How To: Check If Windows XP Is Activated

Some people might check their activation status of Windows XP by simply right-clicking on the My Computer icon on their desktop, then clicking on Properties. It opens up a new window with General tab showing some basic information about your PC, like system info, registered to, and computer hardware. However, it does not actually tell us complete information about the system, like whether or not your current copy of Windows XP is activated or not. To check the complete details about your Windows activation, like days left for activation, as well as other details on software and hardware present, follow these steps:

1. Click Start.
2. Point to All programs.
3. Further point to Accessories and then System tools.
4. Further point to and click on System Information.

A new window will open, which will display some content. The left panel consists of System Summary, Hardware Resources, Components, Software Environment, and Internet Settings while the right panel details information about the selected category.

With System Summary selected on left panel, a detail summary is presented on right panel, including Item and Value columns. In the Item column, look for Activation Status. The Value column shows its activation status.

That's it.

If you had activated your copy of Windows XP, it will say activated, or it may not even show the Activation Status field in the detail summary page, which means no further activation is required. If it's not activated, it will show Days left for activation. In my case, it's 21 days left for activation.