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Name: XpUser
I had trouble using HP recovery CD set on a replacement HD. The original HD died after many years of service.
No matter what I do none of the CD will work. I then chatted with HP Support online. After a lengthy dialogue the technician mentioned something I never heard before - HP HD tattoo.
The technician explained that in order for the recovery CD to work on a replacement HD, a DMI utility (proprietary & not available to the public) must be first used.
Guess what - the only thing that I can do is to carry this poor girl's Pavilion over to BB, CompUSA, Circuit City, or any authorized service provider and then be charged a "nominal fee" to have the HD tattooed.
What a f*king ripoff with those OEM PCs!
i_XpUser
At least this tattoo bulls*t isn't new. To better understand the conspiracy of OEM System builders like HP and its partnership with approved service providers .. read THIS thread.
i_XpUser
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HP and Compaq Desktop PCs - Recovering the System after the Hard Drive Is Replaced
Remember, truth is relative - depending on who is selling it & to whom. BTW, the link directly from above was from your originally referenced page.
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'What a f*king ripoff with those OEM PCs!'
you get what you pay for.
and isn't $249 (hp tattoo street price) a great deal for 5 min. work? think of all the jobs you're so generously supporting LOL
but never mind the tattoo ... this only affects the original (bloated) hp recovery disks. simply use the original license for a clean installation and you'll get that wonderful feeling of a fresh OS which ain't loaded with a bunch of most likely outdated cheap add on programs. :-)
Today's subliminal thought is: 'Calm down ... it's only ones and zeros.'
icq 10183575
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XpUser-I found this. It may work. Also a ghost clone may work. Worth a try.
Yes, you own the OS and shouldn't have to pay again. Now that you have the PC running with the original disk, install the replacement hard disk as an additional drive; do not remove the original hard drive. Start Windows and insert the 'install' cd that came with the new hard disk. If this is a Maxtor HDD, the 'installation' program works well from windows. Follow the instructions to set up the new HDD as a replacement drive. When complete, shut down the PC and remove the original HDD. Boot the PC again and all should be well, but scan with virus software to be sure you didn't pick up a virus that started the whole problem with the original HDD. The installation program is not foolproof, so if your system doesn't operate correctly with the new HDD, just put the original drive back in and use the installation program again to set up the new disk - same as before.
When complete, the computer will think it does have the original drive and should work OK with the restore disk. However; I have a suggestion to ensure you can restore the PC again without relying on the restore disks. After you have the new hard drive working, buy yet another hard drive and clone it. With the replacement drive in the machine, and the original out, install the backup drive (or future replacement drive, or insurance policy - whatever term you like) and use Maxblast to install that drive as another replacement drive. You will then have 2 replacement drives which should be identical to the original drive. I did this with my SR1500NX, and it saved my bacon when the PC caught a virus. (Norton Antivirus failed to protect me, but my backup backup HDD saved the day). I now use McAfee.
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you do not OWN the OS. included in the price of the computer is a license fee (aka 'the windows tax') that entitles you to use a copy of the OS with this particular machine under the terms & conditions of the End User License Agreement.
even an open source OS under GPL you do not OWN.
p.s.: cloning a dead hard drive can prove a bit difficult under normal circumstances :-)
Today's subliminal thought is: 'Calm down ... it's only ones and zeros.'
icq 10183575
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Snicker...
Quote: Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity!
The anagram of computervitals is pivotal rectums...
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you're more than welcome.
Today's subliminal thought is: 'Calm down ... it's only ones and zeros.'
icq 10183575
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Sabertooth - I've already tried that trick - no joy.
mattie - it's not my baby. This poor lady is so pissed off that she wanna throw the PC out the window. Just a few days before the HD stopped working she did a total backup of her personal files. I dunno know if she is willing to fork over $200 or $300 for the retail full install XP Home edition.
per - it's too late - the HD died. Even if the HD is working there is no empty bay for the second SATA. I thought of building a mojave chassis but there is no room for it.
HP sucks!
i_XpUser
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why make her pay for a new windows disc ... use the license from the sticker ... should work with any xp home cd.
Today's subliminal thought is: 'Calm down ... it's only ones and zeros.'
icq 10183575
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mattie - She wants Hme - don't have a CD for that around here other than Pro. Even if I have it I don't think the key will work because somewhere in the product key chain there is a set of ID that makes it incompatible with retail installation.
per - the HD won't boot at all - couldn't even power it up. I dunno know what she did to it - she is not saying anything. She called me over as a last resort.
i_XpUser
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LOL!! To be the last resort is sort of an insult. :>} Sometimes spinrite will retrieve the data even when the hdd appears to be dead. All it has to do is spin as Spinrite runs from a boot disk. If she has the data then she just needs an o/s. I have no experience with it but I would talk to MS. They may give you a new cd key for a generic installation.
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When you call the first thing they will ask you is how did you acquire your copy of XP. As soon as you say "it came preinstalled," it is just about the end of it. They will tell you they have nothing to do with it and they will give you the URl or phone number of the system builder (OEM). As soon as you call HP they will tell you it's out of their hand because the warranty has expired long ago.
i_XpUser
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Xp user, the tattoo your refering is on the mobo NOT the hdd. If the mobo was replaced and you try to use the original recovery cd's those cd's will not work because the mobo has to be re-tattooed. As in my last post I mentioned that on Hp recovery cd's it will never ask you for a 25 digit serial key. If the mobo was replaced by HP at one time (while under warrenty). Hp should be able to re-tattoo the mobo but it will have to be serviced.
You are free to buy any hard drive you wish and it should work fine on the computer because only the operating system and mobo are proprietary. If you buy a Windows Xp cd (retail) and install it in a Hp pc, Hp tech support cannot support that pc until the original OS is installed.
We can't solve problems by using the same kind of
thinking we used when we created them.
-Albert Einstein 1879-1955
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".........Even if I have it I don't think the key will work because somewhere in the product key chain there is a set of ID that makes it incompatible with retail installation."
Nope! - It will work.
BTW, if you setup the new disk and by booting from a startup diskette - you access the i386 folder on the recovery disc, you can reinstall XP Home from the darn HP disc.
Worth a try and I sure hope the lady isn't being billed by the hr - else by now it would have been a lot cheaper to get a brand new PC..................LOL
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Hey XPUser,
Even if I have it I don't think the key will work because somewhere in the product key chain there is a set of ID that makes it incompatible with retail installation..If you have a XP home retail cd you can make a cd that accepts XP home oem keys. Just copy the XP cd to the hard drive and look in the i386 folder for setupp.ini file. Where it says pid=, change the last 3 numbers to OEM. Then make a bootable cd out of it like you do when you integrate a service pack.
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Just to confirm what response #19 is saying:
Upgrade=76475 000
Retail = 51882 335
Volume License = 51883 270
OEM = 82503 OEMSo if you wanted a retail CD that took retail keys, the last line of your setupp.ini file would read:
Pid=51882335
And if you wanted a retail CD that took OEM keys, you'd use:
Pid=518820EM
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