Bad news for those planning to activate Windows 11 with a Windows 7 or 8/8.1 key: users noticed that the latest Windows 11 preview builds no longer allow activation with old license keys.
I’ve had the same Win8 Pro key that I purchased for $40 when it released 12 years ago. I’ve used it for Win10 and 11. Is this saying if I format my drive and reinstall Win11 that I won’t be able to activate using this key anymore?
If I’m not mistaken your key is linked to your motherboard as well as your Microsoft account. So I think you should be fine. I just formatted my drive yesterday and it didn’t even ask me to type it in, I skipped that step and it verified once I logged in.
Keys are usually stored in the TPM chip and/or tied to Microsoft accounts if you use one. If you don’t have an account, there’s actually a limit to how often a key can activate new hardware. If there’s no TPM, there’s simply a limit within a certain timeframe that it can be used to activate on the same hardware.
I’ve had the same Win8 Pro key that I purchased for $40 when it released 12 years ago. I’ve used it for Win10 and 11. Is this saying if I format my drive and reinstall Win11 that I won’t be able to activate using this key anymore?
If I’m not mistaken your key is linked to your motherboard as well as your Microsoft account. So I think you should be fine. I just formatted my drive yesterday and it didn’t even ask me to type it in, I skipped that step and it verified once I logged in.
OEM keys are linked to motherboards I believe. Mine is a retail key and I’ve used it across many different builds over the years.
Keys are usually stored in the TPM chip and/or tied to Microsoft accounts if you use one. If you don’t have an account, there’s actually a limit to how often a key can activate new hardware. If there’s no TPM, there’s simply a limit within a certain timeframe that it can be used to activate on the same hardware.
Right, I’m pretty sure this key is tied to my MS account.
Retail keys can also be linked to the hardware or Microsoft account