Computer Help Needed: FREE?

[thomascaldwell1]

Hey there! My husband and I recently purchased a desktop computer (Dell) from a private school that closed their doors. Problem is, when I boot it up, I get the 'Welcome to Windows XP' screen and it wants me to put in my user name, password, and 'log on to'... I don't have this information as the school shut down- and it was not provided to us by the auctioneers either. Is there a way around this or to clear this whole log-on thing out so that it will simply boot up and go right to the desktop? Please help!! Thank You!!

 

[dawson5]

do you have an install disc? If so, just reformat.

Contact the auctioneers that handled the sale. They might have that information or be in the process of getting it. If they sold all of these, they are all probably set up the same way and will all need that user name and password information.

 

[wnissen]

My instinct is that you probably want a fresh install of XP regardless of whether you can get the existing Administrator password. Hopefully that is what you have, and the seller can tell you what the password is. You don't want someone else's old, slow programs cluttering up your new machine.

 

[thomascaldwell1]

Is there a place to get a FREE download of Windows XP that I can burn to a disc and then install on the desktop? Please help!! It came with NO software and the auctioneers have no information to offer... Ugh!!

 

[dawson5]

no you can't get XP for free, unless you have an old disc lying around that might work. That's a big might too. Ours is proprietary, only works in our one computer.

Try Linux. It should be free. My son loves it.

 

[kamik86]

Is there a place to get a FREE download of Windows XP that I can burn to a disc and then install on the desktop? Please help!! It came with NO software and the auctioneers have no information to offer... Ugh!!

Unless you belong to a school (mostly colleges) that have this set up with Microsoft, no. I'm surprised they auctioned off computers without formatting them.

 

[mcorbo]

It is possible that the Windows install program may be installed on another partition in the computer. When the Dell logo screen comes up when your turn the computer on, you may see Press F8 for boot options or something similar. I believe this option is only available on more recently manufactured computers ('09 and after)

 

[thomascaldwell1]

I'd say it's '09 or possibly '10. There is an F2 & F12 option. My dad mentioned something about F8, but nothing happened when I tried that option.

What is Linux? Where do I get more info/download? Is it an operating system like Windows XP?? Never heard of it! Thank You!!

 

[dawson5]

When you reboot, if you keep pressing the f8 button, if something is there, it will come up then.

Linux is an open source operating system.

http://www.ubuntu.com/

My son has to work this evening, if he had the time he could possibly walk you through it. I'm thinking after work though, he will be working on his final project for computer programming. I think it is due next week and they are still fixing all the bugs. Definitely taking longer than he thought it would, especially with four people working on it.--more than you wanted to know.

 

[Zalittle]

When you boot your computer press F8 to log into Safe Mode. Choose Safe Mode with or without networking and start. When you reach the logon screen, login as administrator.
Click Start>Control Panel>Users and change the password.
Reboot

 

[thomascaldwell1]

When you boot your computer press F8 to log into Safe Mode. Choose Safe Mode with or without networking and start. When you reach the logon screen, login as administrator.
Click Start>Control Panel>Users and change the password.
Reboot

I did the F8 thing, chose safe mode (without metworking). Got to the login screen, typed in 'administrator' as the user name and have tried everything I can think of (including leaving it blank) for the password... Any guesses or suggestions here? Thank You!!

 

[klhill]

My husband said when it comes up as either admin icon or other do not put in a password or name just hit enter (this is Zalittle's wife)

 

[thomascaldwell1]

My husband said when it comes up as either admin icon or other do not put in a password or name just hit enter (this is Zalittle's wife)

First of all, Congrats- looks like you are on vacation starting tomorrow! Yahoo!!

I tried entering through without any user name or password and it's a no-go...

 

[crisi]

You probably don't have a legal copy of the software.

Microsoft's licenses sold to educational organizations are cheap - but non-transferable. Unless the private school bought a transferable copy of Windows, they can't sell the OS along with the hardware.

There is no free version of Windows available.

You will need to buy new software.

(I was a Microsoft Licensing Specialist in my previous role)

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

I doubt very much that a school would leave their computers with blank administrator credentials where not putting anything in the user name and password boxes would work. Without a valid username / password, you're not going to be able to get into the operating system. And in all honesty, you shouldn't be able to as it's not "your" copy of Windows. It was licensed to the school and when they disposed of their old equipment, it should have been removed.

