Windows 7 invalid / illegal?

[JCitron]

question ?????? i have an acer desktop with windows 7 installed.....my version of Trainz is for windows XP home edition........will it kill my computer or will i eventually get a fatal error message ???

Trainz should work on Windows 7 okay. You will need to run/install the program as administrator (right-click on the shortcut and choose run as administrator).

 

[NeonTheGriffon]

I recently got a message that my copy of Windows 7 that I've been using for 4/5 years was suddenly invalid. A message in the lower right corner of the desktop appeared and wouldn't go away. Even a reboot didn't help.

After researching on-line, I found the easiest and quickest way to remove the message was to go to Control Panel > System and Security > See the name of this computer (under System).

At the bottom of the page you are taken to, is the line Windows activation. Below that is whether Windows has been activated or not. If not, click Change product key. This will take you to Microsoft where you re-enter the I.D. of your copy of Windows. It will ask for XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX. Enter your I.D. and if all is well, after verification has taken place for a few minutes, the message should disappear.

A friend of mine theorized that perhaps changing the motherboard about 2 weeks prior may have been the cause. Since then, no problems have occurred.

A frequent encounter of mine with how often I reimage machines and run across "the windows key you have entered is invalid"

The solution is to Activate Windows using Phone Activation.
I've used other computer's OEM keys on their unoriginal hardware in a binge (temporal solution until the proper license arrived in the mail) and it activated just fine.
Even if your system was activated and suddenly goes awry, just activate over phone with your computer's COA.

If the phone-bot asks how many machines you have installed with this license, Answer is 1.