Windows genuine update xp

Learn more. Genuine versions of Windows are published by Microsoft, properly licensed, and supported by Microsoft or a trusted partner. You'll need a genuine version of Windows to access the optional updates and downloads that help you get the most from your PC.

Look for key features of genuine Windows software, such as the Certificate of Authenticity COA , a proof of license label, and an edge-to-edge hologram. For more information, visit the Microsoft How to Tell website.

Your safest option is always to buy Windows from Microsoft, or to buy a PC with Windows preinstalled directly from Microsoft or a store you know and trust. If you're seeing these notifications, it's likely that your copy of Windows wasn't properly activated. Click the notification and follow the steps to repair Windows or buy a genuine version of Windows if you find out the software is counterfeit.

Note: In Windows 8. You can reset it, but it will return to black every 60 minutes until the issue is resolved.

Windows will always be able to get critical security updates, even if your version isn't genuine. However, other updates and benefits are available exclusively for genuine Windows software. It pairs your product key or digital entitlement with your hardware configuration. Usually, you only need to activate Windows once, unless you make a significant hardware change. When your PC downloads updates, Windows checks to see if your product key or digital entitlement is valid.

If it is, you're eligible to receive the latest updates from Microsoft. If it's not, your PC is running non-genuine Windows. To learn how to activate Windows 10 or Windows 11, see Activate Windows. To learn how to activate Windows 8. Usually, a copy of Windows can only be installed on one PC.

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Improve this answer. Evan Evan 1, 1 1 gold badge 10 10 silver badges 12 12 bronze badges. I just booted windows again after not having used it since around asking this question I think , and using AutoPatcher worked flawlessly. Molly Molly David Spillett David Spillett I've never really found WGA that intrusive. Yes, you're viewed with suspicion, but considering the levels of piracy for Windows and for Office even more so , you have to at least partially understand why it's being done.

The reason given was I have heard nothing but bad things about wga Since the only thing WGA does is phone home and share machine gossip, then "bad things" are phoning home, and sharing machine gossip. And, he does bring up what might be a valid objection to downloading and manual installations: a recipe to be hacked or otherwise suffer from malware infestations Assuming one downloaded only from MS, I can't see how doing it manually would be any more likely than the more usual MS automatic updates to carry any hacks or infestations.

Hiero2 - running WinXP and Linux mixed environment. Synetech Interesting link, although the link itself contains a ']' character too much. I agree that Linux is a useful alternative for those who dislike "big brother stuff", but that's not what this topic is about at all. I answered the question - I explained that trying to avoid WGA is virtually pointless. My point to linux is that it is the one without the "xGA" type of thing.

One story I've heard from several readers is that they bought a retail "upgrade" installation of Windows XP Pro from a reputable source to upgrade a PC that came with Windows XP Home, and got into trouble after installing it. There's no way that all these copies of Windows XP Pro are counterfeit. And these people have paid the normal price for the software. It should not be up to customers to determine whether software is valid at retail. Microsoft should be able to go after counterfeiters on its own, without getting retail buyers involved.

Despite the possibility of scary messaging, WGA Notifications doesn't have much of an enforecment bite at present. But might that change in the future? Microsoft has said it won't "turn off" illegitimate copies of Windows. But could the software giant be interpreting that literally? The more likely preventive measure probably isn't turning off the computer. It's not hard to imagine that WGA might direct its predecessor, Windows Product Activation WPA , to lock you out of your computer until such time that you can present a valid product key.

When WPA kicks in, the computer boots to a login screen that doesn't let you use the computer until a valid activation code is entered. In Vista, this WPA screen links to an option that lets you buy a new copy of Windows, even extending use of Internet Explorer for that purpose, though you can't actually login to Windows prior to successful activation. Microsoft has more than once alluded to the fact that it's reserving the right to require the installation of WGA Notifications on all computers, possibly sometime early this fall.

It's simply not known yet how Vista's version of WGA will behave. At this writing, it is possible to both remove WGA Notifications and also to prevent it from attempting to reinstall after you have removed it. There are many sites on the Internet that purport to help you remove WGA Notifications from your system. Microsoft has recently changed some things about this software, and many of those instructions could be out of date.

I have yet to see a definitive work on this subject, and I don't consider this one to be either. Since WGA is still in beta, and Microsoft is still developing it, I suspect that the best set of instructions is yet to come.

A large portion of my instructions are based on Microsoft's How to disable or uninstall the pilot version of Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications KnowledgeBase article, which showed a July 12, , revision date at the time that I prepared this article. It should be noted that many of the simplistic methods of halting WGA Notifications, such as blocking it with your firewall or renaming the WgaLogon. Thank you! Any more feedback? The more you tell us the more we can help.

Can you help us improve? Resolved my issue. Clear instructions. Easy to follow.