The free Windows 10 license you receive is tied to your PC’s hardware.

Yup, it's a heated issue for desktop users. It seems Windows 10 was designed for laptop hardware in mind, which will unlikely change except for SSD and RAM.
 
But from reading. If you buy Windows 10 you get a key. With that key you don't have to worry about changing hardware.
 
I believe its been tested that if you go to you microsoft account you can manage your keys there. (ie remove your computer from that key) then when you reinstall skip the part where you type in your key. Then once you've gotten back to your desktop you re-log into windows with your hotmail account and it auto activates for you.
 
If you upgraded from an OEM version of 7 or 8.1, then it will indeed be tied to the hardware. If you upgraded from a retail version of 7 or 8.1, you do not lose the right to transfer to another computer.

Mystere at tenforums said:
Do I have to "forfeit" or "give up" or "lose" my existing Windows 7/8/8.1 License/Key to upgrade to Windows 10?

* No, you do not have to forfeit, give up, or lose your existing Windows 7/8/8.1 License/Key. Your license is still your license, and the upgrade only adds additional rights to run Windows 10. Microsoft will not revoke or disable your original Windows key (in fact, if they did that, you wouldn't be able to transfer the license to another computer, because you need to have an activated 7/8.x before you can upgrade on a new PC).

There is much confusion over some of the terminology used to describe this process. For example, in some cases, it's been said that your Windows 7/8/8.1 license is "consumed" by the Windows 10 upgrade. While this is in fact true, it only means that you are not getting a seperate additional license to run Windows 10. Your existing license is "upgraded" to give you the right to run Windows 10. You still have a right to run Windows, whether it be Windows 10 or your original Windows.

This does *NOT* mean that you can no longer use Windows 7/8.1. It means you cannot use both Windows 7/8/8.1 and Windows 10 at the same time. It's a single license for *ONE* instance of Windows.

Does my Retail copy of Windows become an OEM copy (Locked to the hardware it was upgraded on) after the upgrade?

* UPDATE As of the license terms released with build 10240, an original OEM copy upgrades to what is, in effect, still an OEM copy. An original Retail copy upgrades to what is, in effect a retail, transferable copy. Microsoft has done away with terms like "OEM" in the license, and now use terms like "If you originally acquired the software preinstalled on the device" and "If you acquired the software from a retailer". And, in the license they explicitly say that an upgraded retail license is still a transferable retail license.

In no situation does your original Windows 7/8/8.1 license get converted to an OEM license.

To clarify, in order to transfer your copy of Windows 10 to a new PC, assuming you have a retail license of Windows 7/8.x, you must first install Windows 7/8.x on the new PC, then perform a new upgrade on that PC. If this happens after the 1 year upgrade period is over, the Activation servers will know that your old license has already been upgraded and re-activate the new upgrade.
Click to expand...

http://www.tenforums.com/general-di...-questions-about-windows-10-free-upgrade.html

That link will answer a lot of questions for you.
 
"Hopefully Microsoft’s support people are trained well enough to handle this properly."

No, they are not. People have already run into issues with the free Win10 upgrade when changing hardware and Microsoft support was unable to help them.
 
50Cal said:
I believe its been tested that if you go to you microsoft account you can manage your keys there. (ie remove your computer from that key) then when you reinstall skip the part where you type in your key. Then once you've gotten back to your desktop you re-log into windows with your hotmail account and it auto activates for you.
Click to expand...

I tried this and it did not work. Tried help chatting with Microsoft and the first time I was told to wait it will activate. Three days went by, the second chat person said my options to activate were to either purchase a license or install Windows 7 again and wait for the upgrade to happen. Called their HD and the idiot on the other end didn't speak English so she didn't understand the problem I was having nor could she communicate clearly with me.

I went from Windows 7 > Windows 10 Upgrade > Four days later clean install of Windows 10 > back to Windows 7 and I'm there to stay.
 
