Regardless of what is currently on the PC, the COA sticker would tell which OS was originally installed on the laptop and the product key would be good for activating a new installation of that OS. An .iso of e.g. Windows 7 is easy to download from the web.The OP said he bought the laptop with Windows 10 already installed. So maybe he does not know what OS was on it before.
If the laptop originally came with Windows 7 pre-installed then yes, there would be a product key on the back. The only problem would be if the previous owner removed it before he sold the laptop. In that case the OP will have to have a valid copy of Windows 7 with a valid product key.Regardless of what is currently on the PC, the COA sticker would tell which OS was originally installed on the laptop and the product key would be good for activating a new installation of that OS. An .iso of e.g. Windows 7 is easy to download from the web.
That is actually 'illegal'. That would be like taking out the RAM and selling it as a functioning PC.The only problem would be if the previous removed it before he sold the laptop
But some people do remove the product keys or stickers from the laptop. I was not aware that it was actually illegal to do so.That's news to me.That is actually 'illegal'. That would be like taking out the RAM and selling it as a functioning PC.
Oh I didn't know that.It is illegal because the product key on the COA sticker is an itegral part of the PC - and it is the only legal key for your OS. The OEM key with which the OS was installed at the factory is just a generic key that the OEMs use for mass activation. It does not belong to your PC.
No when you do a clean install of Windows 7 or 8 from the DVD the activation is not automatic. On Windows 7 you must enter your product key once Windows is installed. Then it will activate as long as it is valid and you have not used it on any other computes.What you say is correct. If you have a key for another Windows edition, you can install that - or Linux. But if you want to reinstall the OS that came with the PC free of charge, then the key of the COA sticker counts. Unless you reinstall from the recovery partition. Then the activation is automatic.
Btw - PCs with Windows 8.1 do not have a COA sticker. The OS key is stored in the BIOS.
The 'automatic' referred to a reinstall from the recovery partition. Else you are right.No when you do a clean install of Windows 7 or 8 from the DVD the activation is not automatic
We probably scared him/her away, LOL.Where is the OP? It seems he has quite this thread