Windows 10: Activation with old key?

Seems to me this ShowKey doesn't show the correct codes on any of my machines, they're all the same and/or just random.

 

Showkey does not present bogus keys. Showkey presents what is either stored in your bios or in your registry. Windows 7 never had product keys stored in BIOS - that didn't start happening until Windows 8. Showkey only presents what is on the computer. All Windows 10 upgrades from Windows 7/8/8.1 get the same generic product keys from Microsoft depending on the version of WIndows 10 (Home, Pro, etc.)

 

So what's the use of Show Key then, if it only shows the same generic keys for all machines, that you can't use for installing again??? I'm puzzled. I have the original keys on stickers on all my machines and none of them show in ShowKey. Only these generic same codes.

 

Fine. Use Belarc Advisor:
Belarc Advisor - Free Personal PC Audit, for software, hardware and security configuration information on your computer. Software license management, IT asset management, cyber security audits, and more.

You'll get the same product keys.

 

And it doesn't seem to store the keys in Bios/firmware now either.

 

Only manufacturers of computer systems like Dell, Hewlett Packard, etc store product keys in BIOS. Windows, by itself, never did. The use of actual product keys themselves stored in BIOS did not begin until Windows 8 was loaded on those computer as the factory OS.

The purpose of Showkey Plus is to show the product keys stored in your bios or in your registry. It's not up to Showkey Plus to determine if those product keys are legitimate or not or where they came from. It also has an added feature that you can enter a product key and it will tell you what version of Windows it is for - but it will not tell you if Microsoft has blocked that product from use due to abuse in the past.
@Superfly might know more about your xh8qm- product key.

 

Ym. I thought the idea was to revealb your orig.key if you haven't kept it safe so you could use it for reinstalling anew.

 

It can't retrieve that product key if it isn't in your computer in bios or registry or from a registry hive contained in a backup file, it's not magical. Some manufacturers have special product keys that they use to activate factory loads of software that will be different from those keys printed on the COA labels. Those keys will only activate Windows when it is installed by the manufacturer or from manufacturer provided restore disks. Maybe that is where the product key in question came from. Since the manufacturer activated Windows 8 legitimately, Windows 10 upgrade would also activate - but only as an upgrade from the installed Windows 8 - not from the manufacturer's product key by itself.

 

Very interesting. In this case I'm the manufacturer of these machines.

Let me think about this....

Current machine is an all new self-built one that I activated using a retail 8.1 pro original code (blue twin disk package for w8.1 I bought separately off the shelf) that had been used in 1 machine before and updated to w10 in that said machine. Apparently that license is thus transferable and doesn't store info on the mobo or anywhere. So I can likely use that original serial for w10 installations forever as long as it's on one machine at a time only. BUT I have to keep the original key safe as there seems to be no way to see it from windows.

The 2nd machine had w7 pro OEM I had been using since the 7 came out, bought it along with the mobo I had back then, and it had had at least 3 different motherboards and such minimum, many 5-6 reinstallations over the years and I had to use phone activation with it once already. That was then updated to w10 and also that has no way of seeing the original code, but neither it seems to have embedded it onto the mobo. So I wonder if I change the mobo on that build, will it still activate and with what serial? Basically the info in ShowKey is the same as the other machine.

3rd machine is old core 2 originally win Xp OEM that has always been activated over the Internet first to 8, 8.1 and then w10 finally, but for w8 upgrade I bought a retail 8 v again and this machine shows original edition w8 retail as 'original' but the 'original key' it shows is clearly wrong, but NOT the same as on 2 other machines. Different from the actual key that came with the disks though. So I suppose I can also activate this machine anew with any motherboard without issues, but have to use the old key that I have on the case.

I have 3 more PC's here with w10 so I'll check them out as well...

Next one has an OEM sticker that came with w7 pro I bought separately probably along with an SSD drive for it (btw all these machines have been cloned to new disks at some point except the newest one on M.2...all the others, I have gotten rid of spinners as C drives.)
...this machine was originally a Packard Bell I bought used, not a self build...but show key info is the same as on machines 1 and 2 and shows a generic same installed key there, but doesn't show any original key info and oem key is not present in firmware. When I installed w7 on this I had to activate it over the phone, but w10 installation worked fine and actually later swapped the c drive and reinstalled from scratch and it didn't even ask for a serial to activate.

Last machine....well I have a few more but getting bored with this....a laptop Fujitsu....so not a scratch build...and OK this looks different...very different product ID, finally also different installed key NW6C2....Different original key D6RD9...'win next starter retail' and oem key KCC8N...win 8.1 professional OEM.

That might be the only machine I have on which Show Key seems it could actually show a usable serial.

Maybe ShowKey only works on factory built machines? Then it is of little use to me because I hardly ever buy factory assemblies.

I have another laptop here originally xp or Vista, got it empty, bought a w7 oem licence for it and now it runs 10, and a win8 tablet updated to w10, and another old core 2 with vista orig.but bought a new oem 7 for it and now w10 of course. I suspect all those will show same infos as machines 1 and 2 if I try.

 

That key was used as a generic prior to the Win 8.1 iso's accepting Win 8 keys - Thus that will show as the installed key as the Win 8 key was used to activate only.
It's similar to the current situation with Win 10 digital entitlement, except the HWID is used to activate now.

 

Let's put it this way. Showkey does everything possible for any Windows OS product key finder to do, and does more than most.

 

Thanx John, as I have said before, I appreciate criticism - good or bad, as long as it's constructive and accurate - to help make ShowKey better - rather than being dismissive without real reason.

 

Sorry if I seemed dismissive - I have no doubt it works as well as possible. If there is no way to decipher a working installation code from Windows, then there just is no way. Nothing wrong with that, I just didn't understand that it wasn't what the program is intended for. Honestly I still don't see what use is the info it gives then, though.

 

It's meant for normal Windows installation and subsequent activations - not via generic keys (which will end in July - apart from those purchasing via the Store)
Like with Windows 8.1 when it started using the Win 8 keys to install and activate. People can retrieve that key to re-install.

 

I'm puzzled...what is a normal windows installation then? Does it mean...installations before update to 10? After update to 10 it won't work but before going thru the update it it does? So if I had ran it prior to update to 10 it would have shown the code used, but it's not possible under 10 any more?