On Fri, 15 Jan 2010 22:21:03 -0800, Winston
wrote:

Wes wrote:

(...)

Those are OEM which means you can never move the OS to new hardware if I understand
correctly.

That isn't my understanding. You should get an OEM disk with every custom
PC you buy. You could install on many different desktops and notebooks
as long as only one bootable disk exists at a time.

You need to read your OEM licence.
It goes with the machine it was sold with.
A case could be made that you replaced the (defective) motherboard,
then the hard drive, and then put it in a new case with new video card
etc, and ended up with a new machine - but the "COA" sticker is , by
the terms of the licence, to be applied to the case - and they can be
a real bear to remove from the old case to transfer to the new one.

Can you use an OEM XP disk to upgrade a W2K install?

Sure, if you broaden your definition to include a complete disk wipe.

How hard does Microsoft tie a OEM disk to the current hardware?
It is not "tied" except by the conditions of the licence.

The way I misunderstand it is that an OEM disk is not tied to any specific
motherboard. Further, it usually arrives without the fancy packaging and
hardcopy manuals the traditional 'full' version has.

--Winston