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I have Dell XPS laptop, which is not booting at all.

I have Windows 7 activation code attached to bottom of my laptop. Would like to know if I buy Dell OEM Windows 7 disk to install Windows 7 and use my activation code to activate it, will that work ?

Thanks

roy
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    There is no need to buy the OEM disk from Dell. You can download the ISO file from [here](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/15088/windows-create-installation-media) after you enter your product key. You can then make a bootable USB driver or burn the image to a disk for installation. – DrZoo Jan 26 '17 at 17:59
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    @DrZoo - The link you provided to the Windows 7 ISO, points to a process where it requires the user have a retail license key in order to download the ISO. [Step 1](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/15088/windows-create-installation-media) then [Step 2](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows7). – Ramhound Jan 26 '17 at 22:23
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    Possible duplicate of [Where can I download Windows 7 (legally from Microsoft)?](http://superuser.com/questions/78761/where-can-i-download-windows-7-legally-from-microsoft). The [answer](http://superuser.com/questions/78761/where-can-i-download-windows-7-legally-from-microsoft/1046062#1046062) I submitted to this question can be used for OEM installations. – Ramhound Jan 26 '17 at 22:23
  • The answer I submitted to, [Do I need to activate Windows 8 if I used it before?](http://superuser.com/questions/1151443/do-i-need-to-activate-windows-8-if-i-used-it-before/1151469#1151469) can also be used to download a Windows 7 ISO, directly from Microsoft. – Ramhound Jan 26 '17 at 22:25
  • @Ramhound I know, that's why I said they can download the ISO after they enter the product key. I don't have a key to test it, but I'd say it can be any key, OEM or retail, as long as it's valid. The files on the disc are the same. The OEM/Retail part comes into play when the online activation happens. – DrZoo Jan 26 '17 at 22:33
  • @DrZoo **It cannot**. see my answer which covers the method you suggested. – Ramhound Jan 26 '17 at 23:35
  • Possible duplicate of [Do I need to activate Windows 8 if I used it before?](http://superuser.com/questions/1151443/do-i-need-to-activate-windows-8-if-i-used-it-before) – karel Jan 28 '17 at 08:44

2 Answers2

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Yes, OEM disks are fine just ensure the edition of Windows 7 you install matches the product key you are using. For instance, if you have a Windows 7 Professional product key affixed to the case, you can install only Windows 7 Professional. Either 32-bit or 64-bit will work. Other versions of Windows 7 will not work with that product key.

Chris Boyle
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To directly answer your question, yes, if you buy an OEM version of the same edition of Windows 7 (you cannot move from Home to Pro or vice versa) then you will be able to re-install Windows. Dell are pretty good at offering all the drivers for their laptops on their website too.

However, you don't have to buy an OEM version of Windows 7 from Dell.

If you can get hold of the retail version of the same edition of Windows 7 (and there are multiple ways to do this) then you can edit a file on the disk to turn it into an OEM version - which will then happily install and register using the product key attached to your laptop.

Full instructions to do this can be found at this superuser answer.

Richard
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