Definitive Answer: Is the free upgrade really expired?

Just completed a new upgrade:

Received a stick computer with Windows 10 Home factory installed. Windows 10 Home product key in UEFI. I did a clean install of Windows 8 Pro. Had to do phone activation with my Windows 8 Pro retail product key because automatic activation said it was in use on another computer - which was actually the old stick computer I had returned to the manufacturer to get this replacement.

So - Windows 8 Pro installed and activated -Windows 10 Home product key stored in UEFI. I extracted the Windows 10 Build 14393 ISO file downloaded from Microsoft's new ISO download site (the Tech Bench alternative) to a USB flash drive. I ran setup, it never asked for a product key but did complain that it could not keep my apps and settings because I was installing a different version.

So, fact #1 - build 14393 still reads the product key in UEFI/BIOS and uses that by default. It was trying to upgrade Windows 8.1 Pro to Windows 10 Home because it read the product key in UEFI.

Cancelled that upgrade, and saved a PID.txt file containing the generic Windows 10 Pro product key to the sources folder on the USB flash drive. Re-ran setup. This time it still did not ask for a product key, and gave me the option to keep personal files, apps and settings. The upgrade completed normally and after the upgrade Windows 10 says it is activated with a digital license.

So, fact #2 - as of 5:15 PM on August 3, about 1.5 hours due north of Microsoft in Stanwood, WA - Windows 8 Pro upgraded FOR FREE to Windows 10 Pro and activated from the previous installation of Windows 8.1.

BTW - I never logged in with a MS Account. This was all done with 1 single local account created in Windows 8.1. Here's an interesting screenshot of Showkey on this computer:



Now it's time to do a clean install of Windows 10 Pro to get rid of the Windows 8.1 leftovers....

EightK said:

Can anyone confirm please?

I don't know if anyone can say definitively. I was under the impression that once a key was activated/upgraded to 10, it was done and tied to that system. You could roll back to use the key in a previous OS, but it wouldn't be able to activate/upgrade a new computer.

I don't know about swapping drives, but I also don't see a point in doing so. Windows 10 has been available for use in some form for two years now. You can easily research any compatibility issues for old software/hardware and based on system specs, you already know if it will run well or not. If you have some obscure piece of software that you want to know is compatible, you can fire up 10 in a VM using a trial and find out in a matter of an hour or so.

DeaconFrost said:

I don't know if anyone can say definitively. I was under the impression that once a key was activated/upgraded to 10, it was done and tied to that system. You could roll back to use the key in a previous OS, but it wouldn't be able to activate/upgrade a new computer.

Nothing happens to the Windows 7/8/8.1 product key when you upgrade to Windows 10. A retail product key gets tied to a specific computer for only the duration that Windows is installed on that computer. Take my latest upgrade for example. I had a computer that came with Windows 8 Home installed from the factory. I upgraded that computer to Windows 8.1 Pro with a retail product key. Then I upgraded that Windows 8.1 Pro to Windows 10 Pro. The basis for the license for Windows Pro -whether it was 8.1 or 10, installed on that computer was the Windows 8.1 Pro product key. 1 license = 1 installation of Windows.

That computer physically died beyond repair. I receive a replacement computer from the manufacturer with now comes with Windows 10 Home from them. It is perfectly legal, and Microsoft supports, moving the Windows 8.1 Pro retail license/product key from the old computer that died to the new computer. Because it still remains installed on only one computer. I had to call Microsoft via their phone activation line and tell them it was installed on only one computer. Then just because Microsoft has not altered the way their activation servers work, I was able to upgrade that Windows 8.1 Pro transferred license to Windows 10 Pro.

Also, though. Microsoft has apparently made provisions to move the license for Windows 10 resulting from an upgrade directly from an old computer to a new computer via linking it to your Microsoft account. I thought about testing that with the new computer, but for me it was more important to verify that Microsoft had not altered the way their Activation servers work rather than testing the new functionality of moving the license using my Microsoft account.

I just did a clean install with 1607 ISO. Used Windows 7 oem key as part of install. When finished Windows 10 was activated.

NavyLCDR said:

Nothing happens to the Windows 7/8/8.1 product key when you upgrade to Windows 10. A retail product key gets tied to a specific computer for only the duration that Windows is installed on that computer. Take my latest upgrade for example. I had a computer that came with Windows 8 Home installed from the factory. I upgraded that computer to Windows 8.1 Pro with a retail product key. Then I upgraded that Windows 8.1 Pro to Windows 10 Pro. The basis for the license for Windows Pro -whether it was 8.1 or 10, installed on that computer was the Windows 8.1 Pro product key. 1 license = 1 installation of Windows.

That computer physically died beyond repair. I receive a replacement computer from the manufacturer with now comes with Windows 10 Home from them. It is perfectly legal, and Microsoft supports, moving the Windows 8.1 Pro retail license/product key from the old computer that died to the new computer. Because it still remains installed on only one computer. I had to call Microsoft via their phone activation line and tell them it was installed on only one computer. Then just because Microsoft has not altered the way their activation servers work, I was able to upgrade that Windows 8.1 Pro transferred license to Windows 10 Pro.

Also, though. Microsoft has apparently made provisions to move the license for Windows 10 resulting from an upgrade directly from an old computer to a new computer via linking it to your Microsoft account. I thought about testing that with the new computer, but for me it was more important to verify that Microsoft had not altered the way their Activation servers work rather than testing the new functionality of moving the license using my Microsoft account.

Also, nothing in the Windows 10 EULA 1607 (or earlier) says that you must remove the system and software from the computer you upgraded from, as was stipulated in previous Windows upgrade version EULAs. If this is the case you can upgrade and transfer with impunity, as many times as you like, until MS fix the loophole..