Although I believe Carey is correct, I have never tried using a MSDN media with a OEM COA key, myself.
Since OEM keys Must to be Activated by Phone anyways, the best way to find out if an OEM key will work in MSDN media is by actually trying to Activate by Phone? If the activation is rejected, then we know Carey was correct.
Activate by Phone:
a) If you have access to the Start button: Click the Start button, and type in "slui.exe 4" in the search field and then press the "Enter" key. This will bring up the Activate by Phone dialog window. Follow the steps provided by the window. The phone activation process should only take about 6 minutes.
b) If you do not have access to the Start button: Reboot and login to Vista, a dialog window will come up. In that window, click the option "Access computer with reduced functionality". Once you do that, Internet Explorer or Firefox browser will open. In the address bar type "c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe" press enter, a new window will come up, type: slui 4 and hit enterand follow steps to Activate over the Phone.
NOTE: The key to this process is that you need to talk to a Live Activation Rep! When you first call, you will be interacting with an Automated Voice, either select the option to talk to a Live Rep or if there is no option, do not enter any numbers. This should force the automated voice to tansfer you to a Live Rep.
Thank you,
Darin Smith
WGA Forum Manager
