dt_mathews,

See if working through the procedure here can resolve the problem.

thanks Denny ;-)

following on from that, should I have done things differently (i.e. is there a way of installing the restore O.S image on to a new hard drive or am i expected to get another copy of the actual O.s then use the correct key???

cheers,
dan

dtmatthews,

It is nothing you did wrong. The recent problems with the Windows Genuine Advantage program are anomalies.