The Windows operating system is extremely expensive, and therefore more and more users buy laptops and system blocks on which it is already installed. It can be home, professional or other Windows version, the license of which is already activated for the computer, which means that the system will receive all updates free of charge.
However, the file and program structure of Windows is such that the computer slows down after a while. A lot of useless files accumulate on the hard drive, and the only way to get rid of them is to format the drive and install a clean version of Windows. You can do this without losing your license, and in this article we will look at how.
How to reinstall Windows 10 without losing your license on your computer
This option is re Windows installations without losing a license, it is suitable for both stationary system units and portable laptops. It assumes installing Windows on system disk after fully formatting the partition. You do not need a Windows key to install, because official versions operating systems from Microsoft have learned to bind to physical address computer when updating.
Please note: We are considering reinstalling Windows of an identical version. That is, if Windows 10 64 bit professional version was installed on the computer, then only it can be reinstalled using the method described below.
Before proceeding directly to reinstall Windows, you need to create boot disk or a USB flash drive. To do this, you need to go to the official Microsoft website in the download section of the operating room Windows systems 10. From the site you will need to download the "Windows 10 Setup Program" utility, through which it is easy to create a bootable USB flash drive for any version of Windows.
When bootable USB drive(or disk) will be created, you can proceed to reinstall Windows. In order not to lose the license, this must be done as follows:
Then follow the instructions provided by the installer. After starting the operating system, you will not need to enter any keys, Windows will be activated on the computer.
Important: In order to avoid various troubles, we highly recommend that you do before starting work on reinstalling Windows. As a last resort, it will allow you to restore the operating system license.
How to reinstall Windows 10 without losing your license on a laptop
The second method of reinstalling the operating system is only suitable for laptops. They have Windows, when installed "from the factory", is sewn into the motherboard, which allows the user, if necessary, to carry out a system restore, without fear that the operating system license may be lost.
There is no single instruction for system recovery for all laptops, and each company performs these actions in its own specific way. Most often, for this, it is enough to go to the BIOS or a separate Recovery Mode(at the start of the computer, to a full Windows boot) and select the item " System Recovery". Some laptops have a separate button to enter recovery mode.
It is worth noting that if you reinstall operating system on a laptop by restoring it through Recovery mode, the user will receive a version of Windows without updates, that is, the one that was installed when the computer was released. Naturally, all updates can be downloaded and installed after Windows starts.
Soon after the release of the new operating system, it became clear that during the transition from legal version 7 or 8.1 to Windows 10, the free license is tied to the hardware of the computer, and not to the Microsoft account as originally intended. At the same time, the system automatically receives the same product key for all the updated ones.
Microsoft does not want to go into details about the activation process in order not to promote pirates, but at the same time it makes the licensing issue unclear.
The Windows 10 free license differs from previous Windows licensing systems. V modern computers With Windows 8 and 8.1, like newer Windows 10 devices, the product key is embedded in the UEFI firmware. If you buy a copy of Windows 10 - for example, to install it on a computer you assembled - it will also come with a unique key.
In all these cases, the product key is used to Windows activation... However, with a free upgrade to Windows 10, the key is not provided. It is embedded directly into the installer and is automatically entered during the upgrade process, but if you look at it using a specialized tool, and then compare it, for example, with the key of your friend, who also performed a free upgrade to Windows 10, you will find that they are completely identical ...
How Windows 10 Free Licensing Works
When upgrading from Windows 7 Service Pack 1 or Windows 8.1, the installer registers a unique ID that allows Windows activation servers to identify your PC hardware.
Subsequently, if you reinstall Windows 10 on the same computer, the system will automatically contact the activation servers, which, in turn, making sure that a free 10 license is allowed for this particular configuration, will automatically activate your copy. That is, during a clean installation, you can safely skip all those steps where you are required to enter a product key, knowing that after installation, the system will be activated automatically.
Thus, automatic activation will only channel if the computer is using the same hardware as when upgrading to Windows 10.
What happens after replacing PC components?
Replacement hard disk, random access memory or the video card should not be causing the problem. Of course, the same applies to the replacement of peripheral devices.
However, Microsoft writes in its FAQs that installing a new motherboard (and likely a processor) will void the license. That is, the company's servers will treat the computer as a completely different configuration without the right to a free update.
V in this case you can also install the top ten from scratch without entering a product key, but after installation, the system will not be automatically activated and will be considered non-genuine until you activate it. In this case, the activation screen itself will offer you to purchase a license in the Windows Store.
Don't be in a hurry, however, as Gabe Ole, VP of Engineering Windows groups& Devices at Microsoft states that you can simply contact support, explain your situation, and they will activate your copy without any problem.
Is it possible to transfer a free Windows 10 license to another PC?
The answer to this question is on official page answers to frequently asked questions and, most importantly, it is clearly spelled out in the user agreement.
