Depending on how you got your copy of Windows 10 or Windows 11, you'll need either a 25-character product key or a digital license to activate it. A digital license (called a digital entitlement in Windows 10, Version 1511) is a method of activation in Windows 10 and Windows 11 that doesn't require you to enter a product key. Without one of these, you won't be able to activate your device.
The product key is preinstalled on your PC, included with the packaging the PC came in, or included on the Certificate of Authenticity (COA) attached to the PC. For more info, contact your hardware manufacturer, and for pictures of authentic product keys and COA labels, see How to tell your hardware is genuine.
Microsoft windows 10 product key
The product key is in the confirmation email you received after buying your digital copy of Windows. Microsoft only keeps a record of product keys if you purchased from the Microsoft online store. You can find out if you purchased from Microsoft in your Microsoft account Order history.
If you bought Windows 10 or Windows 11 Pro upgrade in the Microsoft Store app, you'll receive a digital license instead of a product key in the confirmation email that was sent to confirm the purchase. That email address (MSA) will contain the digital license. You can use the digital license for activation.
If you are installing Windows on a new device or motherboard for the first time and you do not have a product key, select I don't have a product key during the installation setup screens. When prompted, enter the Microsoft account you want to use to purchase a digital license for this device. Once the setup screens are completed and Windows has finished installing, go to activation settings: Select the Start button, and then select Settings > System > Activation . Then select Open Store to purchase a digital license to activate Windows.
During installation, you'll be prompted to enter a product key. Or, after installation, to enter the product key, select the Start button, and then select Settings > System > Activation > Update product key > Change product key.Change product key in Settings
If you finished setup and did not enter your product key, you can still enter your product key. Select the Start button, and then select Activation > Update product key > Change product key.
If you do not reinstall Windows, then you can select the Start button, and then select Activation > Update product key > Change product key to reactivate your device. Otherwise you can enter your product key during installation of Windows.
If you are installing Windows on a new device or motherboard for the first time and you do not have a product key, select I don't have a product key during the installation setup screens. When prompted, enter the Microsoft account you want to use to purchase a digital license for this device. Once the setup screens are completed and Windows has finished installing, go to activation settings: Select the Start button, and then select Settings > Update & Security > Activation . Then select Go to the Store to purchase a digital license to activate Windows.
During installation, you'll be prompted to enter a product key. Or, after installation, to enter the product key, select the Start button, and then select Settings > Update & Security > Activation > Update product key > Change product key.Change product key in Settings
To use KMS, you need to have a KMS host available on your local network. Computers that activate with a KMS host need to have a specific product key. This key is sometimes referred to as the KMS client key, but it is formally known as a Microsoft Generic Volume License Key (GVLK). Computers that are running volume licensing editions of Windows Server and Windows client are, by default, KMS clients with no extra configuration needed as the relevant GVLK is already there.
If you want to activate Windows without a KMS host available and outside of a volume-activation scenario (for example, you're trying to activate a retail version of Windows client), these keys will not work. You will need to use another method of activating Windows, such as using a MAK, or purchasing a retail license. Get help to find your Windows product key and learn about genuine versions of Windows.
If you are converting a computer from a KMS host, MAK, or retail edition of Windows to a KMS client, install the applicable product key (GVLK) from the list below. To install a client product key, open an administrative command prompt on the client, and run the following command and then press Enter:
If you have an old, retail (non-OEM) copy of Windows 7, 8 or 10 you are no longer using on another PC, you can likely use the product key when you do a fresh install of Windows on your new PC. However, you must first make sure it's deactivated on the old PC it came from. See our article on how to transfer a Windows 10 or 11 license to a new PC for step-by-step information on how to retrieve and move your key.
Note that if the product key comes from a prebuilt computer that came from the factory with Windows on it, it has an OEM key that may not work on a different new PC. Feel free to try it, though, because if it works you have Windows 10 or 11 for free.
At the Build Conference in April 2014, Microsoft's Terry Myerson unveiled an updated version of Windows 8.1 (build 9697) that added the ability to run Windows Store apps inside desktop windows and a more traditional Start menu in place of the Start screen seen in Windows 8. The new Start menu takes after Windows 7's design by using only a portion of the screen and including a Windows 7-style application listing in the first column. The second column displays Windows 8-style app tiles. Myerson said that these changes would occur in a future update, but did not elaborate.[33][34] Microsoft also unveiled the concept of a "universal Windows app", allowing Windows Store apps created for Windows 8.1 to be ported to Windows Phone 8.1 and Xbox One while sharing a common codebase, with an interface designed for different device form factors, and allowing user data and licenses for an app to be shared between multiple platforms. Windows Phone 8.1 would share nearly 90% of the common Windows Runtime APIs with Windows 8.1 on PCs.[33][35][36][37]
In regards to Microsoft naming the new operating system Windows 10 instead of Windows 9, Terry Myerson said that "based on the product that's coming, and just how different our approach will be overall, it wouldn't be right to call it Windows 9."[45] He also joked that they could not call it "Windows One" (referring to several recent Microsoft products with a similar brand, such as OneDrive, OneNote, and the Xbox One) because Windows 1.0 already existed.[46] At a San Francisco conference in October 2014, Tony Prophet, Microsoft's Vice President of Windows Marketing, said that Windows 9 "came and went", and that Windows 10 would not be "an incremental step from Windows 8.1", but "a material step. We're trying to create one platform, one eco-system that unites as many of the devices from the small embedded Internet of Things, through tablets, through phones, through PCs and, ultimately, into the Xbox."[47]
A new iteration of the Start menu is used on the Windows 10 desktop, with a list of places and other options on the left side, and tiles representing applications on the right. The menu can be resized, and expanded into a full-screen display, which is the default option in Tablet mode.[42][62][73] A new virtual desktop system was added by a feature known as Task View, which displays all open windows and allows users to switch between them, or switch between multiple workspaces.[42][62] Universal apps, which previously could be used only in full screen mode, can now be used in self-contained windows similarly to other programs.[42][62] Program windows can now be snapped to quadrants of the screen by dragging them to the corner. When a window is snapped to one side of the screen, Task View appears and the user is prompted to choose a second window to fill the unused side of the screen (called "Snap Assist").[62] The Windows system icons were also changed.[73]
Windows 10 incorporates a universal search box located alongside the Start and Task View buttons, which can be hidden or condensed into a single button.[111][112] Previous versions featured Microsoft's intelligent personal assistant Cortana, which was first introduced with Windows Phone 8.1 in 2014, and supports both text and voice input. Many of its features are a direct carryover from Windows Phone, including integration with Bing, setting reminders, a Notebook feature for managing personal information, as well as searching for files, playing music, launching applications and setting reminders or sending emails.[113][114][73] Since the November 2019 update, Microsoft has begun to downplay Cortana as part of a repositioning of the product towards enterprise use, with the May 2020 update removing its Windows shell integration and consumer-oriented features.[115][116][111][117]
As part of Microsoft's unification strategies, Windows products that are based on Windows 10's common platform but meant for specialized platforms are marketed as editions of the operating system, rather than as separate product lines. An updated version of Microsoft's Windows Phone operating system for smartphones, and also tablets, was branded as Windows 10 Mobile.[145] Editions of Enterprise and Mobile will also be produced for embedded systems, along with Windows 10 IoT Core, which is designed specifically for use in small footprint, low-cost devices and Internet of Things (IoT) scenarios and is similar to Windows Embedded.[143][144] 2ff7e9595c
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