How do I find the Windows CD Key from the CD?

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You can find the XP Key on the CD and it is very easy to do.Put the XP CD in your Drive and right click explore.Now click on search and type in Unattend. When search finds this file on your CD, open it with NotePad and scroll down to the bottom, and there in all it's Glory will be your XP CD KEY.

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

It's *a* product key, but it's not the product key on the outside of the box.

My expectation is that this is a placeholder that's meant to be replaced with
your real product key if setting up an unattended installation. I'll bet that
if you use it, your Windows won't activate.

FWIW I found it in \i386\unattend.txt.

Leo
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Version: GnuPG v1.4.6 (MingW32)

iD8DBQFGRlyTCMEe9B/8oqERAnIxAJsFatuuh9zpQxVFZS6ONqJEQ+sqkQCcDbXY
MYzCWoBW36S7Kc8Z64vjVaE=
=ipGj
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

Yes, you can get the product key from a windows xp home cd.
How do u think it states the correct key with cd without being online. Leo do you work for MS. Or just didnt know??

Find Windows XP Product Key from the Windows XP CD:

1) Insert Windows XP cd into a working computer.
2) Exit the Autorun introduction.
3) Open "My Computer"
4) Right Click on the Windows XP cd-rom drive and select explore.
5) Open the USWXP32P_ZX folder.
6) Open the sysprep folder.
7) Open unattend.txt

Your CD's product key is contained within the unattend.txt file.

Note: On some system disks, USWXP32P_ZX is a hidden folder..

This is MS OS 101 and perfectly legal

This does not work!!!!!
It gives you a cd key but it will not proceed get an error.
The Product Id you entered is not valid!

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

You have to use the CD Key on the same product. CD Keys for
one product or version of a product will not work with
others.

Leo

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iD8DBQFHgnpNCMEe9B/8oqERAtfoAJ44eijYMSg2Pccd5OULvNhV/mfVxACfcDtu
Om1cEu8nYWnE4eiFMUZHs48=
=HoQu
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

Omg thank you sooo much i didn't have the cd key for my windows xp media center cd, but using the "Unattend" system i got it thanks a million!

Wow, I just found your site.
It's amazing!
I know this won't help someone who's lost their CD key.
The first thing I do when I open a CD is use a marker to write the CD key on the printed side of the CD.
That way I can't lose it.

You are wrong, the CD key is stored on windows XP cd's I'm pretty sure with vista as well. I'd have to look up the exact file location, but the CD key is in a text file named UNATTEND, It's either the first or the last thing in the file.

If you explore the windows cd and open up I386 it does reside in a file named UNATTEND.txt. I have successfully used this on VALID windows installations. Still working to this day, have never been blacklisted.

bull vista has the key on the cd

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