Windows 10: I sell my PC and make a new one from parts. Can I keep my license ?

Ah so your still running the Insider Preview. That changes everything. You must still have the watermark and an expiry date? Not real point in trying to transfer that to a new PC. It's not the full consumer version. You can stay an insider and keep running the Insider preview. Each new build will give you a new expiry date. If you opt out activation will eventually time out and you'll lose functionality.

 

Actually, it looks like mine are turned off. Maybe it happened when I did the clean install from the bootable USB Microsoft created with their official Windows10 bootable USB creator.
EDIT: And it looks like I have a 100% genuine license.
EDIT2: And I have no watermark.

 

It looks that way. If there is no watermark, your not running 10525 or 10532. The way its supposed to work on a clean install is, if you did the free upgrade and activated, a clean install on that same PC will activate. I think Microsoft goofed with 10240. When that build released there was no watermark and no detectable expiry date, even if you originally clean installed the Insider preview and hadn't opted out. Opting out then, got you a free Windows 10. For some anyway. Clean installs after that activated for some but not for others. Consider yourself lucky. Well I guess who ever gets that PC is the lucky one.

 

Bummer. I just checked on my laptop too, but there's still no watermark.

 

All you can do on the laptop is Stop Insider builds and see if stays activated. If there are no watermarks it must be build 10240? Did you ever do an upgrade to Windows 10 on the laptop?

 

When I first upgraded to build 10240 I was surprised that the watermark disappeared and that it says "Windows 10" instead of "Windows Insider Preview", or "Windows Technical Preview". And yes, I'm quite certain it's build 10240. It never did a build-like upgrade ever since (shut down, do the slow counting to 100%, restart a few times, and boom, new build installed).

 

You can always opt back into Insider builds if opting out causes issues. In theory, as long as you stay an insider, and they keep releasing new builds, the expiry date will just keep being extended.

 

Just so you know, I'm not running any insider builds at the moment. It looks like it will expire if you don't upgrade to a new build. Why That PC and not the other I don't know?

 

On the laptop was different. I wasn't able to upgrade from 10030 so I clean installed 10240 from iso. So maybe that's why. Also, I'd like to believe that Microsoft decided to give a free Windows10 to the 'helpful' insiders, for I was an insider since February and I sent a lot of feedback. *Biggrin

 

Yeah. I stopped the builds on my laptop and the expiration date didn't go to infinity. So I activated them again.

 

That was the way it was supposed to work, clean installs of the Insider preview didn't qualify for the free upgrade. One thing you could try is go here, http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/softw...load/windows10 run the Setup.exe and select the "Upgrade this PC now Option". Then see what happens.

 

Then I stand corrected and will endeavor to improve my reading skills. But save the snot for somebody who appreciates it more. Congrats on your first job!*Zip