Windows 10: Upgrade with current Product Key or Local Embedded Key

I will need to Upgrade my Windows 7 Pro to 10 soon!

I installed Windows 7 Pro on this Windows 8 Standard machine years ago. Will I be able to Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro? Or will I have to somehow reinsert the Windows 7 Pro Product Key to Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro? Or will I have to do a Clean Install and use the Windows 7 Pro Product Key? I also don't know if this machine ever had 10 on it. I think it was always a Windows 8 machine, but could be wrong, it's a used machine and had no OS on it when I got it.

I did not buy this key, I got it from an old dead Windows 7 Pro machine.

:)

 

embedded OEM key


Windows 10 install will not accept my embedded product key. What do I do now??

 

Product Key

Keys are not required for the upgrade process. Windows 10 has a built-in generic key which it uses to install - it acquires the underlying Win7/Win8 activation during the upgrade process and assigns your device ID as a valid Windows 10 activated device. Subsequent installs will thus activate using your device ID. You will not require a key - should you be prompted, select "skip". Activation is automatic thereafter.

See step 6 here: https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1...n-install.html

 

embedded OEM key

No, it doesn't. Again, (and again, and again) the previous version Windows key has nothing to do with Windows 10.

You upgrade the previous version of the OS in place first. The Windows 10 upgrade reads the activation of the previous operating system - NOT THE KEY. That creates a Windows 10 activation on Microsoft servers based on an ID created by the hardware profile - NOT THE KEY. Future activations of Windows 10 on that same computer will be based on comparing an ID created by the hardware profile - NOT THE KEY and will activate based upon comparing that hardware profile with what is stored on the Microsoft servers.

Again (and again and again) you upgrade the previous version of Windows in place - NO KEYS ARE INVOLVED. If you are upgrading and it is asking for a key, something is probably wrong, but you can skip entering the key and hope for the best. Once the upgrade is successful and activated - during future installs of Windows 10 you skip entering the key and it is supposed to activate based upon the information store on Microsoft servers - which has nothing to do with the previous version's key.