HP Store Online

I was sold an HP laptop at one of those liquidation sales about a year and a half ago....-read on!!-?

so i bought it from these foreign guys selling laptops. like i said i've had it for about a year and a half and after having it probably about 5 months, i kept getting popups saying "you may be a victim of counterfeit software" or something like that. so this is no recent problem. but my laptop is messed up right now. since i had fake software, i couldn't update my laptop. but for SOME reason, today was a special day and it let me update it. so it tells me i have to restart my computer and i'm like "well, okay. that sounds normal." but now my computer won't start up. even this thing on it called "startup repair" couldn't fix it. i tried starting it in safe mode and it still kept taking me to "startup repair" what is wrong with my computer? i am so fed up, it's like there is always something wrong with my computers. is there any way i could get microsoft to give me a free windows 7 software? because it wasn't really my fault that it's counterfeit. i cant report the guys or contact them because i have no idea who they were.. and there is no way i can pay for the software, it's like $120! or will i need to downgrade to XP? AND HOW CAN I GET MY LAPTOP TO START UP? AM I GOING TO HAVE TO LOSE ALL MY FILES? )': god technology is so annoying sometimes... thanks if you answer.

Public Comments

1. No way to get a free copy of WIndows. For recovering your files, use Knoppix or Ubuntu live cd for booting , mount the HDD and copy it to USB drive.
2. Ok this one is going to be interesting. First off, Microsoft won't be giving you a valid key to get into your system. If you actually ever clicked on the link that said "You may be a victim..." you'd notice they send you to their website to purchase a license. What probably broke your system was a faulty system update. I've seen it before, happened to me. I had to end up reformatting because there was no way to recover it. What you CAN do, if you happen to have these options available to you, is: do a recovery using whatever backup media they gave you (either CD/DVD or hard drive recovery partition) and make sure you do the non-destructive version. One will offer you a way to save your old files in a folder called "Windows.old" - Use that. In terms of hard drive recoveries, most of the time they call it "Destructive" vs "Non Destructive" - you want the non-destructive one. That will enable you to load windows back on and you'll still have your old files. If you need a license, look on the bottom of the laptop. There should be a Certificate of Authenticity (CoA) with a valid code on it. THOSE codes aren't usually blacklisted, so you should be fine. If you don't have one or that doesn't work, then you will need to buy a license within 3 days of reloading your system. There are some other tricks to try and get the computer back up and running without a reformat, but it sounds like you're getting a registry error on startup, and unless you're able to reset the registry offline, not much else can be done.
3. Windows Discs need to be purchased for updates & support. Since you had a pirated copy of Windows you are not going to get any sort of assistance from the Windows help desk. You need to get hold of any OS CD/DVD you wish to have in your PC & Install it without formatting the drives. This way you can get all your data back. Also you can remove the laptop HDD & connect it to another PC where you can backup all the files you want.
4. This is what happens when you use counterfeit software, especially the OS. If it allowed an update, it almost certainly loaded the genuine advantage software check. But that may well have seen the illegal OS and backed out of updating. If a partial update happens it trashes the system. And if it suddenly accepted updates it might also have been a rogue update site you hit. Designed to trash machines. You could try contacting the manufacturers, they will often supply recover disk sets for the cost of media and shipping. HP are generally very good for that, although currently their delivery is a bit slow. you have probably already lost all your files as the repair will almost certainly mean a total re-install from scratch. That is what backups are for. Microsoft will do nothing for you. Their deal is that if you buy NEW software from an apparently reputable source and report it with evidence of purchase, you get a replacement genuine copy. But by experience this is not the case. I have about 20 copies of Vista which were bought by different customers from supposed Microsoft approved stores and all reported non genuine and locked out after 30 days. I have spent hours on the phone, sent emails by the hundred and even written letters to them. They always come back with the answer, you should have been able to tell these were not genuine agents. Typical Microsoft promise.
5. No, Windows won't give you free Windows 7. It's not your "fault" because you didn't do something bad, but it is your fault for trying to save money and buying it from some random people. You shouldn't buy from someone who isn't a reliable retailer unless you're willing to accept the possible consequences. Sorry if this upsets you, but at least you learned a lesson out of this. Next time you want to get a good deal, try looking at slickdeal.net. There's always laptops for $300-400 shipped which come with genuine Windows from retailers such as newegg, tigerdirect, dell, hp, bestbuy, etc. Is there a sticker on the laptop that has the Windows Product key on it (like on the underside of the laptop)? If there isn't a plastic coating over it, it usually gets rubbed off so that you can't read it anymore. You can re-install Windows with that product key. You can get a replacement disc from Microsoft: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/326246 Yes, it seems that your options will be to downgrade to XP (I'm assuming you have a disk for that). If you do reinstall an operating system on your laptop, you'll likely have to format your hard drive and lose your data. However there are ways to try and recover or back up your data before you re-install Windows. Check to see if you can boot into safe mode: http://www.laplink.com/support/kb/article.asp?ID=102 Basically, just keep tapping the F8 key when your computer is loading (after your BIOS screen but before the Windows loading screen. If you can get into safe mode, backup all your files you want to save onto a usb disk or something. You might be able to repair the Windows installation which wouldnt require you to lose all your data. You might be able to get into Windows using a Windows startup disk. I would go on your facebook and see if your techie friends know how to help you fix your problem. It's a lot easier to fix a computer problem when it's in front of you since there are details that you're leaving out that can help resolve your issue. Another thing you can do is open your laptop, take out the hard drive, connect it to another computer and backup your files using the other computer to read your laptop hard drive. Sorry to hear you're having issues. Hope things work out for you.
6. Hi, so the guy who sold you the laptop installed a counterfeit copy of Windows XP, Vista or 7. There's no way you can get a free copy from Microsoft, not even a free copy of an older version. It's not Microsoft's fault too. Your options are: 1. Buy a legitimate OS with a product key from M$ to fix your problem. 2. Restore the computer to factory defaults by booting from the recovery program in the hard disc if it is still there. How to do a factory reset: http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f108/laptop-recovery-instructions-162525.html http://iddqds.blogspot.com/2009/06/recovery-partition-accessing-keys-for.html It's a long shot actually as the seller might have erased it which is why he installed a bootlegged copy of Windows instead of restoring it to factory defaults. If it was erased, you need to buy the recovery disc from the laptop manufacturer. It will be much cheaper than buying a new OS license. Hopefully the OEM product key is still on the sticker underneath the laptop. 3. Use a free operating system like Linux Ubuntu. It's not exactly the same as Windows but you'll get to learn how to use it eventually. Try it on a CD or USB flash drive without installing it. http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/download Meanwhile, before you choose any of the options given, you need to back up your data from the hard drive. Create a boot disk like this and load the Mini Windows XP OS which will allow you to see your files and copy them to a flash drive: http://www.hirensbootcd.org/download/