Son changed my product key, now i'm Ska-rude

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  1. Posts : 3
    win 10
       #1

    Son changed my product key, now i'm Ska-rude


    Long story short, bought this Acer ES 15 laptop 2 weeks ago. I come back from a xmas party and my 15yrold son says "i got you win 10 pro on your laptop"............ I've restarted, reset, back to factory settings (supposedly) now I still have an inactivated windows 10 pro......... How do I find my original windows key that came with the computer that gave me win 10 home. looked in the box, manuals and no luck I contacted Acer "we don't keep track of the keys that were installed in new systems". Help
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  2. Posts : 56,804
    Multi-boot Windows 10/11 - RTM, RP, Beta, and Insider
       #2

    boobiesr4me said:
    Long story short, bought this Acer ES 15 laptop 2 weeks ago. I come back from a xmas party and my 15yrold son says "i got you win 10 pro on your laptop"............ I've restarted, reset, back to factory settings (supposedly) now I still have an inactivated windows 10 pro......... How do I find my original windows key that came with the computer that gave me win 10 home. looked in the box, manuals and no luck I contacted Acer "we don't keep track of the keys that were installed in new systems". Help
    Showkey Plus Showkey - Windows 10 Forums Tomcat....
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  3. whs
    Posts : 1,935
    Windows 7
       #3

    The original key is on the COA sticker. That is on the bottom of the laptop or inside the battery compartment.
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  4. Posts : 3
    win 10
    Thread Starter
       #4

    Awesome, f14tomcat. Just what I've been looking for!
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  5. Posts : 3
    win 10
    Thread Starter
       #5

    whs. I tore the bottom off the laptop, looked thru all the paperwork and there is no COA. I've been in panic mode for the 3 days not being able to find the original key.
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  6. whs
    Posts : 1,935
    Windows 7
       #6

    This is how a COA sticker looks like. No PC with Windows can be sold without a COA sticker - that is illegal. I wonder what happened to your sticker.

    Son changed my product key, now i'm Ska-rude-coa-stickers.gif
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  7. Posts : 56,804
    Multi-boot Windows 10/11 - RTM, RP, Beta, and Insider
       #7

    whs said:
    This is how a COA sticker looks like. No PC with Windows can be sold without a COA sticker - that is illegal. I wonder what happened to your sticker.

    Son changed my product key, now i'm Ska-rude-coa-stickers.gif
    WHS, not to be argumentative, honest, but I bought a Surface Pro 3 from MS about a year ago, pre-installed 8.1, and there is no COA sticker. Anywhere. Maybe lappys are an exception, I don't know.

    EDIT: Just scoured all over the case of my desktop. Bought a new Dell 3847 in May, 2015. No Coa sticker. Only thing in common is they both have UEFI and keys are stored there. Dunno.....
    Last edited by f14tomcat; 29 Dec 2015 at 05:15.
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  8. Posts : 821
    Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
       #8

    OEM PCs store and encrypt the product key in the UEFI firmware chip. The product key is no longer on a COA sticker to help prevent theft. When you reset or install Windows 10, the product key will automatically be detected from the UEFI firmware chip, and will be used to activate.
    Source: https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/7...dows-10-a.html Brink TenForums
    If worse comes to worse if you reinstall windows 10 Home once you connect to the net your machine will be validated from Microsoft, As long as it is the same motherboard
    Last edited by Digital Life; 30 Dec 2015 at 17:04.
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  9. whs
    Posts : 1,935
    Windows 7
       #9

    If they are UEFI, then you do not need a sticker.
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  10. Posts : 15,426
    Windows10
       #10

    deleted.
      My Computer


 

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