What does it mean to activate windows 10

KMS Activator Windows 10 is a program that helps activate the most common Microsoft products.

We are talking about the Windows operating system itself, as well as the Office office suite.

In fact, this program allows you to trick the largest corporation that produces software.

How this process occurs, we will analyze further. It will be interesting! So make dumplings, tea and let's get started.

The principle of working in simple language

In simple terms, the activator forces the operating system to consider that it has a license.

The fact is that Windows has the function of regularly checking your license.

This happens as follows: she contacts the Microsoft servers and asks if her license is valid.

The OS does not communicate with anyone and does not check anything.

Interesting? Let's continue.

To understand how this works, you need to study the concept itself Key Management Server. It is this element of the system that is responsible for checking the license. An approximate scheme of its operation is shown in Figure 1.

Key management server  Is a key management system. It uses a client-server architecture. It is clear that the client (“KMS Client” in the diagram) is your computer. It communicates with the server, i.e. KMS Host  through DNS to check your license. The server has its own information about the correct keys - “Volume License Agreement”. He also contacts a special Microsoft service that performs the most important task. It's about an item Microsoft Hosted Activation Service.

It is impossible to replace the server somehow. Intercepting a connection is also almost impossible.

Maybe someone will succeed, but the desired result from such actions will definitely not be.

But the activator’s developers came up with another solution - they, as mentioned above, make the system think that it is communicating with this very verification server.

In fact, this simply does not happen. So simple.

Learn more about how the activator works.

The KMS activator, in fact, modifies the license verification algorithm itself.

As we discussed above, a request is sent to the Microsoft servers from the client’s computer.

The answer comes from them - positive or negative.

So, the program we are considering just creates its own server, disguising it as the one that Microsoft has.

Before sending a request, the system checks where it should be sent.

She does this, relying on certain parameters.

The activator creates the same server on the client computer with the same parameters (almost the same).

And the system, sending a request for verification, finds the nearest server.

And this is exactly the one that our program created.

It seems like this approach is ideal for cheating Microsoft.

In fact, the CCM activator may not work in some cases.  This is due to the fact that the system still ends up on real servers made by Microsoft. And for some reason she does not notice the server that was created by the activator. It happens that you have to perform the actions several times that we will consider later. The OS does not connect to the fake server on the first try.

In any case, the program is very useful, given the prohibitive cost of Microsoft products.

What activator can do

Here is the full list of features of the software in question:

1 Free activation of Windows 7, 8, 1 and 10.  She will not work on XP. That is, an unlicensed copy quickly turns into a licensed one. The Windows Server activation feature is also supported, which is very useful. Bit depth is not important - it can be 32x or 64x.

2 Change Windows 7, 8, 1 and 10 Home and Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 Corporate or Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 Professional.  In other words, the capabilities of the operating system are greatly expanded, new functions are added, and access to previously hidden features appears.

3 Free activation of Microsoft Office 2010, 2013 and 2016.

It is important to note that with each subsequent activation, the program removes traces of all past attempts from the system, regardless of whether they were successful.

This applies to both the OS and the office suite.

It is also important that the program does not load the system at all.  It seems that since we are talking about a server created separately on a computer, the load should be high. This is not at all true. Many Windows services, such as the same calendar, are also servers. They are accessed by other services and programs. Therefore, you should not be afraid of increasing the load.

What is needed for the program to work

System requirements are, in principle, understandable.

This is the version of Windows, starting with the seven, or the version of the office suite, starting from 2010.

Besides, for the activator to work, you will need to install the .NET Framework 4.5 package on your computer.

This is necessary for the correct operation of the program under consideration. You can download this package on the official website microsoft.com.

It is possible that you already have this package installed, so first try not to download anything else, but simply use the Display Network as we will discuss later.

If you encounter any problems or the activator simply will not work, the problem is probably in the .NET Framework.

Then install it and start the activator again.

In this case, do not forget to restart the computer after installation.

In some cases, this is also not required, but it is better to do it.

Using software step by step

To activate windows, do this:

1. After starting the program, press the large button "Activation", which is located right in the middle of an open window.

3. A new window will appear. You will need to enter the product key in it.  Of course, we don’t have it, but you should pay attention to the field Partial Key. It displays the part of the license key that is required. The format of the required key is: XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX-XXXXXX. That is 5 blocks of 5 characters. Enter absolutely any key, but with the part that appears as partial. For example, in our case, a partial key: PTMXQ. We can enter the following code: PTMXQ-PTMXQ-PTMXQ-PTMXQ-PTMXQ or PTMXQ-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX or any other characters, but only to have PTMXQ there. Click "Continue".

