The Investigator

OEM is a term thrown around often when you're purchasing or upgrading your system. This month, we'll take a brief departure from our usual investigations and give you low down on the pros and cons of taking on OEM licensed software.

Fundamentally, an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is essentially a supplier who manufactures systems from parts. The OEM parts we see advertised in magazines at discounted prices are what system manufacturers use to build new PCs.

There are two types of OEM components: hardware and software. OEM hardware is supplied 'as is', meaning it usually comes without a box, and sometimes even without drivers. But if you're confident about sourcing building your own system from scratch, then buying OEM parts can be significantly cheaper.

Software works a little differently. OEM software such as that supplied by Microsoft and security software companies are designed to be shipped with systems, and so they provide it at a discounted price. Depending on the software manufacturer, an OEM license sometimes only allows you to use the software on the specific computer it came with.

Avoiding piracy

OEM software can also be a minefield for piracy. We spoke to the BSAA chief to get the low down on this tricky part of the software industry. Chairman Jim Macnamara, says the issue isn't with people who upgrade, and potentially nullify their OEM agreement, but when one piece of software is used on more than one machine at a time. This is obviously piracy if you don't own a licence for all machines. He says that users who upgrade, and even those who replace their whole machines needn't be concerned: 'Provided you only own one PC and use the only version of the software you should be covered. But if in doubt you should contact the vendor.'

But what if you purchase OEM software without buying hardware to go with it? Many smaller retailers sell OEM software to customers but this typically breaks the licensing agreement that the supplier must adhere to.

'OEM is a special kind of licence - it's sold as part of a package. A licence is a contract. The retailer is buying the product at a special price under the terms of that contract', says Macnamara.

Implications of buying OEM

Components that count as eligible for sale with OEM software include a motherboard, processor, memory, hard drive, optical drive, video card, or sound card. Basically, anything that is designed to go inside the computer, and therefore modify it, can usually be accompanied by OEM software. A printer, however, counts as a peripheral and not a system component, and as such is not eligible. The waters become murky when discussing external components such as USB sound cards, so it's always best to check with the software publisher.

Things to look out for