Answers mixed in.
Too many twists and turns for a simple answer...
There are many "shades of gray" in this type of question and answer...

From: "Venkat Viswanathan"
> I have heard of OEM and RETAIL versions so what is this nonspecific OEM?

There are various types of OEM disks. (I'll give the two extreems.)
Some are BIOS locked, some are non-specific (full OEM) and can be
installed "anywhere", but only once, and ALL are "married to" the hardware
forever and can not be moved (generally) to a different machine.)

>my understanding so far is that branded system manufacturers get win xp (=
>at whatever price...) from MS and configure it as per their choice. so yo=
>u do not get the win xp disk with the system but only a " rescue disks" f=
>rom such branded makers. this does not mean that if the system crashes on=
>e will not be able to load winxp at all and can very well do so with a re=
>tail legal version.
>(1) am I right or wrong

Sometimes it works just like that, but the restore disk "should" put it
back to factory specs just the way it came from the factory.
(All hardware added "after the factory install" - "should be" removed
before a restore, since it was not there at the factory, and may
cause problems due to differences in the configuration...)

>(2) is there any limitations on the number of partitions with such OEM in=
>stalled systems.?

If the restore puts back exactly what the factory put there originally, no.
It it stops and lets you change things, you can make it what you want...
(It depends on how "hard coded" the restore scripting is...)

>I have succesfully created 2 partitions on an old HP la=
>ptop after wiping it clean with the utility downloaded from the hdd manuf=
>acturers site. originally it had only one partition of the full capacity.=

Sounds like you did not use the OEM restore software yet (??)
It may (or may not) change those partitions later...

>(3) it is also my understanding that win xp is very very sensitive to cha=
>nges in mobo (more than to changes in any other hardware) and will simply=
> refuse to load if any change is detected.

If it is a BIOS locked OEM install, it will ID the MB and not work on
any other MB... The code is in the BIOS (for the ID).
If it is a non-specific OEM version, it should install on any type of MB.
I have heard rumors that some manufactures put part of the BIOS on the
HD, and if the factory restore disk is not used, the MB is not "complete"
and a retail install disk (or a full OEM one) will not be successful.

Changing the MB (to a different model, etc.,) brings up lots of questions about
WPA (Windows Product Activation) and that is an entirely different question.
WPA needs 7 out of 11 points to stay activated, unless the Activation
is "done" by the BIOS lock...(if any).

After those questions, there is the licensing requirement that the license
dies with the hardware and can't be moved to a "better" or significantly
different machine. This is a very oversimplifed description on why some
people say they can move an OEM install to different hardware and
"get away with it"...

This whole question is very complex and can have many answers, depending
on the exact hardware, OEM manufacturer, and other variables...
There is no ONE answer, and NO simple answer...

                                                          Rick Glazier

         PCBUILD maintains hundreds of useful files for download
                     visit our download web page at:
                  http://freepctech.com/downloads.shtml