4. Almost the same window will appear again.  There in the field   Partial Key  The full key to be entered will already be shown. Enter it in the same way. This completes the activation!

As you can see, everything is extremely simple.

Office suite activation occurs in the same way, only at the very beginning, at the second step of the list above, you will need to click the button Activate Office.

The program also has some settings.

They are located in the “System” tab.

We will analyze them in more detail:

• In the “KMS-Sercive” block there are two buttons - install and uninstall.  They are designed to create a shortcut for this software in the system. If this is not done, you will need to run the downloaded shortcut each time.
• Below is a block of activation methods.  It’s better to leave a mark on the inscription “Auto”, so that the software will independently determine which is better.
• To the right you can see two more parameters  - “Keep Log File” and “Determine IP Address”. These parameters can be set or removed as desired.
• In the block "Scheduler" indicates the tasks that the program will perform. For example, you can re-activate once every 10 days.
• The “Install GVLK key” block will be needed in cases where the program cannot activate the OS or office suite. This, to put it simply, is a more powerful way to activate.
• Below you can change   program language.

Did you have to change computer components, and after that you could not activate the operating system? This guide will show you the steps you need to take using the Activation Troubleshooter tool to reactivate Windows 10.

When you make significant changes to the components of a computer, such as changing a hard drive or motherboard, Windows 10 cannot correctly identify the computer and the operating system is inactive. Previously, if Windows 10 lost activation due to hardware changes, it was necessary to contact Microsoft technical support for reactivation, which was a completely imperfect solution.

Now Microsoft has simplified the process. Starting with the July release of the Anniversary Update, you can bind a Microsoft account (MSA) to a Windows 10 digital license on your computer. The new feature allows you to access the Activation Troubleshooter and reactivate Windows 10.

This Windows 10 tutorial will walk you through the process of linking your Microsoft account and digital license, as well as using Activation Troubleshooter to reactivate the system.

How to link a digital license and a Microsoft account

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Open the Update and Security section.
3. Click Activate.
4. Click Add Account. (The account must have administrator rights).
5. Enter the username and password of your Microsoft account and click "Login". If the local account is not associated with a Microsoft account, you must enter the password for the local account.

After completing this process, you will see the inscription “Windows is activated with a digital license associated with a Microsoft account” on the Activation page, so that the pairing was successful.

If you used a Microsoft account when upgrading to Windows 10, it was automatically associated with a digital license and you will see the message "Windows is activated with a digital license associated with a Microsoft account." In this case, the previous step can be skipped and go to the next.

How to use the troubleshooting tool to reactivate Windows 10

After linking your Microsoft account and digital license, you can use the Activation Troubleshooter tool to reactivate Windows 10 after replacing the components on the computer.

If you want to see other devices associated with your account, you can click "View other devices associated with your Microsoft account." This page provides a list of devices in three categories (Edition does not match, Device type does not match, Windows is not activated), talking about the reasons why Windows 10 cannot be activated on other devices.

Additional steps

If your device does not appear in the list, there may be several reasons for this.

First, make sure that you are logged into a Microsoft account that you previously tied to your Windows 10 digital license.

If you are using the required Microsoft account, you need to consider the reasons for the inability to complete the activation. Here is a list of possible reasons:

• Windows 10 has never been activated on this computer;
• an unlicensed version of the operating system is used;
• windows 10 edition does not match the edition associated with the digital license;
• the type of device to be tied does not match the type of device associated with the digital license;
• the number of re-activations is limited. If this number is exceeded, Windows 10 cannot be activated;
• edition of the operating system installed on your computer, not Windows 10 Pro or Windows 10 Home;
• the computer is managed by your organization, in which case the reactivation tool is not available. Need to contact your system administrator;
• if after using Activation Troubleshooter it was not possible to activate Windows 10, you need to contact Microsoft technical support.

Conclusion

Since the first release of Windows 10, Microsoft has been working to improve the system, including in the area of \u200b\u200bits activation. However, activation problems continue to occur from time to time, so a new tool is designed to solve them and allow you to easily change computer components.

Activation Troubleshooter will be available in the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. Test program participants can use the tool from build 14371 or more modern.

Obviously, you cannot reactivate Windows 10 after changing components without adding a Microsoft account to your computer. Troubleshoot is not available if the system is activated.

Microsoft has also renamed the Windows 10 key type from “digital entitlement” to “digital license”.

By announcing Windows 10, the developers assured users that they would receive a new system for free, provided that their computers had previously installed a licensed version of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. To save the previous license key, it was enough to upgrade the system to a clean installation. However, in practice, Windows 10 activation has raised a lot of questions.

