No COA provided with OEM version of Windows 7 that I purchased. What to do?

Question

I bought a sealed copy of Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit to install on a computer I am building. When I opened the package there was no Certificate of Authenticity (COA) or activation code. Is this normal, or have I been had? If so, what are my options, if any, other than purchasing another copy?

Solution

I recently purchased the same product as you, for a system I'm building for a family member. The Certificate of Authenticity (COA) should be on the back of the DVD case. It's a sticker that is meant to be peeled off and affixed to the PC hardware for which the license applies. Below is what my product looks like.

Contents:

Back of DVD case:

Notice the area I circled in red. This is the COA (yes, a small sticker) and the product key that you need to use to activate Windows 7 is on the COA itself. Of course, I greyed out my license's details; imagine bar codes and hyphenated alphanumeric gobbledygook.

If you didn't get something that looks like that, you probably did not get authentic product. I suggest you first contact the seller to resolve the issue, and failing that, take advantage of any buyer protection you might have. For instance, you could call your credit card company and request a chargeback.

Close-up of a COA:

Comments

[sawdust]

"sealed copy" - please clarify, what was in the package? Was there a DVD & booklet in a plastic case covered by a cardboard sleeve? Does the DVD have the orange hologram? What kind of outfit did you purchase this from?

[Tracy]

It is an OEM disc just like the one pictured below. In the package was a cardboard sleeve sealed (taped) on bothe ends, a plastic case sealed with warning label, inside the case was Windows 7 Home Premium disc with booklet. Bought off ebay. Yes my mistake.

[Isaac Rabinovitch]

@Tracy You need to report this to eBay dispute resolution soonest. You might well get your money back.

[Xavierjazz]

Get your money back. Good luck.

[David Schwartz]

By the way, I would strongly urge you never to buy a copy of Windows from a place like eBay or Craigslist. There are tons of counterfeits out there, some amazingly good looking. Some even have product keys that seem to work (often MSDN or BizSpark keys) that remain valid for a few weeks or months and then go dead. Even if you got the real COA, someone else may have bought a copy of your product key, leading you to trouble down the road.

[Tracy]

mine has been removed i guess. I have the pink film left where it should be.

[Chris W. Rea]

Sounds like the license has been used already. Request your money back.

[Chris W. Rea]

BTW, @sawdust's comment is also correct in that the DVD case comes wrapped in a cardboard sleeve that has printed on it some of the legal information about the OEM license. I didn't show that in my images above.

[Tracy]

Thats what I thought too. Will try to do that.

[Tracy]

Yes it all looks like what I recieved other than no COA

[Tracy]

Am I wrong or doesn't an Oem version have OEM in the actvation code. The code I was given that is supposed to be legit does not have OEM.

[Chris W. Rea]

No, "OEM" doesn't appear in the activation code.

[Tracy]

I received a code from the seller but he stated that he has no knowledge of a COA.

[sawdust]

An original sealed package of the Win7 disc has the cardboard sleeve covering the plastic case & COA sticker. When you "opened the package", did this sleeve just come off, or did you have to cut the seals before sliding off the cardboard sleeve? If the only intact seals were on the plastic case for the DVD, then you got an "opened" copy.

[Tracy]

The cardboard sleeve had perforated tape seals on each end holding plastic case in place as well as red warning sticker seals on each end of the plastic case.

[sawdust]

I don't have any SP2 packages, only the original Win7 release. Those used one piece of tape at each end. The tape is clear plastic where it adheres to the cardboard, and it's red w/white lettering where it adheres to the case. There's no perforation of any kind on the tape. What you call a "warning sticker" seems to be what would be left after the tape is cut. It does not start out as a "sticker"; the warning text is part of the single piece of sealing tape. Unless MS changed the sealing tape (not likely), then it seems like your copy was opened to remove the COA and then "resealed".