What is Product Activation?Microsoft product activation is a way of checking that software is legitimately licensed. We created this anti-piracy technology to protect our customers against the risks associated with counterfeit software. Who Does it Apply to?You should always activate your software if you've bought it packaged in a box (a Full Packaged Product, or FPP). This allows you to receive free security and other updates from Microsoft; we do not use your information for marketing purposes. If you bought your software pre-installed on a PC, you may also need to activate it. Some pre-installed software has already been activated by the manufacturer. If you have a volume licence, you don't need to physically activate the software on your individual PCs. Instead you get volume licence CDs which you install with company-wide volume licence keys (VLKs). Individual PCs (FPP/OEM) Product activation works by validating that the software's product key, required as part of product installation, has not been used on more PCs than the software's End User Licence Agreement (EULA) allows. In general: • Windows Vista can be installed on one PC Product key information, in the form of the product ID, is sent along with a 'hardware hash' (a number generated from the PC’s hardware configuration) to Microsoft's activation system. Activation is completed online or by a telephone call to a customer service representative. Product activation discourages piracy by limiting the number of times a product key can be activated on the same PC and/or different PCs. Visit our anti-piracy area. Volume Licensing Volume Licensing is now activated under a programme called Volume Activation 2.0. This gives you two different activation options.
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