General information

In the article on how to install Windows 10 from a USB flash drive, we examined several behaviors when a request for an activation key appears during system installation. Recall the main points:

The surest way to cleanly install Windows 10 is with a preliminary upgrade.

You have a licensed version of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 installed on your computer. You must first upgrade the system to "ten", while no activation key is needed. Then, when the update is completed, and you make sure that the new system is activated, you can create a bootable USB flash drive and perform a clean installation with formatting partitions.

During installation, you must skip the request to enter the activation key. After installation, Windows 10 will independently connect to Microsoft servers (an Internet connection is required) and is activated by the key from your old system. This is how everything looks in theory and is usually obtained in practice. However, many users are faced with the fact that after performing the above actions the system does not activate, and the following message appears on the screen:

What to do with it and how to activate Windows 10 if this procedure has not been performed automatically? Let's see the possible ways to manually activate the system.

Manual activation

If you purchased a computer or laptop with a preinstalled system, then you may not have an activation key. The question is, how to find out if automatic activation after a clean installation has not occurred? You can do this with the help of several small utilities that are distributed free of charge:

• AIDA64 (there is a 30-day trial period).
• RWEverything etc.

The same operation can be performed using the PowerShell command, but it is much easier to use one of the above programs.

Key change

So you know the product key. First of all, try entering it through the settings of Windows 10.

Wait for the key verification results. If an error occurs, continue to the next method.

Command line

Let's try to manually delete the wrong key and enter a new one. To do this, we use a number of commands:

If the key is accepted, but the system still does not activate, try to perform this operation by phone.

Phone Activation

To activate the system by phone, you must first see the number:

1. At the command prompt, enter the query “slui 4” and press Enter.
2. Indicate the country in which you are located.
3. Call one of these numbers (8-800-200-8002 for the regions of Russia).
4. Listen carefully to the voice assistant message.
5. Carefully enter the installation code on the phone.
6. Enter the confirmation code received.

If the installation code you specified does not fit, you will be connected to an operator who will help you solve the activation problem.

Important: All of the steps above are official Microsoft recommendations, collected at the technical support forum.

If none of the described methods helped you, contact technical support yourself and describe the problem in as much detail as possible. Be sure to indicate how you installed Windows 10, whether the previous operating system was licensed, and whether the motherboard was replaced on the computer. This is important to determine the cause of the problem.

The Windows 10 distribution system keeps pace with the times. Now there is no need to buy a disc in a store or order it online. Absolutely every user can download Windows 10 to their computer directly from the official Microsoft website. But this version will only become full when it is activated.

Reasons to activate Windows

An inactive version of Windows is essentially a trial product. You can use it for a long time until you decide to purchase a license key. In this case, of course, some features in the inactive version will be blocked or limited:

It turns out that working on an activated operating system is not only more pleasant and convenient, but also more reliable. Indeed, many updates relate primarily to the security and protection of your computer.

Activating Windows in Various Ways

Regardless of which version of Windows you are using (Home, Pro, corporate or others), you can activate it in various ways, even if you have a key to another version. Among the activation methods there are both legal - with the acquisition of a key - and illegal methods. Whether or not to use illegal activation methods - this choice always remains on the user's conscience.

Activating Windows 10 via the command line

A very simple way to activate is activation through the command line. To do this, you need just a couple of commands, but first you need to open it:

This will open the command line. Follow these steps:

If the activation is successful, you will receive a notification about this. After that, you can close the command line.

Entering an activation key in the system settings

Another activation method is activation through system parameters. Do the following:

You can also activate in the computer update menu:

Regardless of the method chosen, the result will be the same: your system will be activated if the key is entered correctly.

Windows 10 activation without internet

The official activation process itself involves accessing the Microsoft servers to confirm the key. Therefore, activation without the Internet can be understood as:

• delayed activation during the installation of Windows, which will be carried out as soon as the computer connects to the network. So, for example, you can have a digital license (for example, when upgrading from the licensed version of Windows 8.1), in this case the key will not be requested from you, and activation will take place automatically when you connect to the Internet;
• phone activation - you can activate Windows 10 over the phone using Microsoft's automated assistant;
• activation through an activator program - there are illegal activators that are able to work without the Internet. They do not activate the system directly, but force the computer to consider it as such, removing all restrictions imposed.

OEM activation of Windows 10

OEM in the name of the version refers to the type of distribution of the operating system. This means that the system was preinstalled on the computer for sale with it. So, when you buy a modern laptop, you will receive a device with the OEM version of Windows 10. At the same time, you will not be given the key to the operating system directly, it will be tied to the laptop motherboard.

