Re: [Qemu-devel] Windows Laptop Idea

[<jeebs@yango.us>]

Ben;

Hertz has alreadyc ommented a bit, but I thought I'd add a few thoughts.

> It dawned on me that I really hate the fact that I can't
> really install my HP restore CD's on anything but my

Welcome to Microsoft's grip on the world....

I've never seen an HP restore cd, but if it's anything like a Dell cd, the basic core files are identical to a regular XP cd, except for a couple of text files that point to additional drivers and patches.

I'm a firm believer that a person has a right to the original unmodified files (without unneeded OEM specific junk), so if it was me, I'd make an effort to get the md5's of the regular OEM version of XP (whatever version) and see what is truely different.

I'm definetly not a fan of Microsoft's policies and practices.  I do use Windows, but I don't like the company.

(In fact, you've gotten me curious.... If you want to contact me privately, I wouldn't mind getting the md5 hashes for the files on your HP oem cd.  Just so I can compare them to what other OEM cd's have.  As I said, I've seen a few OEM cd's, but never an HP one.)

> laptop, including a qemu session.  Wouldn't be kind of a
> cool thing to provide a bios signature so things like the

I think the OEM's use a digital signature in the bios.  Encryption stuff.  Microsoft has always been a bit paranoid about the stuff, even going so far as to force oem's to pre-activate and them (MS) disabling the keys used, so they can never actually be activated any way other than by oem preactivation.  (Meaning a mobo or bios change can invalidate your license.)

So you'd have to try and make qemu hardware identical to the HP (or other OEM) so the bios wouldn't notice the difference.  Not an easy task, to put it mildly.