Simple Questions Simple Answers - Page 593

Right now when you are running your upgraded Windows 10 that was previously a Windows 8.1, you are not using a key. Your system is activated because a "fingerprint" of your hardware is saved with Microsoft's activation servers. When you wipe your drive and install a clean Windows 10 (without upgrading from Windows 8), you are supposed to install it without typing in a key. It should activate without key because the Microsoft servers will remember your hardware.

It's not known what exactly that fingerprint about your hardware is, but people say that the motherboard is the main thing about it. If this is true, you cannot change your motherboard without losing activation.

You need to get the activation back through using a key that will get accepted, or going through the free upgrade process again to get your new hardware fingerprint saved with the Microsoft activation servers.

The newer versions of Windows 10 started accepting your Windows 8.1 Pro key when you used the "change product key" button in the "System" screen after the installation. You could try to see if this still works now after the free upgrade offer has run out. You would then not need to go through the upgrade process. This was different with the earlier versions of Windows 10. Those would not accept a Windows 7 or 8 key, so you can only try this on a Windows 10 that's fully updated. If this does not work, this would then be a technical reason that forces you to buy a Windows 10 Pro key.

The upgrade process should still be technically available, like mentioned (the thing about handicapped people and assistive software). This would make it so you can get back to Windows 10 by first installing Windows 8.1.

About actual keys and the difference between OEM and Retail and Upgrade versions of the keys, I don't really know about Windows 10. I'm just assuming that it still behaves the same as in the past. In past version of Windows, there was no technical difference behind the scenes. Microsoft's activation machinery treated all keys the same.

Changing the motherboard without preparation meant you'd lose activation in a way that you were forced to call Microsoft on the phone. Windows would not accept your key, and the phone activation process would fix this.

One thing that was possible to do is remove activation and wipe your key from your Windows before you change the motherboard. This would contact Microsoft's activation server and free your key on there. Then after changing the motherboard, you'd add your key again, and it would activate. That's how it was possible to change hardware without having to go through the phone activation process.

This thing about removing the key is also how you can free it up to start using it on a different PC without having to use phone activation. To find a guide about this topic, search for "slmgr.vbs uninstall key" with Google. This might be interesting for you if it turns out that Windows 10 still accepts Windows 7 or 8 keys for activation like it did in the months before the free upgrade offer ran out.