[BC] Another computer problem

[RichardBJohnson at comcast.net]

A friend game me an 6 year old "Compaq Presario" desktop computer with the proviso that I rescue his photographs from it. There were too many to copy to a CD/DVD so I copied them all to an external USB drive from which I will copy them to his new computer. The computer uses Windows XP.

I had a great problem recovering the files because the computer had been overrun by spyware. I needed to install his hard drive on another machine as a secondary drive so nothing on that drive would execute. After I recovered his files, I formatted the drive, actually removed all partition information so a subsequent OS install would run without a hitch.

Using the CD/ROM that came with the Compag, I installed the original version of Windows XP. The CD/ROM contained the license code on a label. The computer also had an identical label attached so I know it was the correct OS that came with the machine. Anyway, the OS installed with no problems and the computer boots fine.

However, the software wants me to "register" or "activate" it with Microsoft. I configured the network and tried to activate it. The Microsoft server refused to activate it, claiming that it was an invalid operating system. I then tried the "telephone" activation procedure and that didn't work either. The "voice" claimed that the software was not "valid." The voice procedure no longer allows one to talk to a human. Does anybody know what to do? The software claims that I only have 10 days to activate the OS!

I tried to discover what would happen if I didn't "activate" the software. Using the BIOS, I set the clock to next December and booted the machine. The sign-on logo appeared and would not me or the "administrator" to log on. Furthermore, to undo the problem I created by setting the clock in the future, required me to reinstall the OS all over again. This has made me so angry that I needed to lock the computer up in my shed, out-of-sight, or I would have smashed it to bits, absolutely losing control.

Does anyone know the correct 'regedit' commands to "activate" the OS? 

Cheers,
Richard B. Johnson
Book: http://www.AbominableFirebug.com/