Reinstalling Microsoft Office XP soon? If you can't find your Microsoft Office XP product key, sometimes called a CD key, you're going to need to extract it from your current installation.
Normally this product key is on a sticker attached to the inside of your CD case or located with the manual that came with Office XP.
If you've lost your product key, don't worry. It's located in the registry but it's encrypted, making finding it nearly impossible without help from some handy software programs.
Follow the steps below to locate your Microsoft Office XP product key code.
Manually locating the Microsoft Office XP product key from the registry is nearly impossible due to the fact that it's encrypted. Luckily, a number of free programs exist to help find product keys.
Choose a free product key finder program that supports Microsoft Office XP.
Note: Any product key finder that locates Microsoft Office XP product keys will locate the product keys for any edition you may have including Microsoft Office XP Professional, Small Business, and Standard.
Download and run the key finder program. Follow any instructions provided by the software.
The numbers and letters displayed by the program represent the Microsoft Office XP product key. The product key should be formatted like xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx - five sets of five letters and numbers.
Write this key code down exactly as the key finder program displays it to you for use when reinstalling Microsoft Office XP.
Note: If even one character is written down incorrectly, the installation of Microsoft Office XP that you attempt with this product key will fail. Be sure to transcribe the key exactly as the key finder programs shows it.
