Windows 10: How to get product key of old OS (Win 7) after upgrading to Win 10?

Actually I'm quite interested in Kari's vid.. my own experience is installing the upgraded Win8.1 key in a VM on the clean installed Win 10 was fine.(I tend to keep each key PC specific, even running VM's on them)
I suspect the issue is transferability.... on same hardware it's limitless (well theoretically) as it's determined by the activation count algorithm regarding hardware changes (which as we know is vastly different for OEM, Upgrade and Retail keys)

 

Already recorded two reinstalls of 8.1 Pro on the same machine, one install on a new machine, all activated using the same retail key. At the moment recording the upgrade process to 10, then finally the new install of the original 8.1 which will no longer accept my product key.

Using one of my available 8.1 keys for this but what the hell, science is important *Wink

It might take all night before I have the video here. It's half past 8 PM here now but luckily I am an insomniac.

 

One must understand that individual failures do not constitute a company policy nor universal failure.

Many people have reported a successful upgrade to Windows 10, fully activated, then a failure of an activation on a subsequent clean install - only to go back and do an upgrade again and have everything succeed as it is supposed to.

 

Kari, these thumbs up are for the sacrifices you make in the name of Computer Science and just plain Geekery (Ha I coined a new word)*Thumbs*Thumbs*Thumbs

 

Yup, that's the idea...Thanx.

 

100% complete and utter nonsense. NavyLCDR, I agree with you.

Quote from this post: Solved Windows 8 Pro license transfer a new Windows 8.1 computer?

 

I used to beta test Windows 7 and was always doing a clean install just about every month, and subsequently played around with Windows 8/8.1 and now Windows 10. I've got a couple of Windows 7 keys now in that "won't activate on the internet" window that I have to call Microsoft and tell the computer voice it's only installed on one computer in order to activate. And they are still good, after using them to upgrade to Windows 10 with.

Maybe Kari is in the same situation, I don't know. Each Product Key does have a limited number of times it will activate automatically over the internet within a certain amount of time but until Microsoft sees a heavy repetitive use of the same key, it can be activated by phone.

 

OK guys, this will take time, encoding in process but after that I need to do some basic editing and add explaining titles before I can post the video:




The process as I did it:

• Install Windows 8.1 Pro on a new machine, activate with a valid product key which had never been used before. A totally virgin key. Activation OK
• Reinstall 8.1 Pro on same machine wiping the HDD, use the same key to activate. Activation OK
• Reinstall 8.1 Pro on a new machine, use the same key to activate. Activation OK
• Upgrade the last install to Windows 10. Windows 10 activation OK
• Reinstall 8.1 Pro on a new machine trying to use the same retail product key, resulting this:

 

Kari sounds like a warning tutorial in the making to me.*Smile

 

Now run slui 4 from a command prompt and attempt phone activation. You probably hit the online activation limit using the same key so many times in a short period of time.

 

Now that is interesting. The activation must use the original key then it seems.

 

No tutorial is needed, Microsoft has made this so clear there's no doubt: when an upgrade to 10 is made from a qualifying OS, the underlying valid product key is used to activate 10. It will be flagged as used, a free upgrade to 10 does naturally not give you two activated operating systems, the underlying and the new one. Only one OS will be valid, the upgraded 10, its activation based on the valid underlying product key.

Of course I could have done the last install with a generic Windows 8 key and then try to activate it from the settings, but the result is the same: key is used.

I repeat the fact that the Windows 8.1 Pro key I used for this experiment was virgin, never used before. Those knowing MSDN, I only claimed the key today just before starting this experiment.

 

OK, the video has to wait until tomorrow. Insomniac or not, I will not promise I will get it done tonight. Check the first screenshot in my previous post, lower third in the middle under the word Status; I did not notice that the time shown remaining was only for the first pass out of two. The Microsoft Expression Encoder now started the pass two showing over 6 hours remaining:




The reason the encoding takes so long is the length and quality of the raw video and my ailing hardware; I decided not to pause / cut the video to avoid any suspicions of foul play. In final editing I can speed it up when nothing is happening but I will not cut the video shorter.

 

An erroneous experiment being used to prove an erroneous theory. Classic. You introduced a variable not being tested into the experiment - to wit, the repetitive use of the product key to activate different computers in a short period of time. You want a valid experiment? Take a computer that was upgraded on August 1-5 and do a clean install of the previous OS on it using the original product key used to upgrade it to Windows 10.

Still an unanswered challenge. Was the product key blocked from online activation only because you used it too many times in too short of a period? Or is it blocked from phone activation as well, where you tell the computer voice you have it installed on only one computer?

Prove it. Here is the contrary to your claim:
Recovery options in Windows 10 - Windows Help

That is what Microsoft has really published. Have a nice day. (Or I guess night, there)

 

You are saying that it's just a coincidence that in this rapid test now, the first three activations were OK but as soon as I had upgraded to 10 the key would no longer work?

Previously, I have spoken out of my own long time experience. For instance, an activated retail Windows 7 Ultimate upgraded to Windows 10 the day Windows was launched, July 29th, the product key was used maybe in 4 or 5 Windows 7 activations before the upgrade during the past about 5 years I had it. Never an issue with activation, last Windows 7 activation was done sometime in March or April this year.

Trying to use that key now late September did no longer work. A valid retail key, only difference being this time it was used to upgrade to 10, and that the 30 day grace period to go back to old OS was gone.

You cannot be serious! Only thing on that page having even remotely something to do with the topic in question is highlighted in the screenshot below:




That is obvious! Of course your underlying product key will again be valid and you can use your original OS if you decide to go back to your old OS. The thing is, your Windows 10 will in that case be no longer valid and activated.

I have paid for my lessons here, learned that there are members who do not tolerate being corrected. My mistake, I don't always remember the lessons taken. Sorry.