Windows 10: Making a hardware change on a laptop without losing the Windows 10 License key

https://preview.redd.it/cutvpy1tc8d...bp&s=b8e7aea7c862dffa57c0ceaa0f0f4db01c0999d8

I think I have an idea on what I need to do, but I just need to get second opinions before I do something potentially stupid.

Situation: I have a laptop I want to sell but before I do so I want to bump up the price by upgrading its M.2 SATA SSD for an NVME SSD (that I don’t plan on using for anything else because reasons).

The laptop has an OEM license key (since I bought the laptop through traditional means from a major high street retailer) but somehow somewhere along the way it ended up being tied to my gmail account which now apparently doubles as a Microsoft account. I’m aware that if I simply factory reset my laptop and remove the laptop listed under my Microsoft account, then the OEM license key will be retained on the laptop when I then create a local user account. The issue I’m facing is what I then do when I want to upgrade the SSD, because the current guide from Microsoft support recommends linking the license key to my Microsoft account as a way of Re-Activating.

So, from what I’ve gathered I need to do the following in this precise order:

1. Back up my stuff (Done)
2. Upgrade the SSD
3. Fresh install Windows
4. Re-Activate Windows using my Gmail/Microsoft account
5. Factory Reset
6. Remove laptop from my Microsoft account
7. Create a local account on the laptop to check that the license key is still there

Have I got that right? And if that's correct, do I need wait a few hours/days between any of these steps so Microsoft's Activation servers can keep up with what I'm doing? What do I do if I get to step 7 and find that the license key isn't on the laptop anymore? Is there something I can do or am I just plain screwed?

Thanks

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:)

 

Wìndows 10 full format without losing license

Unless you change to new hardware (motherboard), you should not need to do anything. You should be able to clean/reformat your harddisks and reinstall without an explicit windows 10 key (leave the windows key field empty during the install).

To be safe, I would recommend that you link your windows 10 product key with a Microsoft account. This should allow you to login with that account to re-verify your Windows 10, even if you have new hardware.

Step 1. Make sure you are using a Microsoft account:

Keep in mind that if you did not already have a Microsoft account, that your new login information will change to the email address/password associated with the Microsoft account.

1. Open "Settings"
   
2. Select "Accounts"
   
3. Select "Your info"
   
4. Select "Sign in with your Microsoft account instead" link.
   
5. Fill the information required
   
6. "Sign in" and follow the remaining instructions.
   

The next step is to verify that your microsoft account is associated with the windows key.

1. Once again, open "Settings".
   
2. Select "Update & security".
   
3. Select "Activation" on the left bar.
   

If everything is good, it should say next to Activation: "Windows is activated with a digital license linked to your Microsoft account".

When you now reformat your machine, simply login with your Microsoft account.

Step 2. Hardware Change

As the others have mentioned, if you have changed motherboard you would lose the "windows key" associated with it. That is why you will need to notify Microsoft about "Hardware change".

1. Select "Settings"
   
2. Select "Update & security"
   
3. Select "Activation" on the left side.
   
4. Select "Troubleshoot". It should say something about it failing to be activated on your device.
   
5. Select "I changed hardware on this device recently".
   
6. Login with your Microsoft account (if you haven't already).
   
7. Select the device you are using now, and select Activate
   

Sidenote: I have recently changed my own hardware (motherboard, CPU, GPU), and followed the steps above in order to keep using my same Windows 10 key.
If for some reasons you had to take additional steps; please comment and let me know so I can update the step-by-step answer

 

Windows 10: Incorrect license after repair due to hardware change

Thanks, this worked for me and was a pretty painless process. Took about half an hour with chat support.

TLDR (read the rest of my post for a more detailed description); this support article will help people prevent the kind of problem I faced in the first place, specifically:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/20530

For those of you in a similar situation, it's worth to note the following:

1. If your machine came pre-installed with Windows 10 i.e. OEM software, not retail, then the Windows license is tied to that machine's specific hardware.
2. If you change significant hardware like the motherboard, Windows will require reactivation and will generally lose its license.
3. In my case, as the manufacturer did the repair on my laptop, they reinstalled Windows for me, but only Windows Home which is the system default at purchase.
4. If you'd purchased an upgrade to Windows 10 Pro like in my case, and change the hardware, you will lose the upgrade as it was tied to the hardware before it was changed. For me, the cost to essentially re-upgrade to Pro was £30 (my original purchase cost
   was £120 inc. VAT), with the added bonus I now have an actual upgrade key to use in case this happens again. The original upgrade was purely a digital license i.e. keyless, meant only for that machine without hardware changes.

I don't begrudge this; the whole purpose of this system is to prevent fraudulent duplication of licenses over multiple machines where the license should be used for only one machine. It costs admin time to fix my problems, and OS keys aren't free.

 

Windows 10 Hardware change

No. That only applies to an OEM key. IF you had a retail key that you upgraded, you are more than welcome to transfer this key to another device, just as you would have been able to before the upgrade. The default for retail keys is three activations before you need to call in and get help with activation. Previously, it was required that you install your retail OS first and then upgrade, but the most recent build of Win10 removes that requirement and allows direct installation of Windows10 using your retail Win7/8/8.1 key.