If activation of this laptop flashed when reinstalling Windows, it would be nice to find out your license key. This can be done using the ProdeKey program, which will reveal the key attached to your equipment. This program serves a single purpose: to tell you the key of your operating system.

This program will allow you to find out the key associated with your equipment

After you find out the key, you just have to activate the system using one of the methods described above. Activation will be completely legal, because you purchased this version of Windows along with the hardware.

Sometimes you can find a license key directly on the case of your laptop or computer in the form of a special sticker.

Stickers with activation codes may look different

Activating Windows 10 by Phone

The way to activate Windows 10 over the phone is convenient when there is no way to access the Internet. For this type of Windows activation, the following steps will be required:

Ability to delay activation

All the legal methods described above activate your system forever. Until you reinstall it or replace key parts of the equipment, re-activation is not required. In the case of illegal methods, no one knows when the activation of your Windows will be reset.

But there is another officially authorized method that activates Windows temporarily. It is done like this:

In a similar way, you will postpone the need for activation for a month and you can continue to use your operating system to the fullest. You can do this only three times, then this feature will not be available.

Windows activation through KMS activator

Mentioning activation methods, one can not help but talk about the most popular unofficial program for activating Windows. Its features are as follows:

• supports all modern operating systems, any version thereof;
• completely free;
• conducts high-quality activation with the function of its maintenance in the future, if desired;
• it has many settings for advanced users and the ability to activate one-button for beginners.

Using this program is really extremely simple:

Video: an easy way to activate Windows 10

Obtaining a version of Windows for educational institutions

There are several editions of Windows specifically for educational institutions. They differ from the usual ones in more advanced functionality, test programs and changed default settings. And, of course, there is a separate version of Windows 10 Enterprise, created specifically for educational institutions.

Such products are subject to a special licensing system, as well as individual prices. True, you will have to officially confirm that you are an educational institution to receive these benefits. By itself, the purchase procedure must occur through official resellers of Microsoft.

There is a convenient system for selecting a provider for your educational institution

Otherwise, the activation process of such operating systems does not differ from the activation of other versions. In the same way, you can activate Windows yourself through the system settings or use third-party activation programs.

Windows activation after replacing the motherboard

Like the previous operating system, Windows 10, when activated, “remembers” the hardware of your computer. With a serious change, for example, when replacing the motherboard, activation can fly off. If you have a license key or if you updated informally, your actions are clear. You just need to re-enter the key or re-activate. But what if you received a licensed version of Windows 10 due to a free upgrade? In this case, you do not have a key and you will have to act differently.

Before the anniversary update of Windows 10, the only solution was to contact technical support. There I had to describe the situation and after a private review, Microsoft technical support staff made a decision and returned the activation manually. Now this process can be performed automatically. Do the following:

After that, the activation will return to its place, and you can continue to work. In any controversial situation or if this method does not help, you still have to contact technical support.

Save Windows activation when reinstalling the system

Many users with digital activation (that is, those who updated for free when a new system is released) are afraid to reinstall Windows. “After all, with a clean reinstall, all files from the computer will be deleted, which means that activation will also fly off,” users argue. In fact, this statement is not true. Activation will be automatic if:

• when reinstalling Windows 10, you did not replace the motherboard or other equipment;
• you are installing the same version of Windows that was already installed on your computer.

That is, the main thing is not to try to install another version using your license key.  It must completely match the one that has already been activated.

In the event of any problems with re-activation, Microsoft suggests contacting technical support or using the activation troubleshooting tool.

Windows activation message reappears

If the message about the need to activate Windows 10 has returned to your desktop, this may be due to one of two reasons:

• either Windows activation was unreliable, and at the moment your operating system has returned to an inactive state;
• or an error solely in the return of the inscription, despite the fact that the system itself remained activated.

In the first case, you need to reactivate the system in one way or another. In the second, you can deal with a simple program Universal Watermark Disabler. Take the following steps to get rid of the activation notification:

Video: Watermark Removal Using Universal Watermark Disabler

Windows Activation Problems and Errors

We will deal with the most common problems associated with Windows activation.

Windows 10 does not activate after installation

If you are unable to activate Windows after reinstalling the operating system, there may be several reasons:

• during the recovery, upgrade, or installation of Windows 10, the wrong version of the operating system that you have the key to was used;
• the copy of Windows you purchased is installed on several different computers. The license agreement allows activation on several devices, but with a one-time use, this activation may fail;
• using an unofficial Windows image
• significant changes in the equipment used on your computer.

How to act under some of these factors, we have already described above. In any case, with problems with official Windows activation, you can always contact Microsoft technical support for help.

