A few weeks ago I installed Call of Duty and after it my computer hang and I had to reboot it, now it shows all kinds of messages that I am using a pirated version of microsoft windows xp, but the windows XP I run got shipped with my computer and the CD key code sticker is attached on the back... I have reinstalled it a few times over the past two years but no errors showed up untill that fatal computer crash..

These messages are really irritating and I totally dont deserve this punishment because I'm a legal customer, when Microsoft announced they where releasing this check I already knew not just the crackers would be punished but also innocent people, but I never thought they would start to bother me

Does anyone here know a solution except forcing the messages to disappear using programs made for cracked versions of windows XP, I don't want to make it look worser than it already is...

Already thank for helping out

Your best option is to probably email or phone Microsoft, and send them a photograph of your sticker to prove the copy is yours. Legally the software is yours and Microsoft has no right to display the messages and annoy you if you legally own the copy. Unfortunately the only way to remove the messages involve using illegal programs. Even in Microsofts billions of obscure windows and options I have found no "Turn off annoying messages that make no sense", as that would make Windows a hell of a lot more user friendly

Email, phone, write to, storm into their offices and demand they fix it on the spot, just tell them and they should fix it for free. If they try to charge for support then call them and immediately push 0 to get a real person and explain the situation, even if you get someone in the sales department or something.

That would be a funny conversation...Or getting the janitor

Yeah, telling them would be your best option...but it's stupid having just a warning...I can imagine it now:
"[Warning comes on the screen]"
"Oh noes! They've found me!!" *runs to shop and buys a legal PC

I'm sure that'd happen


Edit: Have you tried re-installing xp and/or COD2?

This post has been edited by Dagoth Nereviar: Jul 31 2006, 09:49 AM

There was actually an artice on the bbc site about that. in the latest updates, there was some crap called "windows genuine advantage" or something, which checks if your version is legal. According to the bbc article, about 15% of the cases when people get told do actually have legal copies. The sales manager in the UK says that people have been "crying to know if their copy of windows was legal or not". Yeah, right. not only does this thing send data to Microsoft once, it does it every time you boot. Thatæs what I call privacy deprivation. Also, people who upgrade their system get these messages. So say your processor died, you send it to the shop, who fit a new one, and then you supposedly have an illegal copy.

the sad thing about this technique is that the "non-savvy" people go ahead and buy a new copy of windows, even though the original one was probably not illegal. the more Windows-savvy people, who might actually have an illegal copy *cough not me cough* just ignore it and download a patch...

Or dump windows. That is my strongest advice. Dump windows. There is nothing you can do on windows that you can't do on a MAC or on linux - you just have to know how. I know of several people from the US who are really scared of this "foriegn software", but seriously, I think M$ has more issues concerning security that all of the linux distobutions put together.

If you want, I reccomend Ubuntu for beginners, as they ship free CDs, so you don't have to worry about downloading your own, and the hardware support is rather good. Haven't had a problem so far.

overview here: http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop
free shipping (you need to make and account - also free): https://shipit.ubuntu.com/
or download: http://www.ubuntu.com/download

installing is easy, whether you want to overwrite you entire hard drive (!!) or crate a new partition for it. I never used the 6.06 installer, but I think it comes with a partitioner. It might be wise to partition with PartitionMagic first. Ill send it to you if you need it

you don't have to install it at once, if fact you don't have to install it at all. The CD is a LiveCD, meaning that you just pop it in the drive and it starts Ubuntu straight from the CD. If you like it, you can then click the "install" icon, and it will help you through. Welcome to the community!

You can disable the check by removing the update you have received (and installed) from windows update.

But if you that you may have problems for further updates.
I don't know how they find out if your key is legal or illegal.
I think they count how many times the key is registered or used. If too many people are using the same key, they may have gotten it from a site on the internet (illegal key),
but if you buy a computer with a restore disk in many cases the key is alos on the restore disk and you don't have to enter a new one after the resore.
So all the users of that type of computer are using the same key.

You can find tools to change the key that is installed on your PC.
(I think you only have to change 1 value in the registry.)

So you can change your key to the one from the sticker, and register your computer with that key.