OEM vs Retail ID: 246 Category: Software Installation Support Status: Resolved Views: 1974 Question: advantage/disadvantages of OEM packs vs retail... Solution: Full Retail Box software comes with technical support and Upgrade options. Retail Box software is designed to be as quick and painless as possible, and is directed towards novice users. Upgrade Version software also comes with a full install version but requires you have the key you first used to register the software you are updating. OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) software is much cheaper than Retail Box and is the same software, but is more complex to install. In some cases, it is a requirement that before you install a new OEM version, the old version is uninstalled. This is commonly the option with Operating Systems and with Anti-Virus and system protection software. [--- UPDATED: 5/25/2006 4:28:08 PM BY AGENT: Help Desk ---] Submitted: 5/25/2006 Modified: 5/25/2006 4:31:43 PM Related Issues: No related issue is available.