I recently did a clean install of Windows 10, overwriting Ubuntu. How did Windows find out that I had activated Windows 10 before on my computer? It didn't ask me for a product key, but it is activated.
2 Answers
Windows DE (Digital Entitlement) takes IDs of different parts of the hardware (I don't think anyone but MS knows which parts it uses) and creates a hash of it. It then submits that ID to MS activation servers that check the hash in their database. If the ID is found, MS reports that back to Windows, which marks itself as activated
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@AlejandraMoreno depnds on what you change and how many times, as Ramhound stated it mainly relies on the motherboard, if you change the motherboard I guarantee it will not activate.– MoabAug 13, 2016 at 20:46
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In Version 1607, Digital Entitlement, was renamed to a "digital license" this is because you can link the digital entitlement to Windows 10 to your Microsoft Account. When this happens I guess its more of a license, worth pointing out, digital entitlement still exists if you don't link your user profile to a MS account though.– RamhoundAug 13, 2016 at 21:10
The serial key is embedded in a chip on the motherboard installed by the OEM that Windows knows how to talk to.
If windows detects the chip it does not need to be activated.
answered May 24, 2016 at 2:35
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While this is correct, there isn't even information, to make this assumption.– RamhoundMay 24, 2016 at 18:00
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This question eludes to how the bios embedded key is used in the install and activation of the free W10 upgrade....superuser.com/questions/1020961/…– MoabAug 13, 2016 at 20:49