Find out the Windows serial number. How to find out the activation key installed on a Windows computer

Hello admin, tell me how to find out windows key, if it is not on the back of the laptop and this is the case on all new laptops.

When buying a laptop, the store told me that I didn’t need a Windows key, since I didn’t need to enter it anywhere. I have some kind of Windows 8 Single Language 64-bit Russian Region- (OEM) installed, and I’m also not supposed to have a disk from it. If Windows crashes, you can run the factory reset program and that’s it.
I also learned that if I want to install another Windows on my laptop, it’s unlikely to work and reinstalling the existing one myself won’t work either. And another important point - if I accidentally delete the hidden partition with factory settings during my experiments with reinstallations, then the laptop will be restored to me not under warranty, but for a couple of thousand rubles.

So I’m sitting and thinking, I paid 30 thousand rubles for the laptop, but it’s like it’s not mine. Find out the Windows key I can’t, I can’t install another operating system, they don’t give me a disk with Windows and drivers anymore, in short, use it for your health. It's all strange though! Gosh.

How to find out the Windows key

Hello friends! With a new laptop, you can do whatever you want and of course you can find out the key of Windows installed on it, but you need to do all this with skill. The sellers can also be understood, since many buyers, on the very first day of using a laptop, destroy everything with a hairdryer, and then, having played enough with ancient operating systems, they try to restore what they had, many do not succeed and they come to where the laptop was purchased and demand everything restored under warranty.

Therefore, before your experiments, insure yourself with modern data backup tools. You can back up all partitions of your hard drive to DVDs or a portable USB hard drive. You can learn how to create a backup of the entire laptop hard drive or just the operating system from our articles.
Note: Windows 8 Single Language 64-bit Russian Region (OEM) installed on your laptop is a normal basic Windows 8, but only with support for one Russian language. No, you can type in English, but the system control interface will always be Russian. Windows 8 Single Language (OEM) can be transferred to another computer and even upgraded to Windows Pro 8. If you want to reinstall the operating system on your laptop, then you can do it approximately like this - or like this -.

I will give two of the easiest ways to find out the Windows key. We will use the services of the ProduKey program and then AIDA64.

ProduKey software works quickly and without installation. You can download it on the official website

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/product_cd_key_viewer.html#DownloadLinks

Click "Download links are on the bottom of this page"

If you have a 64-bit operating system, select "Download ProduKey for x64"

Below on the same page you can download the Russifier.

The program is downloaded in an archive, unzip the archive and run the ProduKey.exe file. In addition to the Windows key, you will find out all the keys for programs owned by Microsoft.

Find out the Windows key using the AIDA64 program

Let's go to the website of the developer of the AIDA64 program http://www.aida64.com/, click on the Download button.

Download, install and run the program. On the left side of the main program window, select Operating System, then do the same again.

We see the key of our Windows

Friends, read the continuation.

Most commercial software comes with special protection against unauthorized copying and installation. And although manufacturers use different methods to solve this problem, almost all of them prompt the user to enter a product key or serial number - at least this is the case with Microsoft Windows and Office.

The string, consisting of letters and numbers, is an individual identifier that proves the legality of your copy. This data is required to authorize the installation of the software, as well as to receive support, so it can be important to know where the key is and how to get it.

Below are some easy ways to help you find your serial number for Windows and Office.

Find product key

Try to remember how you purchased your Microsoft software, as this will determine where to look for your product key.

If you bought a copy of Microsoft Windows or Office on disk, then, first of all, you should examine its box. Retail Microsoft product keys are usually located on a bright sticker located inside the CD/DVD cover or on the back. The key consists of 25 characters, usually divided into 5 groups of 5 characters.

If your computer came with Microsoft Windows pre-installed, the product key is usually printed on a colored sticker placed directly on the PC case. For Microsoft Office, the serial number sticker should be on the installation disc that came with your computer. If you don't find it anywhere in the listed places, then you need to contact Microsoft to request a replacement for your lost key.

You can usually find your Microsoft Windows serial number on a sticker attached to your PC.

Windows 10

With the release of Windows 10, Microsoft introduced a new way to authenticate the operating system called digital authorization, but it doesn't work on all Windows 10 PCs.

