(no subject)

[poprockgrrl.livejournal.com]

Dear Microsoft,
Thanks for changing the way you do Windows activation and doing away with your online activation. I have 400 computers to support and we image them all. Now, I have to sit on hold forever every time I need to activate something. And since I'm in the middle of deploying 50 new machines, I can't tell you how much I appreciate that. Now I have plenty of time to read LJ and surf the web while I sit on hold.

Blah.

EDIT- we just found a workaround. Since we sys prepped the image and checked the box for preactivation so now when we get the activation window, if we tell it "remind me later", we can log in and all is well. It's pre activated and I don't have to be on the phone forever.

Comments

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

Change your licensing with them and you can get one serial number for all PCs.

[jecook]

Heh.

I pitched that to my boss.

His quote was "It's too expensive. I can get the OEM version from [web provider] for $180, whereas we have to pay full retail for the corporate licensed edition."

As a result, I have a machine sitting on my desk that I'm just about ready to park a warez product key on because they keep wanting me to try and extract the license key from.... ::headdesk repeatedly::

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

Tell your boss that it may be cheaper to buy OEM, it will cost a lot more in the long run due to time spent doing each PCs, lost man hours, phone bill (if call not local), etc.

[sunfell.livejournal.com]

Not to mention what it will cost when Microsoft inevitably discovers that you are not running a 'genuine copy' and shuts you down. They're really cracking down on that.

[jecook]

The company we are getting them from is a authorized M$ provider. I'm not certain about how the EULA for OEM version of office work, but I don't think it's tied to hardware.

as for the audit, We are already in trouble, because I'm "pretty sure" that there are some license abuses going on somewhere. That's one reason why it took two days for the staff at the corporate office to cough up the key I was requesting...

[eightofspades.livejournal.com]

Actually it *is* tied to hardware.

Microsoft clarified that in response to this recent change. The OEM licenses live and die with the hardware they are attached to.

The phone change is how they're going to start detecting that.

[jecook]

Tried that, he shot it down.

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

Bah, Bash his head with your keyboard

[jecook]

The kicker was that it was either get a corporate site license of office, OR new machines, I think. I'll opt for the new machines. I can't keep these Pentium 2 critters running forever...

[compwizrd.livejournal.com]

it's just about time to start using the key generator to make some corporate keys, and then just keep a record of those keys along with the corporate key...

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

But if the external software auditor turns up, they can land the company with a massive fine.

Not worth the risk.

[compwizrd.livejournal.com]

even if i have the legit OEM copy of windows, with COA sticker applied?

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

Not 100% too sure. I think they are more interested to see what you *installed*, rather than providing proof of what you have.

They want to catch someone who installed and used illegal copy of software with illegal serial number.

Don't quote me on this.

[inahandbasket]

ghost is your friend.

[poprockgrrl.livejournal.com]

We do use ghost. Fortunately, we sys prepped with the preactivation turned on or we would be sitting on the phone forever.

[tsutton.livejournal.com]

But 'Remind me later' means exactly as it is... it will still pop up to remind you and will stop the PC from working after a specific days.

[poprockgrrl.livejournal.com]

except that when we run the activation thing, it tells us that it's already activated because of the way we ran sys prep. we set the date to 60 days out in the bios and it still tells us it's activated.

[eliz.livejournal.com]

I got sick when my boyfriend told me about M$'s changes-- I respect they want to crack down on pirated copies (I will give them that) but this is ridiculous. Sitting on the phone? Tell me-- are they outsourcing the call center to somewhere out of the states? *rolling eyes* That's all I'd need to deal with, ESL script-driven kiddies who are difficult at best to understand and try and get a key from? GRRRRR.

Thank GOD I do not do hardware system support- I'd be killing someone shortly...

[poprockgrrl.livejournal.com]

it is a phone thing if your code works, but ours weren't working so we had to sit on hold until one of the outsourcing people came on the line. thankfully, we figured out the workaround.

[eightofspades.livejournal.com]

The changes don't affect VLK/corporate copies. They're designed to crack down on the people using OEM keys from vendors on machines asides from the original - in particular, said vendors have been putting one or two copies of OEM keys on batches of 50 -100, and then selling them.

[gholam.livejournal.com]

Uh, I'm not sure what it's like in the states, but over here in Israel, phone activation system is automatic - you punch in the number through the phone keypad, it reads you the activation key. No hold time, no hassle. Still take a couple minutes, but not really *that* bad.

Also, since when does open license price equal full retail? Last I checked, it was the same as OEM...

[jecook]

depends on how many seats one is buying.

in my companie's case, we would only be buying a maximim of 250 licenses. Apparently, no discount is given for that quantity... ::sigh::

[abstrak-tokatl.livejournal.com]

i say linux.

[tjernobyl.livejournal.com]

really, it's the only humane choice...

[poprockgrrl.livejournal.com]

if it were up to me, we'd be an all mac shop. as it is, we're about half macs. the university will never go for linux. it doesn't meet up to their "standards". blah.

[tjernobyl.livejournal.com]

I'm to the point now of recommending Macs whenever I can. Inflicting a Windows PC upon someone in these days of virii and spyware is cruelty... You shouldn't have to avoid certain webpages in fear of infection... You shouldn't have to get your system wiped every three months... You shouldn't have to live in fear.