When upgrading to Windows 10 from a pre-installed (OEM) or retail version (Retail) of Windows 7 or 8 / 8.1, the user will retain the right to use the license that was assigned to the original version of the operating system.
If you are upgrading from Retail, your copy of windows 10 will receive the rights of the retail version, which means that it can subsequently be transferred to another computer. However, whenever transferring to another computer software must be removed from the previous device, otherwise you may be left without a license altogether.
Unlike Retail, the OEM terms and conditions do not provide for license portability, but given that when a motherboard is replaced, Microsoft support can activate Windows 10, chances are that, at your request, the company will activate the copy that was ported to a completely different device. Although it needs to be tested in practice, if this is the case, then the difference between Retail and OEM becomes quite blurred.
Windows 10 - best version Windows, but that doesn't mean it doesn't get slower over time. Any Windows, for that matter, starts to work differently than we wanted, there are delays, universal applications may not work, all this happens for a number of reasons, one of which is the time since the last installation or system update. The best way The solution to this problem is to reinstall the operating system.
Automatic activation of Windows 10 after reinstallation
Many users who have updated Windows 7, 8.1 to Windows 10 using a free update often ask if activation will fail after reinstallation, how to reinstall Windows 10 without losing the activation license, or how to activate Windows 10 again after new installation.
Reinstall Windows 10 without losing your activation license
After the release of Windows 10, back in 2015, Microsoft assured that it is possible to reinstall and activate Windows 10 after a fresh installation without any problems, as long as you install Windows 10 on the same computer without major changes. hardware.
Link Windows 10 license to Microsoft account
If you sign in to Windows 10 with a Microsoft account (version 1607 or later), Windows 10 automatically associates your Windows 10 license with your Microsoft account. makes it easy to activate your copy of Windows 10 when you reinstall or fresh install.
In fact, there is even an activation troubleshooter that you can use to activate Windows 10 if your copy of Windows 10 doesn't automatically activate after you make changes to your PC's hardware.
Users using local account can also reinstall Windows 10 without losing license, activation. There is no means to Reserve copy Windows licenses 10. You don't really need to do backup your license if you have an activated copy of Windows 10.
Activation after a fresh install of Windows 10
You can reinstall the same version of Windows 10 on the same PC (where you have activated copy Windows 10) without requiring a product key. When reinstalling Windows 10, if you see a prompt for your product key, just click the Skip button. Windows 10 automatically activates once the computer is connected to the network after installation is complete.
Before proceeding with reinstalling Windows 10, we advise you to go to Parameters → Updates and security → Activation and check the activation status of Windows 10.
Here you will see a message "Windows is activated with a digital license associated with your Microsoft account." if your copy of Windows 10 is activated and linked to your Microsoft account (automatically if you use a Microsoft entry to log into Windows 10). If you are using a local account, you will see the message "Windows activated with digital license".
If you are still in doubt, contact Microsoft support using the built-in support app. In short, you can easily reinstall Windows 10 without losing your activation license.
Activated Windows 10 may lose its status if changes occur in the system or computer components. In some cases, activation can be returned, but first you need to find out the reason for its loss.
Why activation flies
Some time after successful activation, you may receive a message that your system is not licensed. In most cases, a unique error code will be presented along with the notification, based on which you can find a more detailed reason for the activation rally and a way to help return everything to its place. Usually the code consists of letters and numbers, for example, 0xC004C003.
Sometimes an error occurs with the code 0xC004C003
The second reason for the activation rally is the replacement of computer components. Activation binds to motherboard, and each board has its own unique number, so if you replace this part even with the exact same model that was in the computer before, the system status will change as soon as it notices the replacement.
A message may pop up stating that Windows has lost its activated status
Perhaps the activation has flown due to uninstalled updates. Please update the system to the latest version via the update center to check if this is the reason.
Installing available system updates
And the last reason why activation could be lost is the wrong transition to new version Windows. That is, for example, if you upgrade from activated Windows 7 to Windows 10, then activation by the rules should remain. However, this may not happen if you use the method of removing the old operating system and installing the new one on an empty hard disk.
Return activation
In all of the above cases, you have a chance to get the activation back. To use them, try the methods below for each case separately.
If you have a code
If, along with the notification about the activation rally, you were presented with a unique error code, then use it to find the correct solution to your problem. In most cases, errors with codes are eliminated by re-activating:
- Open your computer settings.
Opening the computer settings
- Select the "Updates and Security" block.
Go to the "Updates and Security" section
- Go to the "Activation" sub-item and change the product key: reset it and enter it again.
Press the button "Change product key"
- Launch the "Run" window using the key combination Win + R.
Launch the "Run" window
- Use the slui 3 command to proceed to Internet activation. In the window that opens, follow the instructions provided by the activation wizard.
