Windows 10: Retrieving Windows 11 Pro Digital License Key

Hi - I am in need of fresh windows installation on a new HDD on my laptop. I believe somewhere in the process I will be asked for Windows Product Key. I am aware mine is a digital license. Is there a way of retrieving the key in this case? Any help would be much appreciated.Thanks

:)

 

How can I verify 25 digits product key of windows 11 pro digital license?

You can verify your Windows 11 Pro digital license by following these steps:



1. Press the Windows key + I to open Settings.

2. Click on Update & Security.

3. Click on Activation.

4. Look for the "Windows is activated with a digital license" message.



If you see this message, it means that your Windows 11 Pro digital license is genuine and activated. You do not need an approval message from Microsoft.



If you still have concerns about the authenticity of your license, you can contact Microsoft support for further assistance.

 

Retrieve unlinked Windows 10 Pro digital license

Dear Microsoft support,

some time ago I had a HTPC that I upgraded from Windows 8.1 Pro to Windows 10 Pro for free.

This way the HTPC was running on the new digital license after activation.

I have never linked my Microsoft Account to that computer so the license never got "stored" in my account.

I recently sold the computer (formatted, without the Windows installation). I did not think about the license at all to be honest.

Question: Is there any way to retrieve the digital license of that HTPC for using it on a new PC? I still have the original Windows 8.1 product key.

Thanks for the help!

 

Windows won't activate a digital license but will with a product key?

Pardon my jumping in... On the first point: Once you have a digital license on a machine, you don't really need the key again. You could simply reinstall Windows using the generic key. Windows then creates a hash that is unique to your computer. It will look on the Windows activation servers to see if that machine has ever been activated before with the same edition of Windows. If it has, it will auto activate. There is no need to transfer any sort of license or even take any action whatsoever. It's just magic *Smile. One the final point, regarding usage of license keys for Win 10 and 11. Just to take that point one step further - If you activate a system with Win 10, you can at any time install Windows 11 as well. You can also go the other way around. If you use a license to install Win 11, you could later decide to install Win 10 instead. Even the generic keys are the same for Win 10 and 11. So, those licenses are truly interchangeable because they are one and the same. Just to illustrate a scenario that is common for me: Let's say that I have a new computer. I typically like to install by doing a fully automated, unattended install. With an unattended install you use a generic key. For example, I will use the Win 10 / 11 Pro generic key. Because generic keys are NOT activation keys, Windows will not activate automatically after installation. I will have to provide a real Win 10 / 11 Pro key to activate it. At that point a digital license is created and stored on Microsoft servers for my system. Once activated, I toss that key, knowing that I will never need it again. Now, assume that I reinstall Windows from scratch again on that same system. If I'm doing an unattended install I provide the generic key (because unattended installation needs some sort of key). If I'm manually stepping through the installation, I simply tell Windows that I don't have a key. I just make sure that I am installing the same edition of Windows (Pro). After installation, Windows checks the Microsoft servers to see if a digital license exists for that machine. If it does, it activates. Note that at no time did I need to reference the original license key or perform any sort of transfer. It just happens automagically. Hope that helps!