Windows XP activation doesn’t pop up after repair or ghost
Also, how to log on without activating Windows 
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Ghosted a machine to a new harddrive today, as the old one was failing.
Windows activation pops up on the first boot, as is to be expected, but when I clicked "Activate", nothing happened. The activation wizard simply wouldn't continue. And of course I couldn't get in and activate the system normally, because Windows didn't let me log on without activating. Gah!
The solution, it turns out, is the following:
- Start the machine, while repeatedly hitting F8 from just after the initial BIOS image disappears
- Choose "Safe-mode with command prompt"
- When the command prompt appears, type "explorer" and press <enter>
You're in!
Now you need to (re-)install a hotfix, and Internet Explorer 8. Download them on another machine, and put them on a CD, a USB-stick, or whatever you have available. Install the hotfix first.
Hotfix KB946501: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/946501
Internet Explorer 8: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/internet-explorer/default.aspx
The files you need are called (for English Windows XP):
WindowsXP-KB946501-v2-x86-ENU (hotfix)
IE8-WindowsXP-x86-ENU (Internet Explorer 
Anyway, after they're installed, reboot and activate as usual.
Worked for me
Error -6003 during Creative X-fi driver install
So the installer says something like:
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Setup has experienced an error.
Please do the following:
- Close any running programs
- Empty your temporary folder
- Check your Internet connection (Internet-based Setups)
Then try to run the Setup again.
Error code: -6003
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What do you do to solve this?
Why, erase any folder with a number as it's name (mine was named "09", but I'm sure it can be something else) in the following directory:
%System Drive%\Program Files\Common Files\InstallShield\Professional\RunTime\
No, it doesn't make sense, but it worked perfectly. No reboot or anything. Just remove (or simply move) that folder, and things will start working. Brilliant.