Airbrushkid said:
It seems that the free copy of Windows 10 is tied to your pc hardware. Try to change your motherboard or cpu. It's all explained here - http://www.howtogeek.com/226510/how-to-use-your-free-windows-10-license-after-changing-your-pc%E2%80%99s-hardware/?PageSpeed=noscript
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The license and activation status are the same thing. Once you do something to break the activation you need to re-license the system. That can be done by either going through the free upgrade process again, calling Microsoft, or buying a key.

If you upgrade your pre-built HP/Dell/etc to Win 10 you cannot transfer that to a new PC. If you upgrade your Retail purchased Windows to Win 10, you can transfer Win 10 to a new PC (after you call them).
 
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How does calling Microsoft get it re-activated when there is no key to input?
 
rezerekted said:
How does calling Microsoft get it re-activated when there is no key to input?
Click to expand...
Because when you cannot activate and you call them you read of a number to them then they read off number to you. You type in the number and it activates.
 
That is how you did it for OS prior to Win10, we are talking about free version of Win10. People who have actually tried what you said were met with dumb as bricks support that had no idea how to activate free Win10 over the phone.
 
Upgraded to Win 10 (Pro on self built machine so full license of 8.1 moved to free upgrade of Win 10)

Changed out Mobo and CPU and RAM. Same HD, GPU, Wifi and Sound
Same everything, just swapped HD to new system and got it running

No phone call - activated simply and straightforwardly as it should.

It won't "end" the speculation but at least you know of a person who made a hardware change and survived :)
 
I upgraded to Windows 10 from Windows 8.1 Pro on my old x58 system, and it was a full retail copy. Swapping my motherboard to my new Z170/6700K triggered the activation system so I have to reactivate.

Called Windows support and was run around for over an hour as the phone tech clearly had no idea what he was doing and was going off of a script. Complete moron who ended up leaving me on hold for so long I hung up.

Considering reinstalling Windows 8 Pro from my original discs, but MS really shouldn't make it this hard.
 
My biggest concern is that if an OEM desktop machine's motherboard dies the machine is worthless, especially if it came with Windows 8 (no key sticker) due to the OEM board costing much more than an off-the-shelf board (plus another Windows license or clean reinstall of the original OS if 7)
 
Then either don't buy OEM desktop machines, or hope they last long enough that just buying a new one is the better way to go anyway by the time it dies. That's the long-term price of OEM.
 
geforce said:
My biggest concern is that if an OEM desktop machine's motherboard dies the machine is worthless, especially if it came with Windows 8 (no key sticker) due to the OEM board costing much more than an off-the-shelf board (plus another Windows license or clean reinstall of the original OS if 7)
Click to expand...

Tru dat. I know of someone who had a Compaq/HP system that had a motherboard that died just outside of warranty. They wanted $650 plus shipping for a new board, in addition to a $349 charge for a tech to come out and install it. They paid $400 for the whole system including the monitor. What I got out of this: "Your system broke out of warranty? Poo poo, we're going to charge so much to get it fixed you'll just buy a new one instead."

The sad part is it's not even custom engineered like Compaq boards used to be back in the 80's and mid 90's. Just bottom of the barrel MSI barebones stuff marked up 9x in price.
 
gawkgawk said:
so?
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lol, yeah the activation token from previous Windows releases was also based on hardware configuration.

The article fails to distinguish between OEM and retail licenses, and ignores the information provided by MS in multiple FAQs and a Wiki.
 
pxc said:
lol, yeah the activation token from previous Windows releases was also based on hardware configuration.

The article fails to distinguish between OEM and retail licenses, and ignores the information provided by MS in multiple FAQs and a Wiki.
Click to expand...

Can I take my retail copy of W7 and use it if I make a motherboard & CPU upgrade?
 
