xp home to media center w/o install disk...

[itdupuis]

so I worked on an older hp for this lady, i did full backup with a dvd set, but nasty viruses and trojans screwed up the back up set. She did not have an xp install disk with media center, so I installed xp with a random xp disk. I do have a cd key for her install, but of coarse, xp home will not accept it. Is there any way to upgrade to media center so the cd key will accept?

TYIA!!!!

[caperjack]

not with out a winxp media cd

[Delphi51]

I had the exact same problem several months ago. I called Microsoft help but they would not exchange the Windows Media Center code for an XP home code or otherwise help. I had bad luck last time I bought an install CD from HP for an old computer, including having them re-use my credit card without permission to charge me again after they bungled the first shipment.

I'm in education where thousands of computers are purchased with Windows installed, and then the corporate Windows license is pushed onto each new machine. So the key on the sticker is never used. Solution obvious, though dubious.

I couldn't get the sound working on that computer. It will have to wait until I happen upon another Media Center computer so I can copy the drivers. I did find all the other drivers, though.

[matrix4495]

try this http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/t/3979.aspx

[caperjack]

try this http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/t/3979.aspx

not quite what the poster needs to do,that link is about doing a doing upgrade of media center over winxp ,with out removing xp pro or home ,they have windows media center key but no cd ,so they have no way of installing winxp ,and then installing media cent over it,you need to have both wintows media center cd and winxp or home cd to do what that links is all about .

[itdupuis]

i was hoping someone knew of an ftp site to download upgrade or full version otherwise... O well, I have the oem cd's on the way. Thanks for all of your help :)