery DVD, i did an Image of my drive and it was 72Gb. I have 3 partitions - a 1.4Gb System partition (with no drive letter) a 64Gb partition( C: ) and a 10Gb Recovery partition (no drive letter).

If i just copied the 1.4Gb and the 10GB partitions to a 16Gb USB drive, would that allow me to do a clean install if something went wrong with my HDD and i had to format and reinstall.
cheers
Jeepers
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Your specs say Toshiba Qosmio F750.
I take it this a Pre-installed with Windows 7.

If i just copied the 1.4Gb and the 10GB partitions to a 16Gb USB drive, would that allow me to do a clean install if something went wrong with my HDD and i had to format and reinstall.
NO.

The Toshiba Recovery DVD's will reinstall Windows 7.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
You can install Windows 8.1 and activate with your 8 product code. Then add Media Center though add features just like you did originally. Windows 8 and 8.1 will not accept a Media Center key during the install.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
Thank You All very much for the helpful replies.
theog...Yes when i bought the Laptop it had Win 7 pre-installed, with the option to upgrade to Win 8 Pro when it was released,which i did and added the media Center for $9.99.
I thought that when i upgraded to Win 8 it would also upgrade the recovery partition on the HDD...? So would it not also have been upgraded when i installed Win 8.1 from the Store.
.
Alphanumeric, thank you I did not even think of that.

Cheers
Jeepers
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
The Toshiba Recovery Partition is for the Pre-installed OS, yours is Windows 7 only.

For a Toshiba Recovery Partition to be Windows 8.1, you would need buy a Toshiba with Windows 8.1 Pre-installed.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
From what I'm reading Upgrading from 8.0 to 8.1 though the store usually brakes the factory recovery partition functionality. Your recovery would have been for Windows 7 anyway. What did you get in the way of Windows 8 install media? If it was custom OEM install media from the PC manufacturer it may have created a Windows 8 factory recovery partition. If your Windows 8 product code is a full retail code you can download 8.1 via this, http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/18309-windows-8-windows-8-1-iso-download-create.html?filter. Then http://www.eightforums.com/installa...retail-windows-8-1-windows-8-product-key.html. And then enter your MC key though the add features. http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/6673-add-features-windows-8-a.html
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I,m Slowly getting this....:shock:
Alphanumeric...I downloaded Windows 8 Pro from Microsoft ( not the Windows Store ) using the code on the upgrade offer i got when i bought the Laptop and afterwards ordered the Windows 8 Discs from them.
I have a retail Windows 8 key and have all ready downloaded the 8.1 iso to DVD, I have a fully activated Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center that i'm using on the Laptop now.

So if i am reading this right the recovery partition on the HDD is still a Windows 7 , if so its no good to me now that i have 8.1 installed, so it should be safe to delete it......? I also have a 3.05Gb ESD folder on the C: drive and i should be able to delete that as well....?. If i have to reinstall Windows for any reason i can use the 8.1 DVD cant i....?

I was quite happy using Windows and Creating a recovery disc whenever i upgraded, until now, Microsoft have changed the way of upgrading the O/S and seen not fit to allow users to create recovery media.

cheers
Jeepers
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
I,m Slowly getting this....:shock:
Alphanumeric...I downloaded Windows 8 Pro from Microsoft ( not the Windows Store ) using the code on the upgrade offer i got when i bought the Laptop and afterwards ordered the Windows 8 Discs from them.
I have a retail Windows 8 key and have all ready downloaded the 8.1 iso to DVD, I have a fully activated Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center that i'm using on the Laptop now.

So if i am reading this right the recovery partition on the HDD is still a Windows 7 , if so its no good to me now that i have 8.1 installed, so it should be safe to delete it......? I also have a 3.05Gb ESD folder on the C: drive and i should be able to delete that as well....?. If i have to reinstall Windows for any reason i can use the 8.1 DVD cant i....?

I was quite happy using Windows and Creating a recovery disc whenever i upgraded, until now, Microsoft have changed the way of upgrading the O/S and seen not fit to allow users to create recovery media.

cheers
Jeepers

If you've burned the 8.1 DVD, yes you can delete the ESD folder. Your factory recovery partition is useless too so it can go. If you buy a Retail version of Windows your DVD is your recovery media. If your Windows is pre installed OEM, its up to the OEM manufacturer to provide recovery media or a means of creating the recovery media. You can clean install 8.1 from the DVD, just keep in mind that it won't accept your 8 product code for installation. You'll have to install with a generic 8.1 code and then activate with your 8 code. http://www.eightforums.com/installa...retail-windows-8-1-windows-8-product-key.html
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I,m Slowly getting this....:shock:
Alphanumeric...I downloaded Windows 8 Pro from Microsoft ( not the Windows Store ) using the code on the upgrade offer i got when i bought the Laptop and afterwards ordered the Windows 8 Discs from them.
I have a retail Windows 8 key and have all ready downloaded the 8.1 iso to DVD, I have a fully activated Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center that i'm using on the Laptop now.

So if i am reading this right the recovery partition on the HDD is still a Windows 7 , if so its no good to me now that i have 8.1 installed, so it should be safe to delete it......? I also have a 3.05Gb ESD folder on the C: drive and i should be able to delete that as well....?. If i have to reinstall Windows for any reason i can use the 8.1 DVD cant i....?

