FINDING
LOST CD KEYS IN YOUR REGISTRY
Click this link to a great free program Winguggle to recover your lost CDKeys!
The solution (below) may be unsuccessful
for many these days with newer operating systems and office programs, so a
nice person (thank you, Douglas!) sent me a link to another possible solution.
Only $4.95 (a great price!) for a key finder
program that will be useful with all windows operating systems (95,98,ME, 2000
& XP), and all
Microsoft office versions:
http://www.product-key.com/
More information:
Product Keyfinder is a stand-alone
executable, which means it does not need an installer program to run. Once
you've downloaded Keyfinder, you can run it by double-clicking the program. To
find your lost Windows key by clicking the Windows key button on the
navigation panel to the left. To find your lost Office key, click Office key.
With InsaneWare Keyfinder, you can also copy, save, or print your retrieved
product code. Copy the code to your clipboard in order to paste it in a
database or text file. Save your Windows product code to a file in order to
keep it for your records or send it as an email to a friend. You can also
print your lost Windows key in order to keep if safely filed away.
Not intended as a hacking program.
I
bought it, downloaded it, and it works beautifully! I highly recommend
it! Support these great entrepreneurs!
Another great website for finding product keys, and this one is free!:
http://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder.shtml
You can find your lost cd key from your own registry with
the steps below:
(This procedure does not work for any version of
Windows past Windows Me, Microsoft got more secretive with your software, one
more time.)
Make
the CD code to unlock software reappear. (Here's the article verbatim) You
just think you lost that CD key code, which is imprinted on the software's box
or in the documentation and permits you to reinstall the program.
You
won't have to call a support line and wait hours for a tech to regurgitate
that lost code for you, it's not really lost. Windows saved it in a cubbyhole
called the Registry.
Don't
play around while you go through these steps, though. Deleting some Registry
files can cause massive headaches.
And
it's always best to follow your manual's instructions and back up the registry
before starting.
Here's
the procedure:
·
Launch REGEDIT by
selecting Start/Run, typing REGEDIT in the text box and pressing Enter.
·
Under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, click on the + and scroll down to Software.
·
Find the Microsoft
listing click on it, and look for the directory that contains software you need to
reinstall.
·
Double-click the
Product ID listing and select the middle two number strings. For example, in
the string 53491-460-1656111-49145, you'd select 460-1656111.
(for Office 97)
One more thing, add a 1 to the first 3 numbers,
4601-1656111, as the product ID has 11 numbers. Hope this works for you!
-
To
find the Windows CD Key: find Windows, click the "current
version" with the + sign, don't click the +sign, click on the words
"current version". The product ID and the product key will
appear. It's all the numbers and letters that you see.
·
Highlight, Press Control C to copy
the CD key to the clipboard, then paste it someplace where you can reuse it.
Some experts advise compiling all your keys to a text document, then printing
it out for safekeeping.
