Official Windows 10 Thread

[Joe C]

I don't think your going to get any license keys with the free 10 version. Like Windows 8 it will be in the bios.

Windows 10 users will be able to perform clean installs of the operating system at any time, even after the one-year free period has ended. Users won't be required to install Windows 7 or 8 and then re-upgrade, and they won't need the Windows 7 or 8 product key, with Aul confirming that clean installs from an ISO will be possible.

I suspect the key will install into the bios as an SLP key.
System Locked Pre-installation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
so after your initial install of the free version, your key will stay just like it does in Windows 8. I do question that if one were to flash his bios, would the key stay intact?
New mobo would mean you must get a new key for 10

 

[1etherer]

Morality is subjective - some may see nothing wrong with transferring their OEM key to another system. Others may see it as morally wrong... Either way you look at it, it's still legally wrong (objective). Sure you paid for the key, but that's just a license to the software. You still have to agree to the EULA/TOS before using the key.

Anyway...we're getting off topic.

Legal is subjective... nothing is legal/ illegal in life, the universe and beyond... we as a society choose both..

I was going to say its going way of topic.. one thing we can agree on!

SO back on topic!!! >> I cant wait for windows 10!! going to try and use my OEM keys on another machine to get it installed

 

[carnageX]

I don't think your going to get any license keys with the free 10 version. Like Windows 8 it will be in the bios.

You can bypass that. You can also either extract the key from the BIOS (there's tools to do it), or add in a text file on the ISO that changes where it gets the key from (to either prompt or read from UEIF). I don't imagine WIn10 being much different. Plus, that's only for UEFI systems...so for the legacy BIOS systems, it would have to use an enterable key.

New mobo would mean you must get a new key for 10

Which would just be a different way to enforce their OEM EULA/TOS since you legally need to get a new license anyway.

 

[Joe C]

Plus, that's only for UEFI systems...so for the legacy BIOS systems, it would have to use an enterable key.

OEM's have been using SLP keys on Windows 7 pc's with the older bios for more than several years now. Use your original restore disks on that Dell box and no need to authenticate.
If you would have read the link I posted, you would have read:

These versions roughly coincide with versions of Windows NT (see table below). Operating systems that use SLP 1.0 check for a particular text-string in a computer's BIOS upon booting. If the text string does not match the information stored in the particular installation's OEM BIOS files, the system prompts the user to activate his or her copy as normal. SLP 2.0 and SLP 2.1 work in a similar manner. This effectively "locks" the operating system to the qualified motherboard. In addition, if an end-user feels the need to perform a "clean install" of Windows and if the manufacturer supplies the user with an installation disc (not a "System Recovery" disc that is a hard-drive image), the user will not be prompted to activate the copy, given that the installation is performed on the same motherboard. Furthermore, because the check only involves the BIOS and not hardware, a user is allowed to change virtually all hardware components within the machine except motherboard, a procedure that would normally trigger re-activation in retail copies of Windows.

Yes, there is a program to get the keys from 8 so I'm confident that it would work for 10 also. If there isn't one for 10 yet, I'm sure there will be very soon
Windows 8 ProduKey:
ProduKey - Recover lost product key (CD-Key) of Windows/MS-Office/SQL Server

 

[carnageX]

OEM's have been using SLP keys on Windows 7 pc's with the older bios for more than several years now. Use your original restore disks on that Dell box and no need to authenticate.

I was always under the impression those keys were stored on the recovery discs (or recovery partition) rather than on the system itself.

Yes, there is a program to get the keys from 8 so I'm confident that it would work for 10 also. If there isn't one for 10 yet, I'm sure there will be very soon
Windows 8 ProduKey:
ProduKey - Recover lost product key (CD-Key) of Windows/MS-Office/SQL Server

Didn't know NirSoft made a utility - thanks. This is the link I've viewed from: windows 8 - How to extract Win 8 OEM key embedded in the BIOS? - Super User

 

[1etherer]

Just found out (maybe im late) that ctrl V will work in CMD now!!! to me that is really good

 

[carnageX]

Who uses CMD nowadays? PowerShell ftw.

 

[1etherer]

Who uses CMD nowadays? PowerShell ftw.

I rarely use powershell unless its on a server... I work with end users in my role more so use CMD for basic things

 

[carnageX]

I rarely use powershell unless its on a server... I work with end users in my role more so use CMD for basic things

You can use standard command prompt commands in PowerShell as well; it's just more flexible in that you can also use PowerShell commands/scripts.

 

[Yami]

I should use PowerShell a lot more. But meh