While setting up a new server recently, I found that I had the necessary hardware but lacked a Windows Server 2003 license. A discount company on the Web was asking $600 for a copy of Windows 2003 Standard Edition—ouch. Ah, but wait, here in my Inbox was an email message advertising discount software. Couldn't hurt to open it up and take a look, right? Wow, an "OEM" copy of Windows 2003 for only $69!
Hey, wait a minute. That's too good to be true. But there are surely sufficient numbers of these guys hawking such deals that it can't be entirely illegal, right?
Next, I visit the OEM software site, and it looks legitimate. Heck, most of the words are even spelled correctly. And there's an FAQ page that explains why the stuff is so cheap: Because it's downloaded software, I needn't pay for packaging. Nor do I get phone support from the vendor.
But, hey, even Microsoft sends Windows 2003 in just a little cardboard box with a plastic spacer. Inside are two Release 2 (R2) CDs and a piece of paper with the printed license. This packaging costs Microsoft hundreds of dollars? And even Microsoft doesn't give free phone support for Windows 2003—it never has. Something sure smells fishy, doesn't it? . . .
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