How to purchase Genuine Microsoft Software?

For all the Personal Computer users and Business System user, counterfeit or spurious software could be a serious and genuine threat. The evil effects can be that it may lead to corruption of system, complete loss of data and sometimes even it leads to your identity theft. Therefore, it becomes much important to know about how you get genuine Microsoft software at your purchase place or purchase point. When a customer shop for Genuine Microsoft Software, he should keep the following important information which will help him to determine as to whether the software he is going to purchase is genuine Microsoft Software or not. Now if the customer is not prepared to purchase any Microsoft software, he can just retain this information so as to easily refer it back in future.

Buying from a reputed or branded seller:

You can buy Microsoft Genuine Software from a reputed or branded seller who sells only genuine Microsoft software to the customers. For this purpose, you have to locate a reputed or branded seller using some of the local resources like Newspapers, Reputed Computer Magazines, consumer publications, etc..
Moreover, further to the above purchase modes, you are also having the option to purchase genuine Microsoft software through online method. You can know more about some of the digital download options at the click of the following link: www.microsoft.com/howtotell/digitalpurchases.

Make sure that the Certificate of Authenticity or COA is available:

A Certificate of Authenticity or COA can be defined as a label, which helps the customer in identifying genuine Microsoft software. In all cases, the retail Microsoft software is marketed with a COA label affixed on the outside of each packaging. If the COA label is not available on the packaging, then it is not genuine Microsoft software and is mostly not properly licensed by Microsoft Corporation. A COA label should never be relied without the information on software, which it authenticates.
An Important Information: It is immaterial that you have purchased your software from a reputed seller or dealer, or from a small or large manufacturer, only the COA label that is which authenticates the software and the software will have special features which are set to differentiate from counterfeits. The current COA labels have a Port-Hole™ very much nearer to the middle along with interwoven thread, which runs vertically going through the center. But all these features often changes though, therefore the customer should be continuously check the "How to Tell site" so as to make sure that he is equipped with the most up-to-date information on genuine Microsoft Software.
A customer can learn more about COA labels at the click of the following link: www.microsoft.com/howtotell/coa.

Verify whether a holographic disc or recovery media is included or not, with the software:

Microsoft Corporation mostly dispatches all the Microsoft products on hologram C.D.s or D.V.D.s so as to protect the genuine Microsoft Software against counterfeiting software.
A hologram disc can be defined as a disc featuring a holographic image on the surface of it. Further, this holographic image will be part of the said disc itself and it is not a sticker at all.
Important Information: The Customer has to inspect the edge of the disc so as to make sure of the fact that the appearing hologram is not at all a sticker. Just trying to lift the hologram with finger can do this. Since the hologram is part and parcel of the disc itself, it shall not come off from the disc.
All the genuine Windows software purchased along with a new personal or business computer may come with a recovery media. Recovery media can be defined as an installation disc which is used to restore your genuine Microsoft software in case it's failure to function. Generally, the computer manufacturer will provide with a means of recovering your genuine Microsoft software, which may include a hologram C.D., D.V.D., or some other form of a media.

High quality product packaging and documentation:

It is one of the easiest indication that a customer is purchasing genuine Microsoft software that the package is a professionally packaged one and along with proper documentation.
Important Information: The customer may inspect the packaging so as to make sure that it is of very high quality. As detailed above, the customer shall see the COA label affixed to the outside of the software packaging. However, the customer should not, see the 25-character Product key on the outside of the software package. Microsoft Corporation will never print the Product key on the outside of software packaging and in no case; it should be visible before purchasing the genuine Microsoft software.
Those who wish to learn a lot more about the counterfeiting software scams and want to see such images of counterfeit software may click at the following link: www.microsoft.com/howtotell/counterfeit.

Proper license is available for the software or not:

You may know the fact that software can be sold in more than a number of ways. Therefore, a customer has to familiarize himself with the following list of tips, which may help and make sure that the software the customer is purchasing legitimate and licensed properly:
· There are some software which is only for sale with a personal or business computer and not by itself available for sale;
· There are some software which is meant only to be distributed in certain geographical regions of the globe;
· Most of the times, selling a used software has got special requirements such as typically the software should have been only running on one computer at a time, etc.;
· All the software should have descriptive manuals or other appropriate accompanying documentation;
· Most of the trial software or promotional software generally can't be sold once again;
· Also, the specially licensed software like academic software is most often restricted regarding the purchaser of the software.
Final Advice: A customer has to make sure that he has to check with the seller and query about whether the software is legitimate and properly licensed or not. Some times, software that was marked as "Not for Resale" (NFR) or promotional or specially licensed software such as academic versions are sold or duped as full versions of the said software.
It should be understood that the proper sale or use of Microsoft software is subject to the Software License Terms Agreement of Microsoft Corporation. A customer has to review all the license terms of his Microsoft software so as to make it sure that it's being used only properly.
Some of the genuine and cautions that are included in the Software License Terms agreement are the restrictions posed against reverse engineering and leasing, or renting the software itself and other restrictions that may apply to a particular software. Further, the Software License Terms agreement describes most of the terms under which a customer may make a backup or an archival copy of the said genuine software and it also details about the limited or restricted warranty provided for the said product.
If a customer wishes to have more information about Software License Terms, he can visit the following link: www.microsoft.com/useterms.
When everything said above is not alright:
1. Please don't buy such a software;
2. You may also choose to submit a counterfeit report at the following link: www.microsoft.com/howtotell/report or at piracy@microsoft.com. In your report, please explain the information such as where from you found the software and what aspect seemed to you as suspicious.
3. Also, be and make sure that you are buying software only from a reputable source such as major seller or some of the other recognized seller.
4. Finally, if a customer likes to see if the software he is currently using or running is genuine or not, he may go to the link: www.microsoft.com/genuine and make sure to validate the copy of genuine Windows software.

How to buy a Genuine Microsoft Software?