How to get a global unique hardware ID

 To get get a global unique hardware ID on a PC.

You cannot use software unique ID, because it is based on OS/Software

Software unique ID:

1. Hardware id from registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/MSLicensing/HardwareID

2. From WMI
Win32_SystemEnclosure.SerialNumber,
Manufacturer-allocated number used to identify the physical element.

Win32_WindowsProductActivation.ProductID etc
String of 20 characters separated by hyphens in the format, xxxxx-xxx-xxxxxxx-xxxxx. This is the same product ID that is displayed under the General tab of the System Properties dialog in Control Panel.

3. Computer SID from registry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SECURITY/SAM/Domains/Account
The security identifier (SID) structure is a variable-length structure used to uniquely identify users or groups.

Hardware unique ID:

CPU ID,

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hskdteyh(vs.80).aspx

MAC Address,

HDD Serial number,

Win32_PhysicalMedia.SerialNumber

 

You cannot use volume serial number because volume serial number is a 32-bit number determined by the date on the current computer at the time of a disk's formatting. You may combine HDD brand and serial number to make the ID global unique.