Activation is a popular topic, but perhaps my situation is slightly different from other situations. I have been using an HP XW4400, but when Windows 8 first became available in October of 2012 I performed a clean install. (This was the $40 offer for the Pro version.) When Windows 10 became available as a free upgrade, I took advantage of that offer.
I would now like to transfer the license to a newer computer (and, if possible, the software as well, though I don't know about that.) If the Windows 8 version I mentioned is regarded as "retail," I suppose it should be possible to transfer that license, but is the upgrade to Windows 10 on a new machine permitted? If a clean install is necessary, what is the correct registration number to use? (I have the serial numbers for both Windows 8 and 10 on this computer.)
If original Windows 8 was oem, then it is technically against the EULA to do this.
If original was retail, simply install latest version using link below
Windows 10
and activate using 8.1 key (removing windows from old pc).
Sometimes, it may complain your old key is in use.
Here you might need to reinstall old OS first, and telephone activate it.
1. Use showkey plus from this forum to determine if your Windows 8 product key is OEM or Retail. If it is OEM, then you are done, you cannot transfer that (or the upgrade to Windows 10 from it) to the new computer:
Showkey - Windows 10 blog
If you have a retail product key that is transferable:
2. How do you want to transfer everything? Do you want to move the physical hard drive to the new computer or copy over to the new computer? Moving the physical hard drive is easy, just move it over and go to step 3. If you want to copy over there are two ways you can do it. Get a Sata to USB adapter cable with power supply (since we are talking desktop hard drives) like this:
Amazon.com: Sabrent USB 2.0 TO SATA/IDE 2.5/3.5/-INCH Hard Drive Converter With Power Supply LED Activity Lights [4TB Support] (USB-DSC5): Electronics
Remove hard drive from new computer, connect it to old computer via USB. Then you can use MiniTool Partition Wizard to copy all the partitions over, resizing the C: drive system partition if the new hard drive is larger/smaller:
Best Free Partition Manager for Windows | MiniTool Partition Free
Or - if you have an external hard drive already, use Macrium Reflect Free to make an image of the old computer saved to the external hard drive and then restore the image to the new computer/hard drive:
Macrium Reflect Free
Any of the above options will only work if the old and new computers have the same type of bios and same type disk partition formats - legacy bios and MBR partitioning or UEFI and GPT partitioning. You will have troubles going from one to the other. It can be done, but it's complicated.
If you don't move the physical hard drive over, you will have to remove Windows from the old computer when it gets moved over to the new computer to comply with the EULA.
3. Now, the Windows 10 moved to the new computer will deactivate itself. Go to settings, updates & security, activation and change product key. Enter the Windows 8 product key to activate it again. If you are lucky, it will activate online. Or you may get an error saying the Windows 8 product key is in use on another computer.
4. If you get the activation error, you will have to install Windows 8 on the new computer. You can do that by shrinking the Windows 10 partition to make room for a temporary Windows 8 partition, or you can use an extra hard drive (like the one from the old computer), or if you have the Windows 10 image, you can use the existing hard drive then restore the Windows 10 image after Windows 8 is activated. Once you get a temporary Windows 8 installed on the new computer, you will have to activate it over the phone. Once it is activated, I suggest you use this method to activate Windows 10:
Clean Install Windows 10 Directly without having to Upgrade First - Windows 10 blog
Although just entering the Windows 8 product key in Windows 10 should work after activating Windows 8 on the new computer.