In fact, you definitely have a digital resolution if you upgraded the OS on your PC from Windows 7 or 8.1 for free. You also get a digital pass if you paid to upgrade to Windows 10 from the Windows Store or installed a fresh copy of the OS and then paid for it in the same Windows Store.

However, if you received Windows 10 either bundled with a new PC, or purchased a Windows 10 installation DVD from a store, or bought a digital copy of Windows 10, but not from the Windows Store, but from another online store, then you will have a traditional product key , not digital resolution.

What is digital resolution

If your PC has a digital resolution, Microsoft records your right to run Windows 10 on its servers. The upside is that you simply don't have a product key to lose. And if you need to reinstall the system, for example from a USB drive, you don't even have to activate your PC. Instead, after reinstalling Windows, activation will take place in the background for a few hours (or, in extreme cases, a few days).

But keep in mind that your digital resolution is based on your system configuration. If you change too many components at once and then try to reinstall Windows 10, you may encounter a problem.

From the point of view of the new control system, it would be better, for example, to first replace the HDD or SSD, then reinstall Windows 10, and update other components after activation. Otherwise, you may have to call Microsoft's hotline for automatic activation. This doesn't happen very often, but it does happen.

However, major updates, such as replacing the motherboard, will definitely require a call to Microsoft.

Retrieving a key from Microsoft Windows or Office

If you cannot find your product key, but the program is already installed, you can use special programs, in particular Magical Jelly Bean Key Finder. This utility will quickly find the key for Windows (as well as keys for many other installed programs) and display it on the screen.

1. Download Magical Jelly Bean and follow the instructions to install the software on your computer.

2. Launch the program. You can find it in the Start menu - start typing keyfinder and click.

3. The program will scan your installed software and find product keys for supported programs, including various versions of Windows and Office.

4. When the scan is complete, you will see a window with a panel on the left side that will list any installed versions of Windows and Office.

5. Click on your version of Microsoft Windows and you will receive the key as well as other installation information. The serial number itself will be located in the ‘CD Key’ section on the right side of the window. Write this information down in case you may need it in the future. Make sure that you have rewritten all the symbols correctly, otherwise the key simply won’t work. And don’t pay attention to the ‘Product ID’ section - we don’t need it.

6. Click on your version of Microsoft Office to get your product key and other installation information. In the case of Office, everything happens exactly the same - your key will be located in the ‘CD Key’ section on the right side of the window. Make sure that you have rewritten all the symbols correctly, otherwise the key simply won’t work. You can also use Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder to extract the keys of any software that is installed on your PC.

To activate the Windows operating system, a special product license key is used. The Windows product key used to activate the system differs depending on the operating system version (Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, etc.), OS edition (Home, Pro, etc.), distribution method (OEM, Retail etc).

To activate the Windows operating system, a product key is used, consisting of 25 characters in the form of numbers and capital (upper case) English letters, divided into 5 groups of 5 characters: “XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX”.

Laptops used to often have a Windows activation key stuck to it. Currently, laptop manufacturers with pre-installed operating systems embed the product key into the BIOS to automatically activate Windows.

If the system is reinstalled, or for some other reason (for example, activation failed after a hardware failure), the user may need a Windows product key. How to find out your Windows activation key?

You can find out the license key of installed Windows by running a special VBS script, as well as using five programs: ProduKey, ShowKeyPlus, Free PC Audit, Speccy, AIDA64, SIW. All listed programs are free, except AIDA64 and SIW.

The script with the extension “.vbs” and portable free programs (ProduKey, ShowKeyPlus, Free PC Audit) can be downloaded from here. Download the rest of the programs to your computer from the official websites of the manufacturers.

Using these methods, you can find out the key for Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10. After you have found out the Windows product key, save the received data for later use, in case of reinstalling the operating system, to activate the operating system.

The free ProduKey program from the well-known manufacturer NirSoft does not require installation on your computer. The application shows keys for Windows OS, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office.

Unpack the archive with the program, and then run the “Application” file from the folder. After launch, the ProduKey utility window will display the key for the installed operating system.

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Select the entry with the key for Windows 10, or another operating system, and then select “Copy Product Key” from the context menu to copy the activation key to the clipboard.

