Vista Reinstall

I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home Premium and
installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the Ultimate
upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought another
one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I don't
have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at all which
is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is an
invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.

John

Hi,

If you've lost your Product Key, you need to contact Microsoft Product
Support:
http://support.microsoft.com/default...en-us;cntactms

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
My thoughts http://rick-mvp.blogspot.com

"BigE" <BigE@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com...
>I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home Premium
>and
> installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the Ultimate
> upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought another
> one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I don't
> have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at all
> which
> is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is an
> invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
>
> John

In article <83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com>, BigE
says...
> I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home Premium and
> installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the Ultimate
> upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought another
> one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I don't
> have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at all which
> is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is an
> invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
>
I assume you did the Anytime Upgrade and selected Amazon as the
retailer?

(assuming this works the same as when you use MS as the retailer)

You should have a digital locker that will have a copy of the installer
as well as the product key.

Go to http://www.windowsmarketplace.com/

Click on the "Your locker" link at the top and use the same e-mail
address you used when purchasing the upgrade.


--
Conor

Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright
until you hear them speak.........

Yes, I did order Windows Anytime Upgrade Vista Home Premium - Vista Ultimate.
Like I said, Amazon didn't provide any information in their email invoice or
on their Digital Library web site.

I just tried calling them, and they said that my earlier call was sent to
the wrong department. She told me she would forward my info to the right
department which doesn't accept phone calls. I have to wait for 2 business
days for a reply.

I then call MS who said they could not help me. They transferred me to
DigitalRiver even though I told them I purchased the upgrade from Amazon.

Digital river, of course, said they could not help me. However, she did ask
me to carefully review the invoice and the Digital Library for licensing
information. I did as she asked, but still couldn't find anything. She told
me how upgrade procedures work for DigitalRiver and hopes Amazon's procedures
are the same. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem so.

So here I am with a legit copy of Windows Vista Ultimate and no way to
reinstall it. Guess I will have to wait 2 business days for Amazon to get
their act together and call me unless someone has any other recommendations.


"Conor" wrote:

> In article <83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com>, BigE
> says...
> > I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home Premium and
> > installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the Ultimate
> > upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought another
> > one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I don't
> > have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at all which
> > is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is an
> > invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
> >
> I assume you did the Anytime Upgrade and selected Amazon as the
> retailer?
>
> (assuming this works the same as when you use MS as the retailer)
>
> You should have a digital locker that will have a copy of the installer
> as well as the product key.
>
> Go to http://www.windowsmarketplace.com/
>
> Click on the "Your locker" link at the top and use the same e-mail
> address you used when purchasing the upgrade.
>
>
> --
> Conor
>
> Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright
> until you hear them speak.........
>

I finally got the issue solved. After 30 days, Amazon moves your upgrade
download to MS Digital Locker. If you don't have a digital locker account,
you have to create one using the email address used during the purchase.
Once your account is activated, the upgrade download will be in your account.

Now I have another problem. Do I now have to install Vista Home Premium
(full edition, not upgrade edition), run the upgrade software, and then
install Vista Ultimate? Why can't they just sell the product code so I only
have to perform on clean install?

"BigE" wrote:

