A product key is a character sequence that acts as the license to a software product, and often required as proof of purchase. Also sometimes known as serial number.

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How can I find the product key that was used to activate Windows 8?

While I realize this question has been asked for other versions of Windows, it looks like like the existing activation key detection tools do not work with Windows 8 - most seem to return strings of ...
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2answers
4k views

Where can I download a rescue disk for Windows 8?

Where can I download a rescue disk for Windows 8? I have paid for Windows 8, but I would like to be able to download a Windows 8 repair disk using my product key. Is this possible?
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1answer
26 views

Windows Vista not accepting product key on new partition

I have installed Windows Vista on a new partition, but it will not accept the product key. I don't want to have to buy another product key. Can anyone help?
0
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1answer
43 views

Autofill Product Key Windows Vista / 7

I am using sysprep to make a generic version of Windows and put it on a bunch of computers I am redoing for a customer. I plan to later develop more extensive images and go through the entire WAIK to ...
0
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1answer
78 views

Where is the Microsoft Office 2012 Key?

I want to wipe Windows 8 and install Windows 7 on my machine, but I don't have the key for Microsoft Office 2013 to reinstall it afterward. Is there a way I can retrieve it? I'll download an ...
3
votes
5answers
12k views

How to recover Windows Vista product key?

Two years ago I bought an Asus laptop with Windows Vista pre-installed. I also received a recovery DVD with it. I now want to reinstall Windows and fully format the hard drive - however, the sticker ...
0
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2answers
174 views

How do I find which serial I used for Photoshop CS5 on my computer?

I want to move my Photoshop CS5 installation to a new computer. Unfortunately, I lost the paper with the cd-key. Is there a way to recover the serial from my local installation?
0
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2answers
417 views

How to find Windows 7 Product Key?

I have a laptop that came with Windows 7 Home Premium pre-installed. But I recently had to format it. I need to enter the product key again but the sticker on the laptop is not readable now as it is ...
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4answers
3k views

Windows 7 Home Premium serial

I have windows 7 Home Premium , now I want to format my laptop and then re-install the same window version , so before I do that I got an screenshot of computer > properties , which is shown ...
0
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1answer
756 views

Windows8 OEM Version redownload/reinstall after format

I bought a Lenovo ideapad y500 with windows 8 pre-installed. My plan was to format the HDD, install win7 and a fresh win8 with no pre-installed apps etc... I am now running windows 7 but I can not ...
0
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0answers
150 views

Windows 7 professional 64 bit product key on a machine with Windows 7 home premium 64 bit [duplicate]

I had installed Windows 7 home premium 64 bit on my PC and after one month after the trial period expired, i had bought a windows 7 professional 64 bit ( as i did not get a home premium 64bit ). But ...
0
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2answers
485 views

Windows 7 Home Premium reinstallation with another language

I bought a laptop with preinstalled Windows 7 Home Premium. After the problem with installation of the Ubuntu, I reinstalled Windows from the disk that was in the box with laptop. The problem is the ...
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1answer
243 views

How to get Windows 7 Product Key from old mac harddrive

I don't know if I am going to get an answer or if this is possible but here goes. On my old macbook pro, running Snow Leopard, I installed Windows 7 with bootcamp. The logic board crapped out on me ...
2
votes
1answer
412 views

Downgrade from Windows 7 Ultimate to Home Premium?

A few months ago, I acquired a Windows 7 Ultimate product key and updated from Home Premium to Ultimate. Well, now I get the "This copy of Windows is not genuine" message. I have the Home Premium ...
0
votes
2answers
875 views

MS-Office 2010 Professional Plus - Change Product Key error

I installed MS-Office 2010 Professional Plus 1 month ago. But now it is giving error when I open any of its product like Outlook, Word, Excel etc. Please help me what can I do for that? I do not ...
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vote
1answer
2k views

Reinstalling Windows Xp Professional OEM

My aunt called me in to repair her desktop and laptop computers. (Level up! You become: The Family's Private IT.) The desktop wasn't much; just many, many junk pieces of software that her daughter ...
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votes
1answer
2k views

Is there a way to establish what version a Windows 7 product key is?

