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I have bought a windows 10 pro license for my laptop that I no longer need and wanted to transfer to my desktop. I wouldn't like to buy a new license for my desktop since I won't use laptop anymore....

is this doable under microsoft license?

I tried to search this for quite a while but couldn't figure out. I sent e-mail to microsoft support but got some stupid generic help talking about subject that I didn't even asked...

please help

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  • Did you purchase retail or OEM?
    – James Nuanez
    Aug 30, 2016 at 22:33
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    Retail license, Yes, OEM, No.
    – Moab
    Aug 30, 2016 at 22:34
  • it came with the computer and I upgraded it to pro
    – RollRoll
    Aug 30, 2016 at 22:35
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    That is OEM then, so No.
    – Moab
    Aug 30, 2016 at 22:35
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    To everyone marking this as duplicate, it's not. That other question is about upgrading the underlying license, not a pro upgrade. Indeed, in that other question, an answer is offered that DOES try to address this point: "For a upgrade license, my understanding is that, if it is installed over an existing OEM install, you can't transfer the 'full' license to another computer - only the 'upgrade' part. However this shouldn't be a problem if the 'underlying' OS was a full retail copy to begin with." But all other comments there and here misconstrue this key point of the question here.
    – charlie arehart
    Feb 22, 2018 at 13:30

1 Answer 1

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If the license is retail, then yes you can transfer it.

If the license is OEM, then no, you cannot.

If the license came with your laptop (or you upgraded from the license that came with your laptop), then it is OEM and not transferable.

Retail version:

  • Includes transfer rights to another computer.

OEM versions of Windows are identical to Retail versions except for the following:

  • OEM licenses are tied to the very first computer you install and activate it on
  • OEM versions allow all hardware upgrades except for an upgrade to a different model motherboard

Source: Windows 10 License Key

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    @LvxOne -I went ahead and fixed your answer. I included the relevant information from your link Please take this has a friendly hint, that if you include a link, the relevant information should be included in the answer.
    – Ramhound
    Aug 30, 2016 at 23:12
  • So the "Community Moderator" that is quoted in this answer, had incorrect information, I excluded that information. There is no "Upgrade" version of Windows 10, so it held no importance, to the author's question about Windows 10.
    – Ramhound
    Aug 30, 2016 at 23:17
  • @Ramhound Thank you for the heads up. Your input and the post update are greatly appreciated. I'm still new to this, so I'm trying my best to figure it out and do things as correctly as possible.
    – James Nuanez
    Aug 30, 2016 at 23:20
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    That "windows 10 license key" does NOT address this question. It's referring to transferring the underlying license. The question here is different, being about whether we can transfer a PRO upgrade. It remains unanswered here.
    – charlie arehart
    Feb 22, 2018 at 13:32

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