Windows 10 Retail USB Drive

Kyhi said:

And it will only activate on the PC it was first installed on..

No. It is a retail license key. The retail license is transferrable to other computers - to meet legal requirements it just has to be removed from the previous computer first.

Keith Weisshar said:

Is there a way make a sector by sector copy of the original read-only Windows 10 USB drive to another writable USB flash drive of the same capacity? The original drive is 16GB and has a maximum read speed of 30mb/sec and the blank USB drive has 100mb/sec.

Does it have 32 bit and 64 bit versions of one flavor of Windows 10, either Home or Pro? If so, it should just be the exact same ISO you would get from Windows Media Creation Tool. Create a USB memory stick by selecting both the 32 bit and 64 bit versions of either Home or Pro with Media Creation Tool and make a the USB directly from within the program and I'll bet you get exactly the same image as on the purchased USB version.

Or try this:
alex USB Image Tool

It has both 32-bit and 64-bit and also Home and Pro and one is selected based on the product key entered. If I skip entering the license key it prompts to choose either Home or Pro and if I select the same edition on the same PC that already had Windows 8.1 and was upgraded to Windows 10 previously during the first year it activates automatically.

NavyLCDR said:

No. It is a retail license key. The retail license is transferrable to other computers - to meet legal requirements it just has to be removed from the previous computer first.

how many times in a year do you think they will allow a transfer??
sorry if I was not that specific - you just can't keep installing with the retail key and expect it to activate..

Although the software is the same software we all can download, except we use our own USB stick, and did not need to purchase a product key to upgrade

Kyhi said:

how many times in a year do you think they will allow a transfer??
sorry if I was not that specific - you just can't keep installing with the retail key and expect it to activate..

There is no limit specified in the EULA. The only requirement to transfer the retail software is to uninstall the previous version before installing it somewhere else. That why with Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1 when you hit their limit for online activation you call them, enter your product ID, and a computer voice will ask you "How many computers is this software installed on?" You answer "one" and the computer voice gives you the return code to activate it.

Is the Windows 10 product key from the retail version saved to the Microsoft servers along with the PC details? Do I need to re-enter the same Windows 10 product key when I reinstall the same edition of Windows 10 on the same PC it was activated on? This is a full licensed version of Windows 10? The retail USB still has a Skip button on the Product Key page.

Keith Weisshar said:

Is the Windows 10 product key from the retail version saved to the Microsoft servers along with the PC details? Do I need to re-enter the same Windows 10 product key when I reinstall the same edition of Windows 10 on the same PC it was activated on? This is a full licensed version of Windows 10? The retail USB still has a Skip button on the Product Key page.

Skip should work - but at the same time, why not just enter the product key as an extra measure to ensure it is activated. At any rate, if you skip and it won't activate, you can always try slmgr /ipk xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx to install the product key followed by slmgr /ato to force trying online activation.

Is the Windows 10 USB drive actually made of aluminum alloy? It's a custom Kingston drive and shows up as KDI-MSFT Windows 10 USB device. The KDI means Kingston Digital. The connector shows a small amount of wear on the edge after multiple insertions and removals. Is that because aluminum is a soft metal? Is there a way to locate the USB device serial number of the Windows 10 USB drive?