I have a Windows 7 product key that I foolishly did not label. Rather than downloading and creating disks for however many different ISOs exist (Basic, Pro, Ultimate, 32-bit/64-bit, upgrade, full ...
4
votes
1answer
329 views

Does Windows Impose a Performance Penalty For Not Activating Windows With a Product Key? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Windows 7 activation period Does Windows 7 impose a performance penalty for not activating Windows with a Product Key? Let's say you have a very old installation of ...
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0answers
58 views

Back up a specific program (maintaining product key)

My neighbour's have asked me to transfer a program from one of their computers, to the other. The particular software is 'Cashflow Manager 7' I have transferred all the files used by the program onto ...
12
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2answers
320 views

Determine which software product a Microsoft Product Key activates

Without a product key being labelled, is there is any way to identify what Microsoft software product a given product key is meant to activate? Let's say for example I had the product key ...
12
votes
2answers
14k views

Change the Windows 8 product key after installation?

I just completed a fresh install of Windows 8 Pro as it was released to MSDN. Installation went without a hitch however I can't find out where to enter the correct product key for the copy I have. ...
3
votes
0answers
2k views

Windows 8 product key from Dreamspark does not work

I recently downloaded Windows 8 Professional N 32/64 and got a product key from Dreamspark. However when I try to install Windows 8, it asks me for a product key. I enter it and it fails: The ...
2
votes
2answers
4k views

Determine if Windows 7 is 32 or 64 bit from the product key?

Unable to start Windows to determine whether the version of Windows 7 Home Premium is 32 or 64 bit. The product key is available. That is all I have. Looking to acquire re-installation media but ...
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1answer
326 views

Is using a back door product key piracy? [closed]

There are several programs that have a universal serial key to register. Now lets say I downloaded a trial for one of these (in this case Visual Studio 2012) from the developer (microsoft) and ...
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1answer
3k views

Installing a different edition of Windows 8 on an OEM system

My PC comes with an OEM copy of Windows 8 (regular), but I only have a Windows 8 Professional DVD. Will Windows 8 automatically detect the edition associated with the product key in my BIOS and ...
2
votes
5answers
740 views

planning to upgrade my computer (windows 8)

I recently bought windows 8 using the upgrade offer. Now I am planning to upgrade my computer ie , change the motherboard , processor and the Ram. I would like to know if i can use the same product ...
0
votes
1answer
2k views

How to get the product key of my windows 8 installation without an external program? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: How can I find the product key that was used to activate Windows 8? My question whether there is such a possibility and if yes how to get the key.
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1answer
1k views

How to get Product Key for Visual Studio 2010 from MSDNAA without downloading?

I've installed Visual Studio 2010 Professional Trial from the public ISO download site. Then I noticed that I don't have a Product Key yet so I logged in to DreamSpark with my MSDNAA login (that is ...
4
votes
1answer
4k views

What edition of Windows is a CD key for?

Is there a source somewhere that can tell me what edition of Windows (i.e. Windows 7 Home Premium 64) a CD key from the sticker is for? Many systems come in with the edition name rubbed off, and I ...
2
votes
1answer
566 views

Uninstalling Windows 8 pro and reinstalling it

I've recently installed Windows 8 Pro in the first partition and in the third partition there was Ubuntu 12.10. After the installation, I could not boot any other partition. So I decided to uninstall ...
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1answer
782 views

No COA provided with OEM version of Windows 7 that I purchased. What to do?

I bought a sealed copy of Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit to install on a computer I am building. When I opened the package there was no Certificate of Authenticity (COA) or activation code. Is this ...
9
votes
4answers
17k views

Install Windows 8 without a Product Key

Windows 8 setup asks for the product key at the beginning of the setup without letting you install it. I got the Windows 8 ISO from MSDN but I didn't get enough keys to install it on all my 7 ...
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1answer
138 views

reinstalling vista product key

I recently formatted my laptop which came with Vista preinstalled and installed Windows 7 on the primary partition. I've now installed Vista on a different partition, but it won't activate my valid ...
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1answer
1k views

How many Product Keys do I need for Windows 8? one or more?