The free ShowKeyPlus program does not require installation on your computer. After launch, in the application window you will see the following information:

Product Name—The operating system currently installed on the computer
Product ID - product code
Installed Key - the key of the operating system currently installed on the computer
OEM Key - a key embedded in the BIOS of the laptop with the originally installed operating system

To save the data, click on the “Save” button, and then save the received information in a text format file.

The free program Free PC Audit will help you find out the key of your installed Windows. This program does not require installation on your computer. Run the utility file, after which the Free PC Audit program window will open, in which the system scan will begin.

After the scan is completed, in the “System” tab, opposite the “Windows product key” item, you will see the product key of the installed Windows operating system.

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To copy the key, select the line with the license key, and then using the “Copy” context menu item, or using the “Ctrl” + “C” keys, copy the Windows product key from the utility window.

How to find out Windows 8 key using VBScrit

Activation keys for the Windows operating system are stored on the hard drive in encrypted form. Executing the VBScrit script will allow you to obtain the product key of the installed operating system in decrypted form. This script was developed for the Windows 8 operating system, but this code also works perfectly in the Windows 10, Windows 8.1, and Windows 7 operating systems.

To perform the operation, double-click on the “WindowsKey.vbs” file. In the window that opens, you will see the Windows activation code. Next, click on the “OK” button.

The next window will display information about the operating system version, product ID and product key number. Ignore the title of the entry "Windows 8 Key". The name of this OS will be displayed on any version of the Windows operating system.

Free Speccy program from the well-known company Piriform, manufacturer of CCleaner and other software. You can download the portable version of Speccy from the official website. There is a paid version of the program with advanced features.

The program provides the user with detailed information about the computer hardware, and using the application you can also find out the license key of the installed Windows.

Launch the Speccy program, in the “Operating System” section the version of the installed operating system and its serial number (activation key) will be displayed.

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AIDA64 is a powerful program for obtaining all kinds of information about computer software and hardware.

After launching the AIDA64 program, license information, including the Windows product key, will be displayed in the “Menu” tab, in the “Operating System” section.

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Select the product key, select “Copy” in the context menu, then paste the key into Notepad or another similar program to save.

S.I.W.

SIW (System Information of Windows) is a program for obtaining information about the hardware and software status of a computer.

After launching SIW, go to the “Programs”, “Licenses” section. Information about the product key used in the Windows operating system installed on the computer will be displayed here.

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Incorrect product key

When checking keys using the methods listed above, the Windows product key may appear as follows: “BBBBB-BBBBB-BBBBB-BBBBB-BBBBB”.

This means that your computer is activated with a corporate MAK or VLK key. The Windows operating system does not save such keys, so programs do not see them.

Windows 10 uses a new system authentication method (not available for all cases on Windows 10). The activation record is stored on Microsoft servers and is not visible on your computer. After reinstallation, Windows activates itself for some time.

Maintaining the license depends on changing the computer hardware configuration. If the motherboard is replaced, Microsoft activation servers will revoke the license for that computer. Windows will prompt you to purchase a new product key.

Conclusion

If necessary, the user can find out the license code of the Windows operating system by running a VBS script, or using specialized programs: ProduKey, ShowKeyPlus, Free PC Audit, Speccy, AIDA64, SIW.

Many of us have probably found ourselves in a situation where it was necessary find out the Windows 7 activation key. Usually it is located in the form of a sticker on the bottom of the laptop, but it is often erased. Or on DVDs, of which there are fewer and fewer. One way or another, no matter what situation you find yourself in, you need to be able to find out the Windows 7 product license key.

Using software

Aida 64 is a utility for complete computer diagnostics. It can tell the user almost everything about the PC, including the question that interests us. Located in the “Operating System” tab, in the “Licensed” section.

The KeyFinder application will also come to the rescue. It will help you find the keys for almost all software installed on your computer, not to mention the operating system itself. Just launch KeyFinder and use your mouse to mark the software name.

The list of software could take a long time. But I think the products described in this article will be very relevant not only for beginners, but also for advanced users.

Entering the activation key

There are users for whom reinstalling the OS is a real problem, since they have no idea how to use the Windows 7 key. As it turns out, there is nothing unusual here. During a clean installation, it must be applied during the configuration step. First, an account is created, after which a screen appears asking you to enter your product number. It includes 25 characters. Next you need to activate.

The OS that has already been installed must be activated within a month. Through the properties of “My Computer”. The information view window has a “Windows Activation” column.