OEM Ofiice 2019 & clean reinstall of Win 10

I'm about to get a Dell laptop with (some version of) Win 10 Pro and Office 2019 installed. I suspect I will do a clean reinstall of Windows to remove bloatware and am not sure how to handle Office 2019. I'm not worried about the installation - I recently installed Office 2019 on another computer so I have the installation stuff for that - but the licensing is different so I suspect the activation process is different.

What step do I need to go through so I will still have the OEM license after the reinstall?

It's been 6 years since I last got an OEM version of Office (Office 2013 back then). I'm not sure I ever did a clean reinstall of Windows on that PC and even if I did, the process may have changed.

I have no idea what version of Windows will be on the laptop, but it's supposedly a new build from Dell so I assume it will be either 2004 or 20H2.

I assume I'm going to be given the activation keys for both Windows and Office. I have no intention of moving either to a different computer or upgrading the computer so Microsoft might think its another computer. I will be reinstalling and reactivating them on the same computer.

I have no worries about Windows itself; I've done this several times on a couple computers. But I'm less certain about Office.

Paul Black said:

An OEM License refers to the License that a manufacturer installs on new devices. If this is your case, the Product Key is NOT transferable, and you can NOT use it to Activate another installation [ unless you are re-activating a new installation on the same computer ].

I obviously fit in that "unless you are re-activating a new installation on the same computer" category. That certainly implies can reactivate Office, but it doesn't give much guidance.

• Do I activate it first or wait until after reinstallation? (I assume I activate it first.)
• If I've activated it, do I deactivate it before reinstallation? (I suspect not, but I don't know.)
• If Dell does not supply installation media for Office (and I suspect they will not) can I use a previously downloaded "retail" installation file for Office 2019, or is there some difference between OEM and Retail versions of Office 2019 (other than the obviously different license)?

I guess I can just take a backup of the system as delivered by Dell and keep restoring and retrying the reinstall until I get it right, but I'd rather know what to expect ahead of time.

You could save the current spp activation folders How to Find Office 2016 / 2019 Product Key or Backup Activation | Password Recovery

PenPusher said:

You could save the current spp activation folders How to Find Office 2016 / 2019 Product Key or Backup Activation | Password Recovery

Thank you for mentioning the ssp activation folders. I'll save them whether I need to or not.

Maybe I'll be surprised when the laptop arrives and find there is no reason to do a clean reinstall - no bloatware. Uh huh. Sure.

Paul Black said:

Hello @pokeefe0001,

Also . . .

 License Types and Installed License Type

MS offers Win 10 Licenses in many channels governed by different rules, but for most users, you can only acquire a License through the OEM [ Original Equipment Manufacturer ] or Retail channel.

An OEM License refers to the License that a manufacturer installs on new devices. If this is your case, the Product Key is NOT transferable, and you can NOT use it to Activate another installation [ unless you are re-activating a new installation on the same computer ].

A Retail License refers to the License that you acquire when purchasing a copy of Win 10 from your local store or an online retailer [ such as from MS or Amazon for example ]. If you have a Win 10 Retail License, you CAN transfer the Product Key to another computer, as long as you DEACTIVATE the Product Key on the other computer.

A Volume License is designed for large Businesses, Education, and Government. Usually, a Volume License allows organizations to use one master Product Key to Activate ANY installation of Win 10. Although you can use this License multiple times on different computers, you can NOT transfer it with the device when the system ownership changes, and you are NOT allowed to use the License to Activate devices that are NOT part of the Organization.

Determine the License Type Installed:

If you intend to use the same Product Key on another computer, or you are trying to determine the License Type installed [ OEM, Retail, or Volume ], you can use the slmgr [ Server License Manager ] command . . .

• Press the Win + X keys together > Command Prompt (Admin).
• Type slmgr /dli in the Administrator: Command Prompt > Enter.
  
  Once the above command has finished processing, a Windows Script Host dialog box will appear. Look at the Description line for confirmation of the License Type installed.
  
  
• Click OK.

---

I hope this helps.

You cannot use slmgr /dlv to determine the license type of the Windows that is installed. It will show retail activation channel activation on many different situations where the underlying license is actually OEM.

Neither slmgr /dli nor slmgr /dlv can be used to determine the type of Windows 10 license the install is based on. Both of those commands will return that the retail license channel was used to activate Windows 10 on most Windows 10 installations, even if the original license was OEM. This is especially true of computers that were upgraded from OEM Windows 7 to Windows 10. But I can prove to you it will even happen on computers that have an installation of Windows 10 from the factory with an OEM product key stored in BIOS if you like.

OEM Windows 7 upgraded to Windows 10 will always get the generic product keys for Windows 10 and will always activate via the retail activation channel. Some OEM installations of Windows 10, even right from the factory, will switch to the generic product key during upgrades, user changes to the OS, etc., and will then activate via the retail activation channel. An example of this is when a user installs OEM Windows 10 on a new computer. Then they re-install Windows 10 by just skipping entering the product key and rely on the digital license to reactive Windows 10.