But that key is still tied to its original machine. As the Microsoft rep on the Answers page noted, you can view the full Windows product key using a third-party utility, such as Belarc Advisor, Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder, or ProduKey. So even if you boot into the BIOS, you won't find the key as an entry that you can simply write down. How can you do that if the product key is locked to the dead PC's original BIOS?Ī couple of people posed those same questions on the Microsoft Answers page but have yet to receive answers.įurther, the product key itself is embedded and encrypted in the BIOS. Or, let's say your current Windows 8 PC dies and you need to replace the motherboard or install the OS on a totally different working computer. Will Windows insist on using the embedded product key, or is there a workaround so you can manually enter the key that came with your Windows 8 Pro System Builder software. You then install Windows 8 Pro on your PC. And you own a standalone (aka a System Builder) edition of Windows 8 Pro with its own product key. Let's say you own a new PC running the standard version of Windows 8. Microsoft certainly benefits from this new activation process since a Windows 8 product key embedded on one PC seemingly can't be used on another.īut therein lies the problem for the user.

My hunt for the perfect Windows 8 convertible laptop.Microsoft hands Windows 8 Pro to pirates by mistake.That's certainly a plus, especially when the numbers on those product key stickers wear out or are just too small to easily read. It's automatically applied and activated. So if you need to reset or reinstall Windows 8, you don't need to hunt for the product key. This will avoid product keys from being compromised and OEMs will buy what they need. Instead, this will be embedded in the BIOS. But with Windows 8, Microsoft has switched gears and now stores and encrypts the key in the BIOS instead.Ī response to a question on Microsoft's Answers Web site confirmed the details earlier this month: One of the improvements Microsoft is making to Activation 3.0 for newly built machines that come preloaded with Windows 8, you won't have a COA (Certificate of Authenticity) sticker attached to the machine anymore. In the past, a new Windows PC would display its product key on a sticker, usually on the side of a desktop and on the base or the bottom of the battery compartment on a laptop. Windows 8 PCs now embed their product keys in the BIOS, a move that offers both pros and cons.

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