I'm... unsure where you're getting the "locked to one version" data. I mean, I suppose it's possible? But I've never seen it in the wild. I've been installing off OEM discs for... yeesh, decades. Hell, I used to *be* one of the VARs that distributed Windows via OEM discs.
The biggest problem with OEM versions, in my experience, is that many places don't actually have a Windows installer on the disc. What they have is a disc image, from an already-installed and configured machine, and that's what gets slapped on your computer when you install, complete with incorrect drivers and whatnot.
(Which, it should be noted, *can* be worked around. If Windows boots at all, you can fix the rest. If it doesn't boot, then yeah, problems.)
It's certainly worth a try, however, and worst-case scenario you'll simply have to purchase a licensed copy instead.
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs
The biggest problem with OEM versions, in my experience, is that many places don't actually have a Windows installer on the disc. What they have is a disc image, from an already-installed and configured machine, and that's what gets slapped on your computer when you install, complete with incorrect drivers and whatnot.
(Which, it should be noted, *can* be worked around. If Windows boots at all, you can fix the rest. If it doesn't boot, then yeah, problems.)
It's certainly worth a try, however, and worst-case scenario you'll simply have to purchase a licensed copy instead.
--sofaspud
--"Listening to your kid is the audio equivalent of a Salvador Dali painting, Spud." --OpMegs