That makes sense to me, Bob.

Sometimes Microsoft will ask you to reauthorize Windows when you change hardware, but sometimes not; it seems to depend on how much changed. I've been through this a few times as I build my own PCs.

As for the upgrade, I recall when doing a beta that I had to start fresh with a new install when the final version came out. In other words, you cannot get some registration code to 'unlock' a beta version to become the real one, and keep all your data. Thus, I don't put a lot on my beta testing machine, only enough to see if some things work.

Then you have the situation where Windows 7 could not upgrade XP, and a full reinstall was necessary. Windows 8, though, could be installed on top of 7. So the rule seems to be that there is no rule.


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