Re-installing Windows 8 OEM license to new hard drive

TheWinsMeister

New Member
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5
Hi! Apologies if I posted this in le wrong category.

I recently upgraded capacity of my hard drive (from 350GB to 500GB). I'm wondering how can I install my windows oem license from my previous hard drive to my new one. My laptop is Compaq Presario CQ58 and OS is Windows 8.

I really need your help guys!

THANKS IN ADVANCE
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Hello and welcome to the forum! The easiest thing would have been to image the old drive then transfer to the new drive if you have a large enough external drive.

Beyond that, I haven't done a hard drive upgrade with OEM. Not sure if will automatically get the key from the flash memory and activate. If not, you'll have to get the key that is burned in the board by using ShowKey or other retrieval utility.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.
In addition to the above. Use Free Macrium software: Macrium Reflect Free & Macrium User Manual
  1. Install Macrium
  2. Connect your 500GB HD to a USB port
  3. Run Macrium & clone the whole 300 GB drive to the 500GB.
  4. Replace the 300GB with the 500GB
  5. Boot up

EDIT: after cloning, your new HD will show as if it were your old drive. You'll need to open the Disk Management, you'll see ~ 200GB unallocated space. You have 2 options:

  1. Right click on the C: drive and expand it to make full use of 500GB
  2. Right click->Initialize this unallocated space to be a logical drive so you can store your personall data to this drive separated from Windows OS.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
Imaging is making a compressed copy of the used sectors. It is stored as a file, so you can plonk it just about anywhere. It will usually be about 50-60% of the original used space.

There are several free programs which will do it for you.

That image can be restored using the same program ( they usually make a bootable version of themselves which you can run from usb drive ).

You can restore the image to anywhere you like as long as it is big enough.

Often used to restore windows to the moment you made the image, for example when windows goes weird/your hard drive dies, etc. You can also make an image of your current HD , then restore it to a different HD.

Aomei Backupper Standard, Paragon backup and restore free, macrium free and several others will all do the job.

It is very simple, easy peasy just a few clicks , tell the program what you want it to make an image of, and where to deposit the image file it makes.

How to Do a System Backup, Back Up System Files & Boot Files
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7/8/ubuntu/Linux Deepin
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Image will let you save everything to a third drive that can then be transferred to your new drive. This is also commonly used as an entire drive backup solution.

Clone lets you transfer everything directly from the old drive to the new one.

Confusing enough? Hopefully not. I would also suggest if your laptop came with a utility to create a recovery disc or usb flash recovery, you create one using your old drive.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.
I swapped out the factory spinner drive on my laptop for an SSD. At that time I did a clean install of 8.0 using an MSDN Windows 8.0 ISO. Windows 8.0 read and used the factory embedded key that was in the BIOS and installed the matching 8.0 Core. Activated automatically online with no issues. It retailed the original OEM activation. If you don't have access to install media then your looking at cloning or imaging your original install. Have you already swapped drives? Is windows 8 installed? If yes how did you install it?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
Thank you guys for the replies!

I just bought a SATA to USB cable just like what topgindcp then clone my old hard drive.

I will let you guys know what happened.

Do I mark this now as solved?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Up to you. Can wait until you report back with results but please do mark as solved eventually if that is the case. Helps others to easily see something that has worked. Sadly many never report back. :(
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.
Hey guys!

My HDD enclosure came yesterday so I immediately tried the cloning method given. I used macrium reflect to do it. It worked! Note that it will only show the amount of space left from your previous hard drive until you sort it out from disk management.

Now my laptop is running 500GB; cloned from my previous hard drive. I'll backup my previous hard drive before wiping it all away just in case something happens to my new hard drive.

Thanks guys for the help!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
This is great news! I meant to post that you would have to extend the partition after cloning. Guess I forgot, sorry.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Linux Centos 7, W8.1, W7, W2K3 Server W10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Monitor(s) Displays
    1 X LG 40 inch TV
    Hard Drives
    SSD's * 3 (Samsung 840 series) 250 GB
    2 X 3 TB sata
    5 X 1 TB sata
    Internet Speed
    0.12 GB/s (120Mb/s)
I'd be careful what cable/adapter you use, depending on what drive your trying to clone. My Crucial SSD came with a cloning kit. The cable is just a simple SATA to USB cable. All the power is drawn from the USB port. It works fine on 2.5 inch 5400 PRM laptop drives but not so good on 3.5 inch 7200 RPM desktop form factor drives. Not enough power to drive them reliably. Mine is only USB 2.0, one that's USB 3.0 may fair better. I also have one of these, Rosewill RCW-608 USB2.0 Adapter For IDE/SATA Device (Include Protection case) - Newegg.ca which IMHO, is well worth the extra cost. I've used it several times now to recover data off of a hard drive from a dead PC. It all depends on your needs and wants. I work on PC's from time to time so having that kit saves me time and hassle. If you don't do that sort of thing and know your going to repurpose the drive as external storage you may as well just buy a drive enclosure and be done with it. I've done that too.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
I'd be careful what cable/adapter you use, depending on what drive your trying to clone. My Crucial SSD came with a cloning kit. The cable is just a simple SATA to USB cable. All the power is drawn from the USB port. It works fine on 2.5 inch 5400 PRM laptop drives but not so good on 3.5 inch 7200 RPM desktop form factor drives. Not enough power to drive them reliably. Mine is only USB 2.0, one that's USB 3.0 may fair better. I also have one of these, Rosewill RCW-608 USB2.0 Adapter For IDE/SATA Device (Include Protection case) - Newegg.ca which IMHO, is well worth the extra cost. I've used it several times now to recover data off of a hard drive from a dead PC. It all depends on your needs and wants. I work on PC's from time to time so having that kit saves me time and hassle. If you don't do that sort of thing and know your going to repurpose the drive as external storage you may as well just buy a drive enclosure and be done with it. I've done that too.

This one has never failed me. Uses two usb ports, one to boost power to the drive. Hard Drive Docking Station - SATA 2.5in | SSD | USB 2.0 | StarTech.com
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer V3 771G-6443
    CPU
    i5-3230m
    Motherboard
    Acer VA70_HC (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 PC3-12800 (800 MHz)
    Graphics Card(s)
    HD4000 + GeForce GT 730M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17" Generic PnP Display on Intel HD Graphics 4000
    Screen Resolution
    1600x900 pixels
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250 GB
    ADATA SSD SP900 128GB
    PSU
    90 watt brick
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Antivirus
    Comodo
    Other Info
    Asus RT-AC56R dual-band WRT router (Merlin firmware). Intel 7260.HMWWB.R dual-band ac wireless adapter.

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
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