Windows 10: Will Windows 11 retail key work on a new PC on which I login with a Microsoft account which...

I have a Microsoft account, and I access my laptop using that Microsoft account. Tomorrow I'm going to buy a new PC and a new Windows 11 retail key. I will buy that Windows 11 retail key from the same Microsoft account that I'm using my laptop with.My question is, if I access my new PC with the same Microsoft account which I also use in my laptop, will there be any issue?

:)

 

Upgrading a PC and Retail Keys

My current desktop PC started life with a Windows 8 Pro retail key and now has the latest version of Windows 10 activated by a digital key linked to my MS account.

I want to change the motherboard, CPU, memory & system drive with a clean install so I guess Windows 10 will not automatically activate. What are the essential steps to deactivate the key currently in use and ensure it activates using the new hardware?

 

Cannot login with microsoft account on Windows 10.

Hi John,



If you are using Microsoft account to login into the user account, I suggest you to convert the user account to
Local account and using the new Microsoft account change to Microsoft user account by following the below steps and check if the issue is resolved.



Step 1: To convert to local account.

• Press Windows logo + I keys on the keyboard to open system
  Settings window.
• Click Accounts and under Your emails and accounts, click on
  sign in with a local account instead option.
• Enter your Microsoft account password and click on Next.
• Type the Password, and Password Hint that you want set for the local account and click
  Next.
• Click on Sign out and Finish button.
• Login to check if the changes are effective.

Step 2: To switch to Microsoft account.

• On the newly converted Local user account, press
  Windows logo + I keys on the keyboard to open Settings window.
• Click Accounts and under Your emails and accounts click on
  sign in with a microsoft account instead option.
• Enter the new Microsoft account ID and Password and click Sign in.
• Follow the on-screen instructions and check if the changes are effective.

Write to us with the status of not able to login using Microsoft account on the computer for further assistance.
Your reply is most important for us to ensure we assist you accordingly.



Thank you.

 

Transferring a retail Windows 11 Pro licence to a new PC

I have an old PC running Windows 11 Pro, "activated with a digital licence linked to your Microsoft account". This is a retail licence purchased from the Microsoft Store.



This old PC is now suffering from various hardware problems, so I have bought a new one. This has been running Windows 11 Home under an OEM licence, also "activated with a digital licence linked to your Microsoft account".

My question is, how do I deactivate the Windows 11 Pro licence on the old PC and activate it on the new PC? I know this is an obvious question, and after some searching I found one answer I thought addressed my particular issue.

I followed the steps set out in Redirecting but now I'm stuck. The troubleshooter on the new PC says "we found a Windows Home digital licence for this device running Windows 11 Pro. To activate using this digital licence, you need to install Windows 11 Home". At the final step, "See other devices linked to your Microsoft account" only shows the old PC, with the Windows 11 Pro licence. I am signed on to the same Microsoft account on both PCs and can see them both in "Devices".

I'm not worried about the licensing on the old PC, as it's going to be recycled anyway.