Purchasing Restore Disks

BlindSwimmer
BlindSwimmer Member Posts: 4 New User
in 2015 Archives

I volunteered, and I now wish I hadn't, to upgrade a relative's Windows 8 machine - an Aspire One 725 - to 8.1. Either that process, or a later update, has made the machine virtually unusable, so I now want to restore to factory settings. It turned out that the upgrade process had wiped the recovery partition. Accepting that I should have made recovery disks first, I decided to bite the bullet and purchase them from Acer.

 

Having taken the money from my account, they have emailed me a form which asks for the product keys on the COA label. They had previously told me that they didn't need the first, 25-digit, key but they did need the second, 14-digit, one. However there is no COA label on the machine. I emailed the Amazon Marketplace seller and was told that it might be in the box or the BIOS. Nothing came with the machine and further research suggests that Windows 8 machines aren't shipped with COA labels anyway, so that leaves the BIOS.

 

I know keyfinder programs are available but there seems to be some doubt that they will find a valid key, rather than a mass-installation one. If Acer create disks with an invalid key I don't expect I'll get my money back, and I'll be no nearer to solving the problem. Also I'm not really clear what this 14-digit key is as I don't remember inputting it when installing Windows in the past.

 

If anyone can help me get the required key I'd really appreciate it.

Answers

  • sathya0403
    sathya0403 ACE Posts: 586 Pioneer
    Hi,

    Was this computer Originally Shipped with Win8?, if yes, then the Recovery media does not require a COA or Product key, But if the unit was shipped with Win7 & upgraded to Win8 then you may have received a Mail from MS, when the Upgrade option was on(2013). May I know where are you from?
  • BlindSwimmer
    BlindSwimmer Member Posts: 4 New User

    I am from the UK. The computer was sold by an Amazon Marketplace seller, also in the UK, and listed as 'Refurbished', so I can't tell what condition it left Acer themselves in. But it arrived with a Windows 8 sticker on the base.

  • BlindSwimmer
    BlindSwimmer Member Posts: 4 New User

    So I'm not really clear where to go here. It sounds as if, because the machine had Windows 8 on from the beginning, that it shouldn't have a COA sticker on the bottom. But why then are Acer asking me for one? Can they make recovery disks without a product key? I'm not clear what I should say to them.

  • sathya0403
    sathya0403 ACE Posts: 586 Pioneer
    Hi,

    If I'm not wrong the unit was not shipped with Win8, that could be the reason, Acer is asking for a COA, Did you try to reach Tech support & what was their response?
  • BlindSwimmer
    BlindSwimmer Member Posts: 4 New User

    Thanks for getting back to me. I haven't been back to technical support because I'm not sure of my ground. I just had an idea and googled the exact model number 725-C7Xbb. All the machines that come up seem to have Windows 8 pre-installed.

     

    So if it's true that those machines don't come with a sticker, this means either Acer are wrong in asking me for a key or I have to get it out of the BIOS somehow. Can they actually make the recovery disks if they don't have a key?

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