The system asks for activation, but is activated

This failure may occur in the following cases:

• if your Windows 10 has not been updated for a long time. In this case, just update it to the latest version;
• if your computer does not have an internet connection. The system cannot verify the authenticity of your key;
• microsoft servers are overloaded. Because of this, part of the data may be issued in the wrong way, leading to one or another failure.

Other Windows 10 activation errors

There are other Windows activation errors. Usually they are denoted by certain codes: 0xC004F210, 0xC004F034, 0x8007267C. The methods for solving these errors differ from each other, and the causes of their occurrence can be divided into three simple categories:

• key input error on your part. Just enter the key carefully or verify its authenticity;
• user internet problems. Establish a reliable connection before trying to activate the key;
• microsoft has a network problem. Due to maintenance work or heavy workloads, this can also lead to the inability to activate the system. In this case, it remains only to wait.

A universal solution to any problems that cause errors is the ability to contact technical support or run the troubleshooting tool for activation.

Any activation error can be fixed by technical support.

Windows activation check

If you activated the system and you need to make sure of this, you can use one of the following methods:

Any of these methods is equally reliable, so just check with one of them.

The more ways you can activate Windows 10, the more opportunities you have to do it. If one of the methods doesn’t work for you, just try the other. Indeed, working on activated Windows is much more pleasant and safer.

After installing an unlicensed copy of Windows 10, the use of the system will be overshadowed by such inscriptions:

If in previous versions of Windows after the trial period the functionality did not decrease much (the desktop screen saver just disappeared), then in Windows 10 the restrictions are more serious. You cannot personalize, many system settings are blocked for you.

How to activate Windows 10 for free to avoid such problems, in this article.

Disabling Antivirus

Activators penetrate deep into the system, changing its files and thereby convincing it that it is in an activated state. Viruses behave in exactly the same way - that is why many antiviruses "swear" at activators, and some delete their files without trial. Therefore, it is better - save your nerves.

If you have a third-party antivirus, you can disable it by right-clicking on the tray icon and selecting "Exit". However, Windows 10 has its own built-in antivirus, which should also be disabled. For this:

Done. You can proceed to the next point.

Download activator "KMSAuto Net"

At this stage, you should be extremely careful. On sites that distribute activators, it’s very easy to pick up a virus. Carefully watch what you download. The activator should be called "KMSAuto Net", in any case, the activation process will be shown on its example.

Note! In order to protect and feel a little more confident, when downloading it is recommended to use some kind of healing utility, like the well-known free Dr. Web CureIt. It does not have active protection screens - it won’t “swear”, activators, in most cases, it does not consider threats, but it will find viruses and prevent them from spoiling your life. Download the utility, run it and check the downloaded file with it.

1. Run the downloaded file as administrator.

   

2. In the window that opens, select the "Activation" item.

   

3. After clicking this button, you will be presented with a choice - activate Windows or activate Office. Yes, with this activator you can also activate Microsoft Office, starting with version 2010. Pretty useful feature.

   

4. Click the Windows button. After that, the activation process will begin.
5. In the process, the system will prompt you to force the installation of the GVLK key. Click the Continue button. The activation process can take up to several minutes, and the activator itself may not respond to requests - this is normal. In no case do not remove the task and do not complete the process from the "Task Manager" - in this case, the result can be disastrous. The system may cause serious malfunctions, which will violate the stability of the work or the system will generally stop starting. Better to wait. Activation will take place anyway. Better to wait.

   

6. When the activation of the system is completed, the utility will ask you to create a re-activation task every 180 days. This is necessary, since some keys are set for half a year, so you should allow the scheduler to create this task - then you will not remember the need to re-activate the system, the scheduler will take care of this for you.

   

7. Upon completion of activation, in the console at the bottom of the activator window you will see a message about the successful completion of the process.

   

8. You just have to close the window and restart the computer. Remember! After activation, the computer may shut down and boot up longer than usual. This is because system files were subject to change.
9. After rebooting, right-click on the “Computer” icon and select “Properties” in the context menu.

   

10. A window will open in which basic information about the computer and system will be displayed. Scroll its contents down. We are interested in the last block, which contains information about the activation of the system. There should appear the inscription "Windows activation completed." Done. Your system is activated, and now full functionality is available to you.

    

Important!  After completing all the actions, do not forget to turn on the antivirus by repeating steps 1.

This should be done as quickly as possible, the smaller your system is without protection, the higher the probability of virus penetration. In the end, I would recommend deleting the activator files and scanning the entire system for viruses by an antivirus or a previously downloaded healing utility.

Video - Activating Windows 10