If you change your boot drive or motherboard it will. In most cases, adding new hardware will not affect Windows licensing. As the product key has evolved into Digital License, activating your copy is sometimes more trouble than it is worth. Either way, this will involve multiple installs of Windows 10.

If you’re a gamer or inveterate fiddler like me, you will regularly change your computer hardware to keep up with the latest gear or experiment for IT tutorials. However, you’ll need to buy a new product key each time.Įven better, if you have an unactivated Home, you can use the same process to move up to Professional.Reactivate Windows 10 After a Hardware Upgrade This process can be repeated on as many PCs running Windows 10 Home as you’d like. Head back “Change product key” within Settings and paste the new code to activate the license.Copy the official Windows 10 Pro product key from your email.Reboot a second time manually to ensure the process has been completed.Once complete, your PC should reboot automatically Enter the official Microsoft RTM code “VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T” and click Next (you can’t activate with this license, it will simply trigger a move to Pro).Under “Upgrade your edition of Windows” in Settings, click “Change product key”.Turn off your internet connection to go offline.Head to Settings > Update & Security > Activation.Visit the PCWorld Store and follow the instructions to buy a Windows 10 Pro license.You’re now ready to carry out the installation: Hit Windows Key + X and open Task Manager, then click “End task” next to anything within the Processes tab. Next, turn off all background processes as these can interfere with the upgrade process. To check, head to Settings > Update & Security > Activation. First, make sure your version of Windows 10 Home is activated using a digital license. But before proceeding, there are a few things you’ll need to do to ensure the process runs smoothly. How to upgrade from Windows 10 Home to Pro using an OEM codeīelow, we’ll show you exactly how the OEM code upgrade process is done.

This method uses an OEM code, one of the easiest ways to update your PC or laptop.

Upgrading from Windows 10 Home to Pro will usually cost you $99, although it’s currently available for $69.99 via the PCWorld Store. Microsoft is only offering free upgrades to the equivalent version of Windows 11. Beyond all the power-user features, if you’re considering updating to Windows 11 Pro, you’ll need to have Windows 10 Pro installed first.

Win 10 home product key