[RoweTech]

Hello All,

I am creating a ghost image that consists of Windows NT 4.0 w/Sp6a for
the OS & Office 97 as the office suite. How can I setup Office 97
(Excel, Word & Outlook 98) to prompt for product key during 1st bootup
on the target pc after ghosting? I have it setup to prompt for license
info for the OS but not Office 97. I have successfully done this on a
different platform (WinXP Pro w/ OfficeXP and or 2003). I know that on
WinXP and or Win2k the registy path for Office 97 to perform this
function would be "HLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MS Office 97
Professional\97*\Registration". Can this be done on Windows NT 4.0 &
if so where in the registry would I make my modifications? Any help
would be greatly appreciated.

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If Office '97 installs in the same way as Office 2000 does, then you should be able to just install it off the CD and leave the actual Serial key blank. This way you can just install it, Ghost it and then when you fire up Word/Excel for the first time, it should ask for a key then.

[Neil Jones]

If Office '97 installs in the same way as Office 2000 does, then you should be able to just install it off the CD and leave the actual Serial key blank. This way you can just install it, Ghost it and then when you fire up Word/Excel for the first time, it should ask for a key then.

[RoweTech]

Hmm...good question. Not sure about the answer. I will have to find this out. I do know that Office 2000 installs as a suite & Office 97 you have to select each option (i.e., Excel, Word, etc.) individually to install.

[Neil Jones]

Hmm...good question. Not sure about the answer. I will have to find this out. I do know that Office 2000 installs as a suite & Office 97 you have to select each option (i.e., Excel, Word, etc.) individually to install.

Office 2000 you can elect what to and what not to install then you just fire up any Office application, key your key in (as its generic Office) and it also stops the other programs from asking for keys.

I would have thought Office 97 works in the same way. You'll have to try it and see

[RoweTech]

Good afternoon Neil,

No dice with Office97. Before you're even giving the prompt to select the install path you are prompted to enter in the product key right after accepting EULA.

[Neil Jones]

What happens if you just click Next without entering any key?

[RoweTech]

Hey Neil,

Nothing happens whatsoever. It doesn't even prompt me with an "invalid product" code message when I click ok. There are two options..."ok" & "exit setup". Something else that I've discovered since I've started this project...initially I thought this was more of an NT issue than Off97...it appears to be more of an Off97 issue...because I am unseccessful with OFF97 on Win2k as well.

[Neil Jones]

Having done research on this, it would appear that what you're trying to do isn't going to be possible with Office 97. In Office 2000 its easy - just don't bother providing a key and it'll ask you for one when you run it.

Apparently you can change it with the Magic Jellybean program, but that's all I've been able to find.