Over the years the installation of Windows has gotten easier and more reliable, and Windows 10 is not an exception. In the new version of the operating system Microsoft has made it a lot easier for users to upgrade, but to make it all happen the company had to modify the different ways in which customers install Windows 10, and up until now there was not much documentation explaining the new changes.

1. Windows Is Activated Using Your Organization's Activation Service
2. Windows Is Activated Using Your Organization's

Recently, the company made available documentation resources that explain how the Windows 10 activation and upgrade process work.

In the “Activation in Windows 10” web page, the software giant begins explaining that it uses the activation technology to verify a computer is running a genuine copy and the same license hasn’t been used on more devices than it was permitted under the terms.

'Your Windows license will expire soon' You need to activate Windows in Settings. When i go to settings, i found Windows is activated using organizations's activation service. Edition: Windows 10 Pro. Edition: Windows 10 Pro Activation: Windows is activated using your organizations's activation service, that is using KMS (Key management service) setup Application file.

Windows 10 also includes a new kind of activation, something the company calls “digital license” (formerly known as “digital entitlement”), which is in addition to the 25-character product key method. The activation the operating system will use depends on how you have obtained your copy of windows 10.

According to Microsoft, “digital license” (digital entitlement) is the new activation method in Windows 10 that doesn’t require the user to enter a product key. In this case activation will happen automatically.

Windows 10 will use the “digital license” (digital entitlement) activation method, if one of the following is true:

• You’re upgrading a genuine copy of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 to Windows 10 for free.
• You’ve purchased a copy of Windows 10 in the Windows Store and successfully activated Windows 10.
• You’ve purchased a Windows 10 Pro upgrade in the Windows Store and successfully activated Windows 10.
• You’re part of the Windows Insider Program and you have upgraded your genuine activated copy Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 to the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build.

Windows 10 will use the product key activation method, if one of the following is true:

• You have obtained a copy of Windows 10 from an authorized retailer.
• You have obtained a digital copy of Windows 10 from an authorized retailer.
• You’re using the Volume Licensing agreement for Windows 10 or MSDN subscription.
• You have purchased a new computer running Windows 10.

How to activate Windows 10 after the upgrade

If you have upgraded to Windows 10 from a genuine copy of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, the activation will happen automatically through an internet connection and an online “digital license” (digital entitlement) will be created for your device.

According to the Microsoft documentation, if your version of Windows is not activated before upgrading to Windows 10, you won’t be able to activate, as such you have to make sure your copy is fully activated before upgrading.

Checking your Windows activation is very easy:

• Windows 7: Click the Start button, right click Computer, and click Properties. Then look under Windows activation.
• Windows 8.1: Go to Control Panel, click System and Security, and click System: Then look under Windows activation.
• Windows 10: Open the Settings app, go to Update & security, and navigate to Activation.

If you’re copy of Windows 10 isn’t activated, you can get more information in the “Windows 10 activation errors” web page.

How to activate Windows 10 after reinstall

If you have activated a free copy or bought and activated a copy of Windows 10 from the Store, you have a “digital license” (digital entitlement) for that device.

This means that you can reinstall Windows 10, even a clean installation, and you don’t need to enter a product key. If during the installation you’re prompted to enter a product key, select Skip. Then the operating system will activate automatically after the installation.

If you previously installed and activated Windows 10 using a product key, then you’ll need to enter a product key during the installation.

How to activate a new Windows 10 installation

A product key will be needed to activate Windows 10, when you install the operating system for the first time, and your device never had an activated copy of Windows 10 on it.

Of course, you’ll also need a product key if you are installing Windows 10 Pro on a device that has Windows 10 Home running on it.

How to activate a Windows 10 Insider Preview build

If you upgraded your genuine copy of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 to the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build, then you’ll get new and activated builds.

After July 29, 2015, if you want to install the latest Windows 10 Insider Preview build, but you’re running Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1, you first need to upgrade to Windows 10 using the free upgrade offer.

After the upgrade go to Settings > Update & security > Advanced options and then click the Get Insider Builds to join the Insider Preview Program to receive the new builds.

How to activate Windows 10 after hardware change

If you have taken advantage of the free upgrade offer of Windows 10, and then you made some significant hardware changes, such as replacing the motherboard, Windows 10 won’t re-activate.

However, starting with the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, you can link your Microsoft Account with your Windows 10 digital licence, and use the new Activation Troubleshooter tool to re-activate the operating system.

Linking your digital license with your account is very straightforward, if you’re already have a Microsoft Account connected to your Windows 10 Anniversary Update or later, you’re good to go.

If you only have a local account, you need to add a Microsoft Account to Windows 10. Go to Settings > Update & security > Activation, click Add an account and complete the process.

Then you can use the Activation Troubleshooter. Go to Settings > Update & security > Activation, click Troubleshoot, sign-in with your Microsoft Account. Then select your computer your the list of digital licenses associated with your account, check This is the device I’m using right now, and click Activate. If the activation fail, then you’ll need to contact customer support for assistants.

Windows Is Activated Using Your Organization's Activation Service

Update, October 14, 2015: Microsoft will make easier to activate Windows 10 with Threshold 2. Starting Windows 10 build 10565, users will be able to use their Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1 product key to do a clean install of Windows 10 without having to do the upgrade first — full details on the changes here.

Update, June 23, 2016: Starting with Windows 10 build 14371 and moving forward, Microsoft is renaming “digital entitlement” to “digital licence”.

Update, July 9, 2016: On July 29th, Microsoft is ending the free offer to upgrade free to Windows 10. Everyone who has upgraded will retain the digital license for the life of the device. This means that if you reinstall Windows 10 with the Anniversary Update your computer will remain activated.

