▷ How to know the activation key of windows 10

Today we will teach you how to know the activation key of Windows 10 step by step and with different alternatives. As many of you may know, product keys are one of the ways that software developers protect their products from piracy. Unfortunately, they are easy to lose, which can be a real problem if you need to reinstall Windows or any other software from scratch.

With constant updates to Windows 10, we can signal the company's commitment to offering the best possible experience to millions of users, but it is also possible to understand that Microsoft is learning from mistakes and starting to use the most conservative practices to avoid the spread of piracy with Windows 10.

Windows 10 requires the use of an activation key for its correct operation. This is available through a tag on your PC or other Windows device. However, if this is not the case, it is not necessarily a tragedy, as there are other ways to easily find this information.

Whether you want to perform a new installation or transfer your Windows 10 license to a new computer, the activation key is an important asset that you need to have. Depending on how you acquired Windows 10, you may not have a product key.

For all that said, we are going to see how to know the activation key of Windows 10 in case you need it at any time.

Index of contents

What is the Windows activation key and what is it for?

As with the vast majority of programs, Windows has a serial number that indicates and verifies the authenticity of the program, in addition to verifying that you are the owner of this license. When a new computer is purchased and the operating system is included in the product package, the user also receives a key that enables Windows authentication. This number is also used when necessary after formatting, for example.

How to find the activation key in Windows 10

The first option to find the Windows 10 key is also the fastest way to find out if your operating system is active correctly. For this, just go to Windows Settings> Update and Security> Activation.

In the image you can see that Windows does not inform the product key, it only says that the system is activated and working legitimately.

Another option to display the product key is to go to the Control Panel, look for the option that says "All items in Control Panel"> System.

In this image you can see that Windows activation shows that the operating system is correctly active and also provides a serial with the product ID. This ID is not the key we are looking for, something that some users sometimes mistakenly believe.

So where is the activation key?

One of the great measures to end the piracy of this operating system, caused Microsoft to end the activation keys, providing users with a "Right of Possession", which confirms the activation of the product without the need for a specific numeric key..

Both Microsoft and Amazon are the only authorized online merchants to buy a digital copy of Windows 10. Any other retailer that sells only one product key is likely not original; therefore, be sure to purchase a license only from Amazon or Microsoft if you decide to follow the digital download path.

The activation key is reserved only for users who made the purchase of Windows 10 in a physical store or at least in the physical media of the operating system. If you are one of these, your activation key can be in three places:

1. Attached to with an adhesive label on one of the surfaces of the cabinet (in the case of desktop computers). It can be on the outside, as well as on the internal surface. In the case of the notebook, the key must be fixed on the bottom surface (bottom), next to the product information label. Purchase by physical means (DVD or USB stick), the product key must be on one of the surfaces of the box or in the instruction book or user manual.

The above three possibilities also work for those who originally bought Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 and subsequently made the automatic upgrade to Windows 10. However, the Windows activation key contained in the cabinet, notebook or the product box will only serve for reinstall the respective operating systems.

For these cases, if the user wants to get to Windows 10, he has to go all the way already done (installation of the purchased system and update to Windows 10).

Softwares to know the activation key

A good part of the public that uses Windows 10 has never bought the operating system, since it has surely been included in the purchased equipment. The fact is that, for the common user, the act of buying a Windows box is rare, which brings a problem: you do not know the activation key of your operating system.

But for this, several programs have been created that allow knowing the activation key of Windows 10.

AIDA64

AIDA64 is a powerful tool for diagnosing, identifying and evaluating hardware parts.

With this program, the user has access to all the important information on the PC, including data about the graphics cards, the name of the motherboard, and the version of the operating system. AIDA64 is paid, but the user has access to a 30-day trial version to check all its functions.

In the trial version of the program only the first four numbers of the key are obtained, while in the full version the entire activation key can be obtained.

Microsoft hides the Windows 10 activation key well and everything indicates that it hopes to continue with this thought. It should be mentioned that if you are a true Windows user, there is no need to worry and that, even losing the location of your key, Microsoft will make every effort so that no one is harmed.

ProduKey

Microsoft promises that Windows 10 is capable of recognizing your computer hardware and saving this information on its servers. So when you try to do a clean new install of the operating system, Windows will check your PC and automatically activate the software.

But what if something goes wrong? Saving the product key can help in case of problems. It's the kind of thing you hope you don't need, but it's worth taking precautions.

For this, there is a very basic and light software called ProduKey.

After downloading and extracting the zip in any folder of your choice, you just have to run the program. When you open it, it will show the product ID (“Product ID”) and the number you are looking for, which is the product key (“Product Key”). If you prefer, you can double-click to display the information in a small window that highlights the data. Write this information down and keep it in a safe place.

Belarc Advisor

It offers a wealth of information about a computer's hardware and software. Belarc Advisor is primarily a tool for collecting information about your Windows system, including hardware, security updates, and product keys.