We execute the command slui 3
If this method did not help, then find a more individual way on the Internet, focusing on the available error code.
When replacing components
If you replaced the motherboard, your computer must be counted as a new device under the terms of the Windows 10 license agreement. That is, the key that you used when activating the system running on the previous motherboard will receive the used status and will not work for reactivating your own computer with the new motherboard.
But there are situations when Microsoft support meets the needs of users and activates the system in the event of a board replacement. To contact the operator and explain with him, use the activation of the system by phone, by entering in the program "Run", which can be opened by pressing the Win + R key combination, the command slui 4. During the activation process, you will contact the operator. When this happens, explain to him that you had licensing system and already purchased windows key 10 and then follow the instructions provided by them.
Executing the slui 4 command
When leaving after updating or reinstalling the system
If you purchased a computer with an already installed and activated system (OEM), then most likely you do not have an activation key. But it is embedded in the BIOS, so the system is automatically activated when it realizes that it is there. But the key located in the BIOS is suitable only for activating the operating system that was installed when the computer was purchased, so you have to install it, activate it, and only then upgrade to Windows 10 again. If after installing the old OS, activation does not happen automatically, you will have to contact with the technical support of the laptop manufacturer or the company that sold you the computer, and ask them to restore license key... You have the right to this, since you bought their product with an already activated OS, which means that its cost was included in the amount that you paid.
Almost the same steps should be taken if you activated the previous operating system installed on the computer yourself: install old windows, from which you have a license key, activate it, and then upgrade to Windows 10, activation will be transferred automatically.
Video: what to do if activation has flown
Activation problems can be solved in the following ways: by reactivation, by calling technical support Microsoft or re-upgrading from a previous activated system. If none of these options helps, then you should contact Microsoft support through their official website, describing in detail the cause of the problem and the methods that did not help to fix it.
This article is relevant for laptops and system units that come with licensed Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 updated with the Windows 10 Free Upgrade Program.
Microsoft happily describes to us the advantages of Windows 10, but in this update utility, as well as during the update process itself, your new key does not show. It seems that there are no problems here, the system is updated, everything is fine, everything works. But what if suddenly something went wrong? Let's say the system went to hell, you need to reinstall. And you don’t have the key. Looking ahead, I will say that Microsoft will provide you with your new key for Windows 10 during the update, and we will extract it from the system using a simple method. Below I will describe how to completely reinstall the Windows 10 obtained for free while preserving the key, activation and legality status.
I understand that you most likely understand more or less, since you can reinstall the system yourself, but I still remind you that reinstalling in the described way will erase ALL data from the disk on which it will be installed.
Management
It is assumed that you have Windows 10 on your computer, free updated from older versions, which needs to be reinstalled from scratch. The installation procedure itself is omitted, you should be able to do it yourself.
1. Find out the edition of your current Windows 10 system. Open "Start", right click on "This computer" - "Properties". The window that appears at the top says "Windows 10 Home" or "Windows 10 Home Single Language" or "Windows 10 Professional" or something else. The main thing is to remember or write down which one;
2. Download and run a clever program to extract the key - ... In the line with the name of your current system and its revision, in the "Product Key" column, the key we need will be indicated. We rewrite it to ourselves in a safe place, or better in several places. You cannot lose this key in any way. After reinstalling your current Windows 10, you will no longer be able to find it if you lose it. Close the program;
3. Prepare in advance the media on which we will write the installation image. It is best if it is a "flash drive", at least 8 GB;
4. First things first, we need to get latest version Windows 10 from Microsoft website. We do not download the image itself, but a program that downloads it for you and writes it to the flash drive for you - the Media Creation Tool. Conveniently.
It is important to download the correct version of the utility, according to the bitness of the system from which the installation flash drive will be written. If you have an x32 system - then you need to download the x32 version, if x64, then x64. Looks in the same window as in item 1;
5. Insert the flash drive, remember its drive letter (D: / or F: / or G: / ... whatever it may be). We launch the utility. In the first window, select "Create installation media for another computer", click "Next". We select the Language - "Russian", the release - we select what we wrote down from item 1, Architecture - if your computer has 6 or more gigabytes of RAM, select x64, otherwise - x86. Click "Next". We select "USB flash drive". After, choose the letter of your flash drive, do you remember? "Next" again. The process of downloading the installation image of the system and writing it to the flash drive should begin. At the end of the process, the program will notify you and you can close it. The flash drive is ready to install Windows 10 from it.
6. Start the installation of the system as you have done before. If you didn't, it's bad, google it. The installation procedure for Windows 10 is almost the same as in earlier versions.
7. At the stage when you are asked to enter the license key, enter the one recorded earlier.
At the end of the installation, provided that you have Internet access, you will have an automatically activated licensed version of Windows 10.