Thread: Windows 7 RC vs OEM

What's the difference between the windows 7 RC and the windows 7 OEM?

Before a company(Microsoft) releases software to the general public, there are a lot of testing releases that are used to test the current build for bugs. Generally, these releases are named as
1)Alpha
2)Beta
3)Release Candidate
4)OEM
5)General Public
(Note that there might be more steps, like Alpha1, Alpha2 and so on.....)

A release candidate is a release in which developers generally decide not to add any new complete code, that is no new features will be added, but existing features will be tested for bugs, and the buggy code will be modified.

An OEM(Original Equipment Manufacturer) is the version after the RC. This release is ready to use, and is supplied to the manufacturers of pc's, so that they can test it with their hardware. Hence, an OEM is generally the final version that will later be released to the public.

The difference between OEM and the final public release is in the license. An OEM copy of windows is bound to a single pc, and if the serial of the pc changes, you will have to convince microsoft to allow you to change the serial for activation on your new pc.
A public release, on the other hand, only requires you to deactivate your old license, and activate it on your new pc, which the license agreement allows.

I downloaded an OEM version of 7 Ultimate yesterday to upgrade my RC I did this as the RC expires and anyway I want the full version. OEM are also installed on PCs you purchase with pre installed win 7.

All students can buy a discounted version of windows 7. My mate bought it for £35 and sold it on for £78. Not a bad little profit lol

And then there's the rest of us who aren't students nor get any discounts for the software. That's when we all learn how to BIOS hack.

The RC also has alot of bugs that the OEM doesn't have.