Print OEM Product Keys for Windows 7 and Office 2010 in the BIOs setup

August 18, 2011

Posted By:  natakuc4

9 Votes

Status: Archived

Promote

While browsing the Dell community forums, I see alot of posts from time to time where the user has lost their office product key and occasionally windows product key.

The office keys are provided on cards unattached from the system and can easily get lost. It would be good to get an OEM sticker like the Windows Sticker. However stickers sometimes peel off...

So it would be good to add a new catagory in the BIOs setup saying additional information: 
• Preinstalled Windows 7 Home Premium. Product Key: xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx
• Preinstalled Office 2010 Home & Student. Product Key: xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx

This would be a safety net for any user who restores to factory settings or via disc and has misplaced their card. These two fields would be uneditable. However it would also be good to add an additional 6 or so blank spaces incase the user gets a windows upgrade disc or newer version of microsoft office and wants to add the product key in the information.

9 Votes | 9 Comments | Report Abuse

Please login to IdeaStorm to post a comment.

    Comments :
     

  • Aug 18, 2012     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By: ansonv

    I dont see any update beyond aug-11. Is it possible to know whether this idea is implemented by Dell?
    •  

  • Aug 20, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By:
    sugarbear

    The techs make sure the pc is working before they leave. A lot of them do not bother entering the service tag number in the bios.

    The most recent was a XP, S8300, It had a Sandy Bridge issue. I could not be at the home to see that the tech did it, but left instructions for the owner and a note for the tech. This particular tech said she didn`t mind going to the extra trouble to put it in. As we know, if the tech does not enter the service tag number at the flash it makes it impossible for support to scan your pc.

    It is not a problem for me to find the updated drivers, but the average consumer can`t.
    •  

  • Aug 20, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By: Anaxandra

    @Sugarbear  That's very strange. Techs are required to ensure functionaility before they leave the site otherwise it's their job on the line. When these issues have occurred have you contacted Dell about this? They can contact the company direct to lodge a complaint about the tech.

    Thankfully in my many expeirences with Dell not having the service tag flashed is a rarity however sorry to hear you expeirenced it.  
    •  

  • Aug 20, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By:
    sugarbear

    @Anaxandra, If a technician comes to your home to install a new MB, you had better be savy enough to make sure the tech actually puts in the service tag number. Not all of them do. It is a one time opportunity only and I have had a few cases of pc`s that I work on that didn`t have that done.
    •  

  • Aug 19, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By: Anaxandra

    When a motherboard is replaced the BIOS must be flashed with the Service Tag. This means that a record would need to be kept of every unit's product keys which then would be forwarded to a technician and flashed as well. 

    I understand the meaning behind this suggestion however it does not seem practical.
    •  

  • Aug 19, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By:
    natakuc4

    Yeah I know about the Belarc Advisor. I am not experiencing this problem. I am just saying I have found it to occur on the forums. (When people have already went to factory settings, they have already lost the key and cannot use Belarc Advisor to obtain it because the factory settings prompt them for the key). Also if they go for a clean install.

    Anaxandra, the same way as the Service Tag information is preserved after a BIOs update. OEM keys are tied to the motherboard are they not?

    Yes I was more focused on the Microsoft Office Produce Key but of course mentioned the Windows Product Key for the sake of completeness.

    This is a merely 1 or 2 additional lines of information. It could help out people that are in a fiddle and have lost their key. Especially those out of warranty. Prevents them needing to contact Dell and then Microsoft. It makes things easier for the end user in the long run.
    •  

  • Aug 19, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By:
    sugarbear

    Run Belarc advisor and print it out. It will list all your product keys.
    •  

  • Aug 19, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By: Anaxandra

    My other question is how would this information be properly retained whenever the BIOS was flashed/updated or the notherboard replaced?

    •  

  • Aug 19, 2011     Comment Link

    Report Abuse

    Posted By: Anaxandra

    It is easy to retrieve a product key, you just need to contact Microsoft Supplemental Parts and explained you have misplaced the key. They in turn will ask for a copy of your receipt which you can submit to them by email, this email can be sent by any Dell rep when you ask them. 

    The Windows key is not needed as it will automatically be detected when you reinstall a Dell OEM OS on the matching Dell unit. If you receive and error saying it was unable to validate then micrsoft has an automatic line to reactivate it. Also this usaully shows the OS installation was bad in the first place so a reinstall would be a good idea.