Locate the Windows Product Key on the XP Installation CD Print
Written by mypchell.com   
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
Image Imagine the following scenario: your Windows XP system somehow becomes unbootable and after exhausting all possible fixes, you determine that you are going to have to wipe your hard drive and start over with a fresh install of Windows XP. You look and find your Windows XP CD in your ...(Continued)


 
Note: Click on any image for a larger view of that particular image.
 


...CD flip book case, and that is when you realize that you have lost the product key which was provided as a little yellow sticker when you bought Windows XP. Then you panic. Well, guess what? Hope is not all lost, it is possible to locate your Product Key using nothing more than your Windows XP Installation CD.

To start, you will need access to a working computer.

Stick in your Windows XP Installation CD, then, when the XP Install Splash Screen pops up, click Exit.

Locate

Then Click Start, then My Computer and find your CD Drive (mine is Drive I), right click on it and select Search

Find

Then type unattend.txt then click Search

Product

It will find the unattend.txt file and report that it is located in your main drive, don't be misled, this is the right file and it is on the CD.

Windows

Open the unattend.txt and in it you will find your Product Key

.
Windows


Write down the Product Key, now you have the key and can install XP.

Comments (4)add comment

dave said:

I found product key using this way, but the key will be not accepted (wrong ID)when I try to install XP from CD. There must be something alse what I´m not aware.
 
report abuse
vote down
vote up
June 30, 2008
Votes: -1

Koden said:

the product key found in unattend.txt is ot the product key for the install CD but rather a prototype KEY for the very first version of windows, its the same key on every windows XP cd
 
report abuse
vote down
vote up
July 04, 2008 | url
Votes: +0

Je said:

Yes, I have tried same method, but That product key not accepting, It shows invalid product key, how can we get original key from CD ?
 
report abuse
vote down
vote up
July 22, 2008 | url
Votes: +1

Prashanth said:

hi,
I have a query. Please help me.
I have a bootable XP cd and the product key is in CD.
Now i want to do fresh installation. how to get the product key. without
win98 bootable cd
 
report abuse
vote down
vote up
July 28, 2008
Votes: +0

Write comment
quote
bold
italicize
underline
strike
url
image
quote
quote
smile
wink
laugh
grin
angry
sad
shocked
cool
tongue
kiss
cry
smaller | bigger

security image
Write the displayed characters


busy
 
< Prev   Next >
[ Back ]