I came to know that many people buying more than one product key for Windows 8. What's the use of getting more Keys? Suppose If I purchase only one product key, OS available for limited time or Life ...
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votes
1answer
9k views

What happens to the Windows 7 key when upgrading to Windows 8?

Microsoft is offering "Microsoft Windows 8 Professional Upgrade" at a discounted price compared to the OEM version. However it states: If you currently have a personal computer running Windows 7, ...
0
votes
1answer
242 views

How to enter in window vista home? Product key error

I have problem with my OS (Windows Vista Premium 32 bit). If I enter Vista, its asking for a product key but I don't know my product key. Please note, I have dual OS in my desktop.
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votes
2answers
4k views

Windows product key is valid but wont activate

Last month, I needed to install Windows XP (Pro Version 2002 SP3) from a Reinstallation CD a co-worker gave me, and with a product key the IT team told me to use. Everything installed successfully ...
0
votes
1answer
105 views

Reinstalled Windows and entered previous product number

Some time ago I bought a laptop with Windows 7 Home Edition x64 preinstalled. After that I have installed Ubuntu on the second partition. Year later I decided to wipe the whole Windows partition, and ...
0
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1answer
2k views

SQL Server 2008 Registration with Product Key

A colleague of mine gave me the SQL Server 2008 Standard ISO image and I used that while building a Virtual Machine. Now, when I installed SQL Server with that above mentioned ISO, I did not give it ...
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3answers
655 views

What is the right way to release a Windows 7 and/or 8 Product Key?

Assuming someone wants to release/liberate their Windows product key from a pc that they are going to sale, what is the right way to do it, so that the key can be used on the next system that is ...
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0answers
26 views

How do I check if a Windows key is genuine without activating it? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Is there a way to establish what version a Windows 7 product key is? I need a way to test if a Windows 7 key is genuine, and for what version it is so. I would like to ...
2
votes
1answer
956 views

Windows 7 product key is blocked by activation server

I bought Windows 7 Ultimate from eBay around 8 months back. I got original Microsoft DVDs (for 32 and 64 bit) product sheet. To verify the genuinness, I activated the windows immediately after ...
2
votes
1answer
731 views

Windows 7 product activation failed, but the previous activation code worked — is there anything to worry about?

Alright, so there was a few reasons that made me have to reinstall Windows 7 onto my machine. I am running on a Lenovo Ideapad Y480. When Windows 7 was reinstalled, it asked me for my product ...
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2answers
1k views

Can i get my product key for windows 7 with Windows 8 consumer preview installed

I recently installed Windows 8 consumer preview to see what it looks like but now i want to install Windows 7 again. I have a dvd to install windows 7 but there is no sticker on the bottom of my ...
4
votes
2answers
8k views

What happens after the trial period of Windows has expired? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Windows 7 activation period I installed Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit on my laptop a few days ago. Today I got a message in notification bar saying that I have 25 days ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views

Retail windows xp prof sp 2 Lost key but have the genuine cd , what to do?

I had recently formatted my system only to find out i have lost the cd key to my original cd. i had used the option to enter the product key later. Yes, i know its a stupid thing to do but i bought ...
1
vote
3answers
4k views

Recover Vista install key from non-booting OS drive

A friend's Vista-based computer won't boot, so I am just going to format and reinstall. The problem is that she never kept her product key for Vista. Is there any way to recover that key from ...
1
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0answers
437 views

Lost CD Key after repair install of Windows 7

So I needed to re-install Windows 7 HP x64 on a customer's computer, and stupid me forgot to retrieve the CD key before doing so. Now, the CD key put in there is getting told it's invalid, and Windows ...
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votes
1answer
372 views

Windows7 cheapest price, OEM versions vs. product-key only? [closed]

I'm looking for the cheapest solution to get a Windows 7 to my netcafe. Personally I use Gnu/Linux but apparently most of people don't. I'm thinking of ordering windows product keys only, to cut the ...
5
votes
1answer
16k views

Find the product key I entered for MS Office on Mac

I have several legal license keys for Office:mac 2008. I want to do a quick audit of the two machines I've installed office on and verify which license keys are being used where. But I don't see the ...

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