Source Microsoft

Have you upgraded to Windows 10 and not able to explore all features because of activation errors? There are some common activation errors that can show up on your newly installed Windows 10. Learn what this activation error means, common Windows 10 activation errors and how to fix them below.

If you upgrade to Windows 10, the new OS will take the product key and activation details from your earlier OS. These are then saved on Microsoft servers, along with your PC details. If you clean install Windows the first time, you may face activation problems. If you performed an upgrade the first time, activated Windows 10, and then clean installed Windows 10 on the same PC, then there will be no activation issues as the OS will pull activation details from Microsoft servers.

Troubleshoot Windows 10 Activation Errors

We couldn’t activate Windows 10

Windows 10 isn’t activated after upgrading for free from Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8.1 Update

If you encounter a non-activated state after upgrading to Windows 10 for free follow below instructions:

1. Click on Start and then select Settings > Update & security > Activation.
2. Choose Go to Store and check if you could see a valid license available for your device. If a valid license isn’t available, you will have to buy Windows from Store.

If there is no Go to Store option on your Activation page, contact your organization’s support.

Genuine Validation detected tampered Windows binaries. (Error code: 0xC004C4AE)

If you are using a third-party application to add a display language which is not currently supported by Windows you might get the above error. To fix, restore your PC to an earlier point in time to undo the changes that were made to Windows.

The Software Licensing Service determined that this specified product key can only be used for upgrading, not for clean installations. (Error code: 0xC004F061)

The above activation error occurs if a previous version of Windows was not installed on your PC before entering a product key to upgrade to Windows 10. To continue the upgrade process, you should have Windows 8 or Windows 7 already on your PC.

A networking problem has occurred while activating your copy of Windows. (Error code: 0xC004FC03)

This activation error occurs when your PC is not connected to the Internet, or the firewall settings on your PC is preventing Windows from finishing the activation process online. In this case, make sure you are connected to the Internet, and the firewall is not trying to block Windows from getting activated. If you still encounter this problem, you could try activating Windows via phone.

The activation server reported that the product key has exceeded its unlock limit. (Error code: 0xC004C008)

The error occurs if the product key which you are trying to use has already been used on a different PC, or it is being used on more than one PC than the Microsoft Software License Terms allow. Fix this activation problem by buying a product key for each one of your PCs in order to activate Windows on them.

You can buy a product key from the Windows Store by following these steps:

1. Click on Start and then select Settings > Update & security > Activation.
2. Choose Go to Store, and follow the shown instructions to buy Windows.

This product key didn’t work. (Error code: 0xC004C003)

The above activation error commonly occurs if you are using an invalid product key. You will have to buy a new product key. If you purchased a PC with Windows pre-installed, you would have to contact the PC manufacturer for the original key.

The activation server reported that the Multiple Activation Key has exceeded its limit. (Error code: 0xC004C020)

This activation error occurs when a Volume License (a license which is bought from Microsoft by a business to install Windows on multiple PCs) has been used on more PCs than specified in Microsoft Software License Terms. To fix this problem, you might want to use a different product key to activate Windows on your PC. Your organization’s support person could help.

DNS name does not exist. (Error code: 0x8007232B)

Are you trying to activate your work PC, which is not connected to your workplace’s network? Make sure you are connected to the right network and then apply the product key.

The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect. (Error code: 0x8007007B)

If you see the above activation error even when you are connected to the work network, you should change your network settings by contacting your organization’s support person.

In case if there are no support persons in your organization you may want to enter your product key again by following these steps:

1. Click on ‘Start’ and then select Settings > Update & security > Activation.
2. Select Change product key, and enter the 25-character product key.

Note: You might get a prompt asking for an admin password or to confirm the choice you made.

A security error occurred. (Error code: 0x80072F8F)

You might see this activation error if your computer’s date and time are set incorrectly or Windows is having trouble connecting to online activation service failing to verify your product key.

To verify your PC’s date and time, follow these steps:

1. Click on ‘Start’ , select Settings > Time & language > Date & time
2. Make sure that your PC is set to the correct date and time.

To check your Internet connection, follow these instructions:

1. Type “network troubleshooter” in the search box on the taskbar, and then choose Identify and repair network problems.
2. Following the on-screen instructions can fix any problems with your network.

In case your network troubleshooter didn’t detect any problems with the network connection, try to reboot your PC to check if that fixes the problem.

Windows Is Activated Using Your Organization's

The Software Licensing Service reported that the license evaluation failed. (Error code: 0xC004E003)

You might see the above activation error after installing some third-party software that could have changed the system files. Windows activation requires certain system files to finish the activation process. Try to restore your PC’s system files to an earlier point in time which removes any software that you installed after the specified point in time without affecting personal files of yours.

Unspecified error. (Error code: 0x80004005)

If you are getting “Unspecified error” as an activation error, click on ‘Start’ and then choose Settings >Update & security > Activation, and select Activate Windows to try and manually activate your PC. If it didn’t work, you would have to reset your PC.

Source: Microsoft.

Erase pdf online. Fixes for other Activation errors:

1. Windows 10 license couldn’t be found to activate Windows – 0x803F7001
2. You must use a valid product key to activate Windows – 0x800704cF
3. Windows Activation Errors 0x8007232B, 0xC004F074, 0xC004F038, 0x8007007B
4. Invalid Product Key or Version mismatch – Activation Error code 0xC004E016, 0xC004F210, 0xC004F034 and 0xC004F00F.

See this post if you receive The product key entered does not match any of the Windows images available for installation message during installation.

Resources that may help you:

1. Windows 10 is activated but still keeps asking for Activation.

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