Whenever Belarc Advisor runs, it automatically checks the database for software definitions, essential for finding keys to new programs. After that, it scans the system and presents the findings on an HTML page in your default web browser. Scroll down to "Software Licenses" to find serial numbers and product keys for Windows, Office, and many other applications.

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Belarc Advisor offers a host of other information, including details of antivirus software, connected hardware, and other devices on the same network.

Belarc Advisor scans are fast and offer much more information than just serial numbers.

Abelssoft MyKeyFinder

Displays Microsoft product keys in a clear, searchable list. There are two versions of Abelssoft MyKeyFinder: free and paid.

Both versions will find Windows and Microsoft Office product keys, but the Plus edition will also scan external hard drives and look for Wi-Fi passwords.

After MyKeyFinder has scanned your PC registry, the results are presented in a clear list, ready to be copied to the Clipboard with a single click. Unlike many product key finders, MyKeyFinder does not display duplicate keys and the results can be searched and filtered.

You can also add programs and keys not detected by MyKeyFinder as standard, and then export the entire list in PDF format so that everyone is in one convenient location.

LicenseCrawler

Find the keys for Windows and a host of other softwares. LicenseCrawler will find the license key for almost any application that has one, and it's free for home use.

Its scan of the Windows registry takes a long time to complete, even if you select the “high speed” option, but you can limit its scope using the blacklist and whitelist filters.

LicenseCrawler is distributed as a portable application, which means that you do not have to install it on the Windows system you are scanning. You simply download the zip file, extract its contents and run LicenseCrawler.exe.

This is particularly useful if you have multiple PCs; you just have to download it to a USB stick and connect and run it on any of them.

The only downside to LicenseCrawler is pop-up ads, but finding product keys isn't a chore you do every day, so it's just a minor snag.

Windows Product Key Viewer

It's a quick way to find the Windows product key, but nothing else. Windows Product Key Viewer is super fast, it takes just a second to scan your system and present the results. This is because, as the name suggests, it only provides the product key for your operating system.

But that shouldn't necessarily delay you. Although it cannot find serial numbers for other applications, it does provide additional information about your operating system, including the registered user, the installation date and the latest start time, and it is compatible with versions of the operating system from Windows 10 to Windows 95..

Free PC Audit

A very easy way to find the Windows 10 product key

• Very easy to use Portable Only finds Windows keys

Free PC Audit is another portable application, and it doesn't even come as a zip file. You simply download the exe file and run it to start scanning.

Like Belarc Advisor, Free PC Audit provides a wealth of information about the entire system, not just software, although its interface is not as intuitive. It is compatible with all versions of Windows, from NT to Windows 10, but cannot find keys for Microsoft Office or any other software.

It also provides lists of all installed software and running system processes.

Using the Command Prompt

Another method should also be considered, although it must be recognized that in many cases it does not work when going through the Windows command line. To access it, it is very simple.

- Just type "CMD" in Cortana's search box or press Win + X keys. There choose "Command Prompt".

- Type "wmic bios get serial number" (without the quotes) and hit Enter.

The trick is done, but if nothing appears or if you have an error message instead of the activation key, you can try the following codes:

wmic path softwarelicensingservice get OA3xOriginalProductKey slmgr / dli or slmgr -dli slmgr -dlv slmgr -xpr

From the Windows Registry

To view the Windows 10 product key in the Windows Registry: Press "Windows + R" to open Run and enter "regedit" to open the Registry Editor.

You'll find:

DigitalProductID in HKEY_LOCAL_ MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ windows NT \ Currentversion.

If you can't see the product key with this method but only a binary value chain, it is because you are in an updated version of Windows and Microsoft has increased the security by converting it to a binary value. In this case, use another method.

Key stored in the UEFI firmware of the PC

The activation key for the Windows 10 version is stored in the firmware or BIOS of the computer. When installing or reinstalling the same edition of Windows 10 (Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Enterprise or Windows 10 Home) on the same computer, it is not necessary to enter the product key to activate it normally. It will be activated automatically without entering the product key after installation.

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Check Windows 10 product key with VBscript

If you are an advanced user, you can also use the VBscript to read the registry value and translate it to 25 alphanumeric characters.

1. Open Notepad. Write the following VBscript in Notepad.

1. Save the file as a file. vbs.

Click "File" and "Save As, " and then select the location where it is easy to find it.

Enter a file name "productkey.vbs", select "All Files" and then click the "Save" button to save the file.

1. Double-click the "productkey.vbs" file, and you will immediately see the Windows 10 product key in the dialog box.

Conclusion about how to know the Windows 10 activation key

It is worth noting that Microsoft has a trace of your Windows 10 activation code. In theory, once your Windows 10 PC is activated after a possible reinstallation, you will not need the key to be authenticated by Microsoft.

However, in the event of a major hardware, processor or motherboard modification, for example, you will need to contact customer service in the event of an activation problem. With this we finish our article on how to know the activation key of Windows 10 What do you think? Have you got your password?