This is REALLY weird, Vista users must read, this happened to you?

[Zombie Ade]

I just got back home, my PC has been on for a few hours ( I dont turn it off much )
In the system tray I got a balloon telling me that `Due to hardware changes I must revalidate my copy of Vista`

`Hardware changes`? I have made NO hardware changes.
Oh well, just reactivate it I guess.

Wrong! I get told that my key is already in use and that I must purchase another one.

I have Vista Ultimate 32bit OEM.

It tells me I have three days! I`m off to google some help now, but thought I`d see if anyone here has had the same problem.

The last thing of any major note that I did was to install a VIsta patch that was recommended to do before I played the HellGate : London demo. It said it was to do with the video card memory been imaged in the PC RAM or something like that.
That was yesterday and I have rebooted twice since then. This `reactivation` problem has literally only just happened.

Strange.

[Timmy]

You should have gone with XP

In B4 Macfags

[Zombie]

oh my, i havent had vista but thats happened to me before, once, in XP

whered you get your oem CD? from a retail store or newegg or something? I think you should call their customer support and say you need a new cd and serial key

[Zombie Ade]

whered you get your oem CD?
I got it online from Novatech.com.
I had just put together a new PC so I`m completely entitled to use an OEM copy.
Its odd that I was told I had made a hardware change though. Thats whats bugging me the most.

Does this mean if I change my CPU later on to a Q6600 then I`ll get the same thing happen?

/edit
Bit of an anti-climax - I rebooted and VIsta isnt complaining any more about activation, I can check for updates etc.
No doubt it will come back and haunt me in three days time!

[Shrubberyjsc]

Weird! It's The Man trying to rob you!

=O

[USS_Stud]

Upgrade to XP.

[Zombie Ade]

Upgrade to XP.
To be honest I`d prefer to stick with XP - but the marketing ploy of DX10 got me good!

Only a couple more weeks until I get to play the game I made the change for - Crysis.
Thing is , after reading some stuff about the DX10 in Hellgate: London I`m not so sure its as good as its cracked up to be.
I cant believe that DX10 games seem to have a lower framerate than the DX9 versions at same details settings. I thought DX10 was more optimised than DX9 and should therefore be faster.

I dont see why M$ couldnt release DX10 for XP. I guess its down to money again, and how much more they can make by doing it Vista only.

[Graf Irrationale Zahl]

Using MonopolySoft OSs can sometimes be very frustrating ... I don't have any experiences with VISTA, but I guess lots of things work same with XP:


1.) [most likely] When you install a legal copy of XP you have to register it online to participate in updates. If you use the same CD for another computer and try to register it ones again, it won't work. Same if you 'deinstall' XP, e.g. replace your motherboard with a different one and install and register XP again:
The registration site recognizes, that your hardware has changed and forbids online registration (in the first case the 2nd computer has different hardware characteristics and is therefore perceived as the original one with different hardware.)
This safety precaution is due to the prevention of multiple use of one OS-disk. But it is ABSOLUTELY LEGAL to delete your OS, build up a new hardware with the SAME computer and reuse your original OS.
NOTE: In every country MonopolySoft has a customer service which you can CALL when you want to re-register your OS, you will have to call that number (google for it) tell a nice female call-agent your WWWW-XXXX-YYYY-ZZZZ code and she will give you a new registration code.

2.) Yes, I have read your thread and noticed, that you didn't changed your hardware =). Installing DirectX10.0 is changing major drivers and can therefore appear that 'new hardware' has been installed to your system. I haven't studied IT, so I'm not a professional, but I think this is possible. If so, you have to do step 1.).

3.) [unlikely] You have been a victim of hacking and someone stole your WWWW-XXXX-YYYY-ZZZZ code, registered and you are now f*cked. If so you should try to CALL MonopolySoft and find out if there is a way to prove that you own the original copy and not the student in China, who is laughing his ass off.

4.) [likely] FISTA is new and new products of MS are always sh*t (= full of bugs). I can imagine that installing the Hellgate Demo causes trouble and hardware conflicts. Best things to do:
- deinstall London:Hellgate (does it work now?)
- reinstall DirectX10.0 (does it work now?)

If not, then you can use SYSTEM RESTORE (if you haven't turned it off) and go back to the last working status. It should solve your problem.

... if not, this could help you to sue MonopolySoft:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070128-8717 .html (http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070128-8717.html)
http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_upgr ade_clean.asp (http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/winvista_upgrade_clean.asp)
http://news.com.com/Microsoft+limits+Vista+transfe rs/2100-1016_3-6126379.html?tag=newsmap (http://news.com.com/Microsoft+limits+Vista+transfers/2100-1016_3-6126379.html?tag=newsmap)
http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/5450/53/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6309651.stm

[Zombie Ade]

I`m going to have to do something soon, the message has just come up again. I thought it had gone.
Bugger.

Just tried a system restore and that didnt work.

In the end, done the phone activation, which failed, and was put through to a guy in India.
He sounded nervous and apologetic when I told him I had done nothing to my PC and this reactivation window appeared.
He told me not to worry and that this can happen when installing software. Strange, I thought it was only hardware changes that needed you to reactivate.

Anyway, he gave me a reactivation number and all is working fine now.
Hope I dont have to go through all this again when I get a new CPU.
Just odd how it happened with no change in my system configuration, could it be an `undocumented feature`? :)

[Teknobry]

Was going to say, if you have a legal version of vista, fear not.

Although problems like this do occur, a phonecall usually sorts it out, and as you've found, the staff tend to put it right pretty quickly.

You'll hear rumours like "if you upgrade 3 times you'll have to buy a new copy of vista!1!" well, b0ll0cks, all you need to do is phone up and tell them what happened and they'll unlock it.
Its just more attempts to stop piracy.