The easiest and best thing to do would be to buy a copy of Windows Vista or better yet Windows 7, provided that the hardware you've purchased will support it. I'd suggest skipping Linux in your case as while I personally think it's marvelous, it's not nearly as "industry standard" or as user-friendly to the non-techie as is Windows.

 

[quagmire0]

You have three options:

1. The license sticker that should be on the outside of the computer is an OEM license that is relevant only to that specific computer. If you find a Windows XP disc to install from, you can use that license key legally. If there is no sticker, then they may have used a volume license and that is property of the school.

2. Purchase Windows 7 - not wise, considering that this PC is probably too old to run a newer operating system effectively.

3. If you know someone who is a techie (or your are brave), ask them to do this: http://www.pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/

You basically download the disc image, burn it to a CD, then boot the computer up with the CD. It will run you through some menus (I'd consider it something you'll want to consult an IT person on) and it gives you the ability to 'wipe' or reset the administrator password. This would allow you access to the computer.

Really, the school *should have* wiped the computer before giving it to you, and/or provided you with either a disc or a password.

 

[Zalittle]

Ubuntu is Linux, but is fashioned in many ways combining aspects of Apple OS and Windows operating system. Its a free download, Once you have finished download Ubuntu, burn to disk. Then restart your PC with the boot disk and follow the instructions to reformat the hard drive and install Ubuntu.

I installed Ubuntu on my daughter's notebook computer and she loves it.
No bloatware, no need for firewall already there, no need for pop up blocker.
Open office is already there as well as burning software, disk copying,music player, games, firefox, opera, google chrome, as well as torrent client.

Ubuntu is totally free. Very easy to use. Self configuring. Just be sure to run the updates after you install. Good Luck

 

[crisi]

You have three options:

1. The license sticker that should be on the outside of the computer is an OEM license that is relevant only to that specific computer. If you find a Windows XP disc to install from, you can use that license key legally. If there is no sticker, then they may have used a volume license and that is property of the school.

2. Purchase Windows 7 - not wise, considering that this PC is probably too old to run a newer operating system effectively.

3. If you know someone who is a techie (or your are brave), ask them to do this: http://www.pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/

You basically download the disc image, burn it to a CD, then boot the computer up with the CD. It will run you through some menus (I'd consider it something you'll want to consult an IT person on) and it gives you the ability to 'wipe' or reset the administrator password. This would allow you access to the computer.

Really, the school *should have* wiped the computer before giving it to you, and/or provided you with either a disc or a password.

Of course, if she is not entitled to the software, #3 is illegal and would be stealing.

 

[Cotton's Parrot]

I agree with the PP - don't bother with Linux. Yes it's free, but unless you're confident in your techie skills, it's probably not for you. I agree, your best bet would be to buy a legal copy of Windows 7 and just wipe it clean. Odds are even if you could get into XP, if the PC came from a university there are undoubtedly group policies in place that would restrict your access to a vast majority of the admin tools and configuration options. Your best bet is to wipe it out with a fresh install of the OS. Just be aware that once you do that, you may have to visit Dell's website to get some of the specific hardware drivers that Windows may not automatically install. Windows 7 is better than previous versions, but there is always something (a video card, sound card, RAID controller, USB hub, etc.) that doesn't install correctly from the Windows files and you'll need to get the right driver and install it manually.

 

[dawson5]

You have three options:

1. The license sticker that should be on the outside of the computer is an OEM license that is relevant only to that specific computer. If you find a Windows XP disc to install from, you can use that license key legally. If there is no sticker, then they may have used a volume license and that is property of the school.

2. Purchase Windows 7 - not wise, considering that this PC is probably too old to run a newer operating system effectively.

3. If you know someone who is a techie (or your are brave), ask them to do this: http://www.pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/

You basically download the disc image, burn it to a CD, then boot the computer up with the CD. It will run you through some menus (I'd consider it something you'll want to consult an IT person on) and it gives you the ability to 'wipe' or reset the administrator password. This would allow you access to the computer.

Really, the school *should have* wiped the computer before giving it to you, and/or provided you with either a disc or a password.

This is why I suggested Linux. I would wonder if there is enough RAM to run Vista or Linux--or at least effectively. I am running vista with 3GB ram and sometimes it does not run effectively (slow).