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I have Diablo 2 installed on my old gaming PC, and was looking to install it on my new gaming rig. The problem I have is that while I have the install discs and things, I cannot for the life of me find the CD Key.
Is there a way to figure out what the key on the old PC is so I can copy it and use it on the new PC?
I assume it is stored in a file or registry setting somewhere on the old box...
If it's already installed and registered on the other computer, most Blizzard games (Diablo 2 included) seem to respond well to just being flat-out copied from one computer to another. Assuming the CD key is stored in a file (can't find anything in the registry on a quick look-through), it would solve that problem and save you some time installing (and even patching).
The registration key is encrypted in one of the .mpq files in your installation directory, either patch_d2.mpq or d2data.mpq ... sources I found seemed unsure as to which. Not that it matters, because it's encrypted.
There are programs "out there" that will extract the key for you, but I would be very careful using them. I haven't used one myself, so I can't recommend any to you, and programs like that are sometimes located on sites that don't necessarily scan everything before it's posted. If you search for "Diablo II key grabber", you should get some hits that might point you in the right direction.
If you tied your D2 game to your battle.net account, you can just log into a new computer, connect to your battle.net account, and download the game from blizzard on to your new system.
I was going to simply put this in the comments, but I felt it's enough information to warrant an answer.
There are some nasty anchovies out there if you start looking for "key grabbers" or whatnot, so be careful. The one I found that actually worked was linked from here. It only works with version 1.12 (or possibly older); but you did say "old gaming rig" so hopefully it was old enough that the game was fairly old too. ;) If you patched to 1.13, use the Google and you should find something; look for "Serby's" or "D2Utilities".
Basically, most of them read the MPQ files from your game directory and show you the decrypted game-code (CD key), which you can then register with Blizzard/Bnet to download the new modern-OS-compatible game client.
You do this by logging in to battle.net, going to Account Settings, and clicking "Add a Game Key" (linked Q/A explains a bit more about why it works this way). Enter the code shown by the viewer for Diablo 2, then for LOD, and you will now have both games in your account. You then go to "Download Clients", "Classic Games", find Diablo 2 / LOD, and download the OS-appropriate client (Windows or Mac). When you install the game from these clients, you will still need the "game key", which you can find in your account under "Account Settings", "Summary" -- scroll down to the bottom under "Classic Games" and click on the game title. It'll look something like this:
GAME KEY:
xxx0000000xxxx0000xxx00000
REGISTERED:
11/11/2017 11:11 PM
Copy that long alphanumeric code & paste it into the requisite box during installation. The new installers will get you all the way up to the current patch level. Side-note, in modern Windows (7 & up) your saved character files will be in \YourUserFolder\Saved Games\Diablo II\, which is kinda nice for management/backup/mule-ing. Have fun!
