How To Change the Windows XP Product Key

March 7, 2008 by tech84

If for some reason you might wanna change you current WinXP CD Key or after you discover your current key is pirated or illegal but you don’t want to reinstall Windows XP to activate your new legal key

Here’s how:

1. Click on Start and then Run.

2. In the text box in the Run window, type regedit and click OK. This will open the Registry Editor program.

3. Locate the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder under My Computer and click on the (+) sign next the folder name to expand the folder.

4.Continue to expand folders until you reach the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Current Version\WPAEvents registry key.

5.Click on the WPAEvents folder.

6.In the results that appear in the window on the right, locate OOBETimer.

7.Right-click on the OOBETimer entry and choose Modify from the resulting menu.

8. Change at least one digit in the Value data text box and click OK. This will deactivate Windows XP.

9. Click on Start and then Run.

10. In the text box in the Run window, type the following command and click OK.
%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a

12. When the Windows Product Activation window appears, choose Yes, I want to telephone a customer service representative to activate Windows and then click Next.

13.Click Change Product Key.

14.Type your new, valid Windows XP product key in the New key text boxes and then click Update.

15. If you’re taken back to the previous screen and prompted, choose Remind me later.

16. Restart your PC.

There you have it, and remember to always obtain your software legally to avoid problems like these in the future. =)

Posted in How to's, Tech, Tips | Tagged activate new key, cd key, change cd key, Change Windows XP Product Key, hack, how to, legal key, Microsoft, msoobe.exe, regisrtry, Tips, windows, windows tips, WinXP, xp | 21 Comments

21 Responses

on March 7, 2008 at 8:48 pm | Reply kenny

Hi! I can see you have some knowledge, are you able to post a printout of a registry file setup for this,

ex: if I don’t wantto go in the registry and just run a -reg file for this? ..or do you know how to migrate/edit a valie of a registry key that exsists?

mabee this will just solve by running

.reg that contains the whole key without the value?
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Current Version\WPAEvents]

/registry n00b
on March 10, 2008 at 5:11 am | Reply tech84

you still have to manually go to ->

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Current Version\WPAEvents]

i dont know any other way to change a value in a registry key other than manually going there.
on March 29, 2008 at 11:35 am | Reply Nahmias

I managed to get to this location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Current Version\WPAEvents

The problem is the WPAEvents folder contains no ‘OOBETimer’ at all!!!!

Is there a cause for this? Is rhere anything i can do??
on March 29, 2008 at 12:31 pm | Reply Ted

i suggest you just create a new Reg_binary file in your wpaevents:

Edit -> New -> Binary Value then name it “OOBETimer ” then just put any random value in the data box then proceed to step 9.
on March 29, 2008 at 1:58 pm | Reply Toji

1.Open your regedit RUN > REGEDIT

2.Find key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WPAEvents
3.see the string OOBETimer

4.Double click.change all content with this one:

FF D5 71 D6 8B 6A 8D 6F D5 33 93 FD

5.Right Click on WPAEvents(Regedit)and choose Permissions

6.Window will show up,click to System and check all of Deny
Listbox

7.Restart Your PC
on April 1, 2008 at 3:50 am | Reply Nahmias

Managed to get it to work. Thanks a lot really appreciate it
on April 1, 2008 at 12:36 pm | Reply Tech84

@Ted & Toji

Thanks for helping! =)
on July 6, 2008 at 4:36 pm | Reply LILSCRAPPY

what about the fact that you can’t continue after

12. When the Windows Product Activation window appears, choose Yes, I want to telephone a customer service representative to activate Windows and then click Next.

without the supposed confirmation code the telephone person is supposed to give you?
on July 7, 2008 at 6:39 am | Reply tech84

@ LILSCRAPPY

Try toji’s suggestion:

1.Open your regedit RUN > REGEDIT

2.Find key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WPAEvents
3.see the string OOBETimer

4.Double click.change all content with this one:

FF D5 71 D6 8B 6A 8D 6F D5 33 93 FD

5.Right Click on WPAEvents(Regedit)and choose Permissions

6.Window will show up,click to System and check all of Deny
Listbox

7.Restart Your PC
on August 16, 2008 at 10:46 am | Reply jeff

i used XP KEY CHANGER from http://www.moonvalleyosft.com

works fine, easy to use
on August 28, 2008 at 6:22 am | Reply shafiq

hey just say me how tochange boot screen without using any software dude
on August 29, 2008 at 7:45 pm | Reply DUDE!!

When I changed the product key it ultimately changed the number of day(s) I have to activate my windows to literally 3 million years…I don’t know if this was a fluke or not. If it isn’t that’s sweet, but if it is then I’ll be back to do this again.

Thanks again.
on October 3, 2008 at 8:52 am | Reply Mr. B

I went through the process three times and still didn’t change my cd keys. Do I need to ghange keys before SP1 and SP2 is installed. Something was mentioned about installing SP1 as soon as you finish editing the registery. What if SP1 and SP2 is already installed. Will it still work. Help me if you can!!!… Thanks
on October 20, 2008 at 2:35 am | Reply iestyn halborg

i got as far as ‘change product key’ but then it would’nt accept my genuine xp professional product key. ??? it was definately part of the windows genuine activation package i purchased when windows detected it was an illegal copy (just don’t have the time/energy to crack it when it is 95 quid to buy an orig copy). Can someone please help? email> sleepingstaff@gmail.com if you know whats possibly the problem with activation. Many Thanks.
on October 28, 2008 at 4:38 am | Reply Strife

I did exact same thing as Toji…

“1.Open your regedit RUN > REGEDIT

2.Find key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WPAEvents
3.see the string OOBETimer

4.Double click.change all content with this one:

FF D5 71 D6 8B 6A 8D 6F D5 33 93 FD

5.Right Click on WPAEvents(Regedit)and choose Permissions

6.Window will show up,click to System and check all of Deny
Listbox

7.Restart Your PC”

After I restarted, the windows activation warning hasn’t shown up yet, but I can still see “Activate Windows” when I go to “start” and “all programs”. Does this mean that it’s still not activated? (I haven’t activated windows yet and my product key has been used too many times lol).

I’d appreciate it if anyone can help. ^.^
on October 31, 2008 at 4:21 am | Reply Zymenth

For some reason i dont u all understand whats this post are for……what tech4 mean by changing ur windows key is…..changing ur pirated CD keys to Origional legal CD key….coz u dont need to trouble urself to format up PC again just to use the Origional legal key…..u can just change it…………this method will not allow u to use pirated keys without activation….just a method to change ur Pirated keys to legal one…..Put ur effort to understand the post before posting stupid reply…TQ

Tech4 thx for the info

it help me alot
on December 5, 2008 at 5:23 pm | Reply dinosaur

I did everything you showed, but couldn’t change the key. My computer kept freezing so we started all over. However, we didn’t know that I had a product code for the XP that came installed on the computer with no disc, so we used his XP to get me going, but of course, the product key was for his XP not mine. Now I keep getting the activate message and it’s not for my XP. What should I do? Please don’t tell me to start all over again!
on March 9, 2009 at 2:09 pm | Reply HRAM908

THAT MICROFAT
on March 13, 2009 at 5:05 pm | Reply kostix

it help me alot
on March 13, 2009 at 5:18 pm | Reply kostix

I put legal key,now I hive legal Windows XP
on April 7, 2009 at 11:32 am | Reply ElfMajic

Thanks.it worked the first time around…