McDork said:
Can I take my retail copy of W7 and use it if I make a motherboard & CPU upgrade?
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See the EULA.

http://download.microsoft.com/Docum...lish_1f3207ac-fae5-48a2-8698-ef39b6760860.pdf

http://download.microsoft.com/Docum...lish_2543db32-099b-4673-a3a5-398c2cf31971.pdf

(Same transfer clause for all US English versions with a retail license, but links are for Win7 HP and Win7 Ultimate.)

17. TRANSFER TO ANOTHER COMPUTER.
a. Software Other than Windows Anytime Upgrade. You may transfer the software and install it
on another computer for your use. That computer becomes the licensed computer. You may not do
so to share this license between computers.
b. Windows Anytime Upgrade Software. You may transfer the software and install it on another
computer, but only if the license terms of the software you upgraded from allows you to do so. That
computer becomes the licensed computer. You may not do so to share this license between
computers.
Click to expand...

Note this only applies to a retail license. If the copy of Windows you bought states it comes with a retail license, which properly licensed versions definitely will, this applies. OEM versions (come with systems and/or are sometimes sold unbundled), including system builder versions, or technet/MSDN/educational/whatever cheaper limited specific use versions do not have retail licenses. It may very well work to move non-retail versions to another system, but it's not blessed by MS.
 
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pxc said:
lol, yeah the activation token from previous Windows releases was also based on hardware configuration.
Click to expand...

But it also came with an activation key, the free Win10 has no activation key and is purely based on the hardware config stored online so how you going to activate it after you change the hardware? People say you just phone Microsoft and they activate it over the phone but as has been pointed out by others the support people don't know how to do that with the free Win10 upgrade.
 
rezerekted said:
but as has been pointed out by others the support people don't know how to do that with the free Win10 upgrade.
Click to expand...
No, it's been speculated by that awful, poorly researched article and repeated ad nauseam by the misinformed.
 
Nope, there have been a couple people that actually tried to get support to activate after changing hardware and they had no clue how to do it and were told to reinstall qualifying OS and free Win10 upgrade again. And that is how you have to do it, support can not activate it over the phone for you.
 
rezerekted said:
Nope, there have been a couple people that actually tried to get support to activate after changing hardware and they had no clue how to do it and were told to reinstall qualifying OS and free Win10 upgrade again. And that is how you have to do it, support can not activate it over the phone for you.
Click to expand...
There's that story, and then there's the story from the MS VP in charge of the support staff who do the reactivations. https://twitter.com/GabeAul/status/630161382042808320

No offense, but I think he knows what he's talking about and the misinformed users repeating the other story don't. The problem is that people don't apparently understand what a retail license is, and expect an OEM license to be transferable -- it isn't.

I'm done with the silly denialism on this subject, so I'm not bothering with you or the other poster anymore on this topic.
 
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"@MarmeladSusi @WindowsSupport @PiotrGoreckiJr You can contact Customer Support after you've made a hardware change to regain entitlement"

Ignore me if you want but the fact is he hasn't actually tried to get re-activated over the phone and people here have. What he says and what actually has happened are two different things. Support had no idea how to activate over the phone. Fact!
 
No, people are being told they're not eligible for a transfer to new hardware because, like 99.99% of other Windows using consumers, they have a non-transferable/OEM license. As should have been clear to anyone following the conversation, OEM licenses are not eligible for transfer to another computer or motherboard upgrade since it is a reduced price license tied to the original hardware.

If anyone is still confused about whether or not they have a retail license, open \windows\system32\license.rtf. Search for "transfer to another computer". If you have it, it's a retail license. If you don't have it, it's an OEM license. The end of the file also has a EULAID to verify if it's RETAIL or OEM.

The problem is that misinformed people keep perpetuating incorrect information.
 
They never said if they had OEM or Retail but what is true is that support did not know how to re-activate over the phone and told them to reinstall qualifying OS and Win10 upgrade. That is the solution they came up with after wasting hours of these users time trying to figure it all out. Like fuck I am putting up with that BS. If I ever decide to get Win10 I will simply buy a Retail copy and be done with it. That is a big if though.
 
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