Each year, millions of consumers worldwide find themselves the victims of software piracy or licensing issues. There are different solutions available depending on which type of software licenses you need:

For commercial or government customers who want to legalize Windows licenses through Volume Licensing, the Get Genuine Windows Agreement (GGWA) has two legalization options: GGWA for Small and Medium Organizations and GGWA for Large Organizations. GGWA provides a full Windows 7 Professional operating system license with downgrade rights. To learn more about GGWA and find if your organization qualifies, contact your software reseller.

The Get Genuine Windows Agreement for Academic (GGWA-A) is a cost-effective way for qualified academic institutions to fully license their Windows operating system software on existing Windows PCs. Institutions that lack the proper Windows license for any of their existing PCs, may acquire full Windows licenses for Windows 7 through GGWA-A. Once the underlying operating system is fully licensed through GGWA-A, the institution is eligible to acquire the Windows 7 Upgrade license* through Academic Volume Licensing Programs.

*Includes the right to deploy a downgrade version.

The best and most cost-effective way to acquire Windows software is preinstalled on a new PC. GGK is available for use on fully assembled PCs with a previously installed counterfeit, pirated, or otherwise illegal or unlicensed copy of Windows. GGK is currently available for Windows Vista Business and Windows XP Professional and will be available in Windows 7 Professional after January 1, 2010. You can order GGK from a reseller. GGK allows you to:

• Resolve a mislicensing or non-genuine situation in an easy, anonymous, and cost effective way.
• Acquire authentic, properly licensed software with access to the latest features, security, and support.
• Access important genuine updates, downloads, and premium add-ons.

The license acquired with the purchase of a new PC with Windows software preinstalled cannot be used to correct an improperly licensed PC. The following table illustrates the differences between the Get Genuine Kit and a license obtained with a new PC purchase.

Get Genuine Online Kit /Windows Genuine Advantage Kit is available worldwide as an online solution for consumers that fail online validation. If you access downloads on the Microsoft Download Center or on the Microsoft Windows Update Web site, you may be prompted to complete the Windows Genuine Advantage validation check process. The WGA Validation Tool performs a validation check to verify that your copy of Windows is genuine. If the copy of Windows does not pass the validation check, you receive a message that states why it failed, information about other steps to try, and how you can obtain a genuine copy of Windows.