I was quite happy using Windows and Creating a recovery disc whenever i upgraded, until now, Microsoft have changed the way of upgrading the O/S and seen not fit to allow users to create recovery media.

cheers
Jeepers

The 3.05Gb ESD folder is the Recovery media.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
I,m Slowly getting this....:shock:
Alphanumeric...I downloaded Windows 8 Pro from Microsoft ( not the Windows Store ) using the code on the upgrade offer i got when i bought the Laptop and afterwards ordered the Windows 8 Discs from them.
I have a retail Windows 8 key and have all ready downloaded the 8.1 iso to DVD, I have a fully activated Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center that i'm using on the Laptop now.

So if i am reading this right the recovery partition on the HDD is still a Windows 7 , if so its no good to me now that i have 8.1 installed, so it should be safe to delete it......? I also have a 3.05Gb ESD folder on the C: drive and i should be able to delete that as well....?. If i have to reinstall Windows for any reason i can use the 8.1 DVD cant i....?

I was quite happy using Windows and Creating a recovery disc whenever i upgraded, until now, Microsoft have changed the way of upgrading the O/S and seen not fit to allow users to create recovery media.

cheers
Jeepers

If you've burned the 8.1 DVD, yes you can delete the ESD folder. Your factory recovery partition is useless too so it can go. If you buy a Retail version of Windows your DVD is your recovery media. If your Windows is pre installed OEM, its up to the OEM manufacturer to provide recovery media or a means of creating the recovery media. You can clean install 8.1 from the DVD, just keep in mind that it won't accept your 8 product code for installation. You'll have to install with a generic 8.1 code and then activate with your 8 code. http://www.eightforums.com/installa...retail-windows-8-1-windows-8-product-key.html

Hells Teeth why is Microsoft making it so difficult to do things, Thanks for the link i copied the generic key for 8.1 Pro, now i'm going to print them all and put them somewhere safe.

I ran the Toshiba Recovery Media creator and it said it could not find a Recovery partition on the HDD, so i guess the upgrade to Windows 8 did upgrade the Partition.
cheers
Jeepers
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
so i guess the upgrade to Windows 8 did upgrade the Partition.

NO, Windows 8 made the Recovery Partition UNUSEABLE.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
Double post....:shock:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Qosmio F750
    CPU
    i7
    Motherboard
    Toshiba
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia and Intel HD Graphics
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
You may be able to use the recovery partition after all.
Install a boot extender like Plop Boot, or the version that comes with EasyBCD.
The boot extender allows you to boot from any partition.
If your recovery partition is the first partition, it will contain a bootloader to load a WinPE MININT to a ramdisk and start the recovery process. Even if it is a hidden OEM type partition, it will still boot. The first thing it does is wipe the MBR on Active Partition 2 in advance of formatting and writing a factory image to the drive. So if you do do this, either mean it to perform a system recovery, or be prepared to spend time in repairing the Windows 8 installation that will be damaged.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP COMPAQ Presario CQ57
    CPU
    AMD E- 300 APU with Radion HD Graphics 1.30GHz
    Motherboard
    inbuilt
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI
    Sound Card
    High Definition Audio on-board
    Monitor(s) Displays
    notebook
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    Seagate ST9500325AS
    Google drive 15GB
    Skydrive 25GB
    BT Cloud
    PSU
    external 20v
    Case
    Laptop
    Cooling
    pretty good
    Keyboard
    inbuilt
    Mouse
    touchpad
    Internet Speed
    BT Infinity Unlimited - 80 up 20 down =70/16 really
    Browser
    Chrome Canary usually
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender and Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    no Start menu modifications
    Upgraded with no issues to 8.0 and to 8.1
You could image your drives & avoid all that.

Macrium Reflect FREE Edition - Information and download

I have Macrium (Free) installed, but i all i want is some sort Rescue/Recovery DVD, i did an Image of my drive and it was 72Gb. I have 3 partitions - a 1.4Gb System partition (with no drive letter) a 64Gb partition( C: ) and a 10Gb Recovery partition (no drive letter).

If i just copied the 1.4Gb and the 10GB partitions to a 16Gb USB drive, would that allow me to do a clean install if something went wrong with my HDD and i had to format and reinstall.
cheers
Jeepers

No.
You need to image ALL your local drives.

I just had a major problem.
I was installing a backup of my drives & the computer came unplugged.
That really screwed things up.

I had a system repair DVD I had made & booted from it.
I got recovery options.

After hours & hours of trying to get it to boot normally, I accidentally left the Reflect image usb in the port & tried rebooting with the repair DVD & clicked on the Macrium option again & it finally worked. :party:

I installed the full backup image with success.
I then clicked the option to fix boot up issues & it prompted me to restart.

Everything is back to normal now. :)

This was a nightmare.
Without the full Macrium backup image & the fix boot up problems option, I would be very,very sad.

One lesson learned is to check on the power cords & such to make sure they are firmly plugged in before operating your computer.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    AMD K140 Cores 2 Threads 2 Name AMD K140 Package Socket FT1 BGA Technology 40nm
    Motherboard
    Manufacturer Gateway Model SX2110G (P0)
    Memory
    Type DDR3 Size 8192 MBytes DRAM Frequency 532.3 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics
    Sound Card
    AMD High Definition Audio Device Realtek High Definition Audio USB Audio Device
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name 1950W on AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x76
    Screen Resolution
    Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    AMD K140
    Cores 2
    Threads 2
    Name AMD K140
    Package Socket FT1 BGA
    Technology 40nm
    Specification AMD E1-1200 APU with Radeon HD Graphics
    Family F
    Extended Family 14
    Model 2
    Extended Model 2
    Stepping 0
    Revision ON-C0
    Instruction
    Browser
    Opera 24.0
    Antivirus
    Avast Internet Security
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