My daughter wants to build a new PC for her birthday, and I need Windows 10. Is the "best" way to buy it from MS? I do have a single license USB which I bought from MS (think it was $130) but I've installed that on another PC.
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
FYI, Microsoft authorizes these third party Windows 10 authorization codes, so you should not have any problems.
All of the sites I've seen accept all forms of credit cards as well as Paypal, so if for some reason you are ripped off for $10 dollars, you can easily get your money returned to your account.
M$ authorizes third party codes? I did not know that. [Reply]
I wouldn't worry about buying a code from an online retailer; most of the time, these are codes which are OEM for computers which end up on a corporate license key and are never used. I had a friend get me several Windows 7 keys which I used to install Windows 7 and when the 10 update came out, it all worked fine. And still does today.
Once you install, be sure to create a Microsoft account and digitally link it to the account. Once you do that, you can upgrade the computer and activate the Windows after the hardware change.
At worst, you have to call the Microsoft number and talk with an automated system to get your computer running.
No need to pay $100+ for a Windoze license... [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
FYI, Microsoft authorizes these third party Windows 10 authorization codes, so you should not have any problems.
All of the sites I've seen accept all forms of credit cards as well as Paypal, so if for some reason you are ripped off for $10 dollars, you can easily get your money returned to your account.
FYI, bud... no they don't. You should actually be careful with that. Most often, that's a fake and they're using the same exact KMS hack that I referenced above and simply charging you the fee for no reason. Microsoft doesn't actually give out cheap authorization codes that are different than their normal prices, unless you are part of a university entity or huge conglomerate corporation which they can offset the price. Most generally, when you see these things, they are simply using the same exact free KMS hack that I referenced above dressed up in a legit looking site, and you're paying for nothing.
The truth is that Microsoft isn't really charging for Windows 10 anymore. You can download and install Windows 10 from Microsoft's site, and install it without any license key, and use it indefinitely without activation. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Fish:
FYI, bud... no they don't. You should actually be careful with that. Most often, that's a fake and they're using the same exact KMS hack that I referenced above and simply charging you the fee for no reason. Microsoft doesn't actually give out cheap authorization codes that are different than their normal prices, unless you are part of a university entity or huge conglomerate corporation which they can offset the price. Most generally, when you see these things, they are simply using the same exact free KMS hack that I referenced above dressed up in a legit looking site, and you're paying for nothing.
The truth is that Microsoft isn't really charging for Windows 10 anymore. You can download and install Windows 10 from Microsoft's site, and install it without any license key, and use it indefinitely without activation.
Well this is very interesting. So, the MS code that I purchased online for $10 dollars back in 2015 from an internet retailer isn't an actual Microsoft generated authorization code? Wow, I even expensed it!
I used to purchase OEM Windows discs for like half the price of the retail box so I mistakenly(?) assumed this was similar.
And Microsoft isn't going after pirated codes? What changed? My apologies for my ignorance. Thanks! [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
Well this is very interesting. So, the MS code that I purchased online for $10 dollars back in 2015 from an internet retailer isn't an actual Microsoft generated authorization code? Wow, I even expensed it!
I used to purchase OEM Windows discs for like half the price of the retail box so I mistakenly(?) assumed this was similar.
And Microsoft isn't going after pirated codes? What changed? My apologies for my ignorance. Thanks!
From my understanding, a lot of these cheap keys you see are excess keys that were never used that were sold in bulk transactions for company use or school's since students get legit copies of Windows for free if they ask their affiliated school. A lot of the times they come from overseas where the prices for Windows is lower and it's not illegal to sell the keys in those countries but it violates the MS ToS and poof, there goes your activation if the key has been flagged. [Reply]
This is from Tom's Hardware, which has always been a great source of computer information and it basically confirms what Fish has said regarding Win10. More at the link.
Don't Activate Windows: Free
If you don't have a valid key, you can still use Windows 10 for free on your PC even if you don’t activate the OS. I have colleagues who have used non-activated versions of Windows for years without Microsoft ever shutting it down. In this way, you can have Windows 10 Home or Pro running on your PC nearly flawlessly. Nearly...
Downsides of Not Activating Windows
“If the user [installs Windows 10] before activating Windows, they will see an ‘Activate Windows’ watermark on their desktop, as well an experience a limit on Windows 10 personalization options,” Microsoft told Tom’s Hardware in a statement.
Microsoft brands PCs running an unactivated version of Windows 10 with a watermark in the bottom-right corner of the screen. A Microsoft spokesperson told me that activating Windows 10 ensures you have a legitimate copy of Windows 10, and the watermark is an attempt to alert consumers that their version could be false. However, if you downloaded your ISO directly from Microsoft, there's no way your copy can be a fake. [Reply]
Originally Posted by jd1020:
From my understanding, a lot of these cheap keys you see are excess keys that were never used that were sold in bulk transactions for company use or school's since students get legit copies of Windows for free if they ask their affiliated school.
That's what I assumed as well.
Originally Posted by jd1020:
A lot of the times they come from overseas where the prices for Windows is lower and it's not illegal to sell the keys in those countries but it violates the MS ToS and poof, there goes your activation if the key has been flagged.
Fortunately, mine hasn't been flagged after 5 years and I plan to use the same auth code when building my next PC. [Reply]
