Windows 10: Problem with desktop screen

Ok I have given up I installed 7 Pro again and had endless problems with updates and then used the upgrade feature I had pop up it got to 99% and then just stopped.

I am trying to install the 10 onto a cleaned disk now and then use that initial activation key then try the 7 Pro key afterwards if that doesn't work then it is back to the drawing board - what a waste of a day. I just don't know what to do now if the thing doesn't activate with the 7 Pro key - extremely frustrating.

 

Is there someone that can just give you/send you a good and verified Windows 10 USB flash drive or DVD to use?

Also, what computer are you using to post here with and what version of Windows does it have on it?

 

Hello Navy mate I had no trouble with my other machines - two in fact both had unallocated drives installed and the media worked perfectly so I don't think it is the media.

It goes through the process reasonably quickly which is a blessing but I just don't get the option to pick Home or Pro versions and having the machine originally come with 7 Pro I just don't understand that as I used exactly the same method on them as this machine - that is what I just don't understand. It is almost like the old 7 install setup where it asks for a user name and password something I don't remember having to do as I had to use my Microsoft account to login ??

The machine I am on right now has 7 Pro on it and I use it to clean the drive each time I have to install again is a new Asus the same brand as the machine I am trying to install on. Both machines are not that old the G750JM about a year old and this one a few months. The latest ISO I downloaded I did on this machine the P2520 and made a stick as well as the disk both I made sure would be verified by the burning software but each install went the same way.

I am at the moment trying one last time and will try the activation code that Bill quoted then after that try the 7 Pro when changing the key.

Anyway it has installed the same way again and I shall try using that key Bill quoted form one of your posts. Have just checked the activation and it is still the Home version ad it is telling me it is activated which is where I entered the 7 Pro key last time when changing product key and it told me it was not valid which I know it is because that is what I activated 7 Pro earlier with.

If it makes any difference those other machines I did upgrade while 7 was still on them so I might still do another bare bones 7 Pro install if this doesn't work and install over them - any suggestions please as I am just about witless. My problem is that 7 takes so long to install compared to 10.

 

Update have just reinstalled 10 and changed the product key using that generic key and the Home went to Pro. So have made some progress the only thing is my 7 Pro key didn't get through because of some problem with the Microsoft servers.
But at least the install is now ready to go.

Thanks for all the help from everyone I'm sure I will hit some minor hiccups and in the end the naswer was just a couple of key strokes away from me all the time.*Nerd

 

You're probably going to have to call MS to get it activated.

My guess is that the digital entitlement on the MS servers are stuck with the Home edition. Don't have a clue why - maybe because of the original problems when you first attempted the upgrade... who knows?

See what Showkey, winver, (Command Prompt (Admin)) slmgr /dlv, and slmgr /dli tell you.

 

If you are using an old USB flash drive, you probably installed build 10240 of Windows 10 and that would explain EVERYTHING. Build 10240 had different ISO's for Home and Pro - but build 10586 combined Home and Pro together. Build 10240 will not accept Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 product keys manually entered for activation, build 10586 will.

 

No actually I was using the latest ISO that I downloaded fresh from the link in the tutorial "Clean install without having to upgrade"- which took me to another tutorial on how to download the ISO and then onto Microsoft tech bench - on that stick and to be honest I have never liked using sticks for this stuff. The install build I think is that 10586 or something I am not in front of that machine right now but will check tomorrow morning.

I eventually ended up burning the ISO download to a disk as well and using it to install from.

Everything seems to be going ok right now and I have installed some of my usual programs including my Kaspersky AV and email I didn't remember to recheck using the 7 Pro the activation key this morning but will do tomorrow.

If by any chance I do not have the right build I might have to contact Microsoft and see what I can do or maybe I shall have to start all over again. My problem is there seems to be a lot of different tutorials on installing 10 which I find a bit confusing.

 

Hey John,

The tutorials are mostly the same, but there are special cases, so Brink made them separate instead of munging everything into one .. which would be really confusing (if then else sort of thing *Wink)

The download link is the same no matter which tut you follow.

There are really two main tuts

Clean Install
-- and --
Upgrade Install

Normally, you Upgrade first to get your digital entitlement (aka license). There are other tuts, such as the one you referenced, Clean install without having to upgrade, but that is just another way to Clean install.