> Yes, I did order Windows Anytime Upgrade Vista Home Premium - Vista Ultimate.
> Like I said, Amazon didn't provide any information in their email invoice or
> on their Digital Library web site.
>
> I just tried calling them, and they said that my earlier call was sent to
> the wrong department. She told me she would forward my info to the right
> department which doesn't accept phone calls. I have to wait for 2 business
> days for a reply.
>
> I then call MS who said they could not help me. They transferred me to
> DigitalRiver even though I told them I purchased the upgrade from Amazon.
>
> Digital river, of course, said they could not help me. However, she did ask
> me to carefully review the invoice and the Digital Library for licensing
> information. I did as she asked, but still couldn't find anything. She told
> me how upgrade procedures work for DigitalRiver and hopes Amazon's procedures
> are the same. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem so.
>
> So here I am with a legit copy of Windows Vista Ultimate and no way to
> reinstall it. Guess I will have to wait 2 business days for Amazon to get
> their act together and call me unless someone has any other recommendations.
>
>
> "Conor" wrote:
>
> > In article <83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com>, BigE
> > says...
> > > I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home Premium and
> > > installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the Ultimate
> > > upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought another
> > > one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I don't
> > > have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at all which
> > > is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is an
> > > invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
> > >
> > I assume you did the Anytime Upgrade and selected Amazon as the
> > retailer?
> >
> > (assuming this works the same as when you use MS as the retailer)
> >
> > You should have a digital locker that will have a copy of the installer
> > as well as the product key.
> >
> > Go to http://www.windowsmarketplace.com/
> >
> > Click on the "Your locker" link at the top and use the same e-mail
> > address you used when purchasing the upgrade.
> >
> >
> > --
> > Conor
> >
> > Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright
> > until you hear them speak.........
> >

Big E

When you "download" the product you arer basicllay downloading an XML file
that contains the product key,

Look in the Windows_Anytime_Upgrade.slupkg-ms file after downloading but not
"installing"
Inside the xml is a key:
<licensingToken description="ProductKey" type="productKey"
version="msft:rm/algorithm/pkey/2005">[your product key
here]<<licensingToken>

Now whether you have to updrade or not is another matter.

"BigE" <BigE@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:F1CEC0D4-3AE9-4C9F-A79F-8983B9269959@microsoft.com...
>I finally got the issue solved. After 30 days, Amazon moves your upgrade
> download to MS Digital Locker. If you don't have a digital locker
> account,
> you have to create one using the email address used during the purchase.
> Once your account is activated, the upgrade download will be in your
> account.
>
> Now I have another problem. Do I now have to install Vista Home Premium
> (full edition, not upgrade edition), run the upgrade software, and then
> install Vista Ultimate? Why can't they just sell the product code so I
> only
> have to perform on clean install?
>
> "BigE" wrote:
>
>> Yes, I did order Windows Anytime Upgrade Vista Home Premium - Vista
>> Ultimate.
>> Like I said, Amazon didn't provide any information in their email
>> invoice or
>> on their Digital Library web site.
>>
>> I just tried calling them, and they said that my earlier call was sent to
>> the wrong department. She told me she would forward my info to the right
>> department which doesn't accept phone calls. I have to wait for 2
>> business
>> days for a reply.
>>
>> I then call MS who said they could not help me. They transferred me to
>> DigitalRiver even though I told them I purchased the upgrade from Amazon.
>>
>> Digital river, of course, said they could not help me. However, she did
>> ask
>> me to carefully review the invoice and the Digital Library for licensing
>> information. I did as she asked, but still couldn't find anything. She
>> told
>> me how upgrade procedures work for DigitalRiver and hopes Amazon's
>> procedures
>> are the same. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem so.
>>
>> So here I am with a legit copy of Windows Vista Ultimate and no way to
>> reinstall it. Guess I will have to wait 2 business days for Amazon to
>> get
>> their act together and call me unless someone has any other
>> recommendations.
>>
>>
>> "Conor" wrote:
>>
>> > In article <83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com>, BigE
>> > says...
>> > > I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home
>> > > Premium and
>> > > installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the
>> > > Ultimate
>> > > upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought
>> > > another
>> > > one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I
>> > > don't
>> > > have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at
>> > > all which
>> > > is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is
>> > > an
>> > > invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
>> > >
>> > I assume you did the Anytime Upgrade and selected Amazon as the
>> > retailer?
>> >
>> > (assuming this works the same as when you use MS as the retailer)
>> >
>> > You should have a digital locker that will have a copy of the installer
>> > as well as the product key.
>> >
>> > Go to http://www.windowsmarketplace.com/
>> >
>> > Click on the "Your locker" link at the top and use the same e-mail
>> > address you used when purchasing the upgrade.
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > Conor
>> >
>> > Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright
>> > until you hear them speak.........
>> >

What program do I use to view the XML file?

"HSS" wrote:

> Big E
>
> When you "download" the product you arer basicllay downloading an XML file
> that contains the product key,
>
> Look in the Windows_Anytime_Upgrade.slupkg-ms file after downloading but not
> "installing"
> Inside the xml is a key:
> <licensingToken description="ProductKey" type="productKey"
> version="msft:rm/algorithm/pkey/2005">[your product key
> here]<<licensingToken>
>
> Now whether you have to updrade or not is another matter.
>
> "BigE" <BigE@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:F1CEC0D4-3AE9-4C9F-A79F-8983B9269959@microsoft.com...
> >I finally got the issue solved. After 30 days, Amazon moves your upgrade
> > download to MS Digital Locker. If you don't have a digital locker
> > account,
> > you have to create one using the email address used during the purchase.
> > Once your account is activated, the upgrade download will be in your
> > account.
> >
> > Now I have another problem. Do I now have to install Vista Home Premium
> > (full edition, not upgrade edition), run the upgrade software, and then
> > install Vista Ultimate? Why can't they just sell the product code so I
> > only
> > have to perform on clean install?
> >
> > "BigE" wrote:
> >
> >> Yes, I did order Windows Anytime Upgrade Vista Home Premium - Vista
> >> Ultimate.
> >> Like I said, Amazon didn't provide any information in their email
> >> invoice or
> >> on their Digital Library web site.
> >>
> >> I just tried calling them, and they said that my earlier call was sent to
> >> the wrong department. She told me she would forward my info to the right
> >> department which doesn't accept phone calls. I have to wait for 2
> >> business
> >> days for a reply.
> >>
> >> I then call MS who said they could not help me. They transferred me to
> >> DigitalRiver even though I told them I purchased the upgrade from Amazon.
> >>
> >> Digital river, of course, said they could not help me. However, she did
> >> ask
> >> me to carefully review the invoice and the Digital Library for licensing
> >> information. I did as she asked, but still couldn't find anything. She
> >> told
> >> me how upgrade procedures work for DigitalRiver and hopes Amazon's
> >> procedures
> >> are the same. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem so.
> >>
> >> So here I am with a legit copy of Windows Vista Ultimate and no way to
> >> reinstall it. Guess I will have to wait 2 business days for Amazon to
> >> get
> >> their act together and call me unless someone has any other
> >> recommendations.
> >>
> >>
> >> "Conor" wrote:
> >>
> >> > In article <83619C2A-144C-46F7-97F7-9C0D2F6A9A47@microsoft.com>, BigE
> >> > says...
> >> > > I have quite a problem. I paid for a full version of Vista Home
> >> > > Premium and
> >> > > installed it on my computer. Later I bought and installed the
> >> > > Ultimate
> >> > > upgrade from Amazon.com. Last night my hard drive died. I bought
> >> > > another
> >> > > one, and want to install my copy of Vista Ultimate on my HDD, but I
> >> > > don't
> >> > > have the product key for my copy. Amazon.com has been of no use at
> >> > > all which
> >> > > is why I am asking for help on this forum. The only thing I have is
> >> > > an
> >> > > invoice email proving that I paid for the Ultimate upgrade.
> >> > >
> >> > I assume you did the Anytime Upgrade and selected Amazon as the
> >> > retailer?
> >> >
> >> > (assuming this works the same as when you use MS as the retailer)
> >> >
> >> > You should have a digital locker that will have a copy of the installer
> >> > as well as the product key.
> >> >
> >> > Go to http://www.windowsmarketplace.com/
> >> >
> >> > Click on the "Your locker" link at the top and use the same e-mail
> >> > address you used when purchasing the upgrade.
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > --
> >> > Conor
> >> >
> >> > Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright
> >> > until you hear them speak.........
> >> >
>
>
>