You've already upgraded to Win10, so you have a digital entitlement. The issue is, which edition you're entitled to ... it seems as though the initial install gave you an entitlement to Win10 home, for whatever reason. Your install is now Win10 Pro, but it hasn't activated yet. It might over the next day or two - there were delays back in 2015 July, mostly due to the sheer volume of activations.

Your situation might be due to the broadband issues you've mentioned or it might be due to MS servers being confused. Hard to tell form this side of your monitor.

You don't have to through the reinstall again!

Once everything is straightened out (Win10 Pro is activated), you can Clean install Win10 any time without having to enter a key, as a matter of fact ... you should NOT enter a key during a Clean re-install once Win10 Pro is activated.

You're nearly there and either the install will eventually activate or you'll have to call MS to activate it.

Bill
.

 

Ok Bill I did do a bare bones 7 Pro install but with broadband problems and such things as updates for it not downloading properly - I am not sure whether the upgrade when I got round to trying it actually went through as the link that popped up only got to 99% and then stopped.

I eventually installed straight onto a drive I cleaned with the disk I burnt that morning which gave me Home version. It was only after I entered that generic key it changed to Pro. Anyway I shall find out tomorrow morning when I try to activate it with the 7 key if that doesn't work then I shall have to do another 7 Pro install and upgrade first problem is our broadband keeps dropping out as the national provider who we are with right now is in all sorts of a mess. I could try my prepaid modem but it is very expensive downloading that amount of data.

Anyway I shall get back tomorrow.

 

No, that's what I'm trying to tell you - you don't have to keep doing the Win7 re-install. I seem to have confused you with my explanation of the normal process.
You've already done the normal process 20 times *Smile

The system is Win10 Pro - right?
It is not activated - right?
All you have to do is activate Win10 - right?

To verify the current status
See what Showkey, winver, (Command Prompt (Admin)) slmgr /dlv, and slmgr /dli tell you.

So you have two choices,
try to activate over the flaky broadband
call MS and explain that you upgraded Win7 Pro to Win10 (expecting Win10 Pro). Wehn the upgrade finished, Win10 was the Home edition. You had to upgrade Win10 Home to Win10 Pro using the default Win10 Pro key (per MS webpage instructions)
They'll ask you a few questions and should oblige you. I've never had any issue calling MS to resolve Windows activation issues.

Make it easy on yourself and save some hair.
Call MS to activate - it's even a toll-free number, If I had it, I would have posted it *Wink

 

Hello Bill I have just activated the 10 Pro with my 7 Pro key seems the servers were not so clogged this morning, and the bare bones 7 Pro install I sorta upgraded to must have been accepted.

I just typed in where it says change product key and instead of getting a no go or the clogged message it just went straight to the screen in the pic/s

Showkey shows up the generic key and then some key I have never seen before and it is different to the key for
7 Pro.

Thankfully the broadband is working in some semblance of normality this morning too*Zip

 

The bottom key, labelled OEM key, is the product key that is stored in your computer's bios. That is why a Windows 10 clean install would install Windows 10 Home instead of Pro. Windows setup was seeing that product key and using it to install and activate Windows 10 Home.

The middle product key is the generic product key that upgrades to Windows 10 Home get:
YTMG3-N6DKC-DKB77-7M9GH-8HVX7

You got that product key because the inital Windows 10 install was reading the Windows 8 product key in bios, and using that to install Windows 10 Home and activate it as an upgrade from Windows 8.1.

The top product key, installed key, is the generic Windows 10 Pro product key that everyone gets from an upgrade. When you entered you Windows 7 Pro product key, Windows 10 used that to upgrade to Pro and activate as an upgrade from Windows 7 Pro.

BTW, you really should not have posted the screenshot with the bottom key in plain sight as it is unique to your computer, but still can be stolen and used to pirate other Windows installations.

 

Fixed that.

 

Good to hear John.
Let Win10 update and then it's time to make an image *Wink

 

Yep sorry about that key I hadn't noticed to be honest the key I obscured was the key I thought I should blot out and the machine was originally an 8 machine downgraded to 7 Pro which is why I suppose the other key stuff related to an 8 install??

I will be a bit more vigilant in future.