Solved Moving Windows 8 Pro WMC upgrade to another PC

AK 47

New Member
Messages
4
Location
England
Hi all,

I had a laptop running Windows XP. When Windows 8 came out, I downloaded Windows 8 Pro upgrade (when it was something like £25 or whatever.) I clean-installed it and also upgraded to WMC edition when Microsoft were giving this away for free.

Now that PC is kind of dying (it is about eight years old,) so I have bought myself a new one. The new one came running Windows 8 (not Pro, not WMC) OEM. I have no intention of ever using my old PC again, so my question is as follows:

  • How do I legally remove the Pro and WMC licences (and if required, Windows 8 itself) from the old PC and upgrade the new PC's Windows 8 to Pro WMC? I have a record of both the Pro and WMC product keys already. But how do I legally move them across to the new PC and upgrade the new PC's Windows 8 OEM to Pro WMC?

Thanks in advance.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro WMC

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Hi guys and thanks for your responses and making me feel welcome.

What I am particularly concerned about is will the new PC accept my product keys (i.e. first to upgrade Core to Pro, and then to add WMC) if Windows 8 Pro WMC is still installed on the old PC?

If not, I can remove Windows 8 Pro WMC from the old computer by using my recovery discs to restore to factory settings (including going back to Windows XP).

But crucially, if I do restore to factory settings, will Microsoft's activation system know that the Windows 8 Pro and WMC product keys are no longer in use on the old PC?

If not, how do I let them know so that my Core to Pro upgrade and Pro to Pro WMC upgrade product keys work on the new PC?

Thanks again for your help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro WMC
As long as the PC doesn't come with Windows 8 preinstalled (OEM), then it's fully transferable to another PC using the clean install method I posted above without any activation issues. At worse you may have to activate by phone. The tutorial will cover activation as well. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
As long as the PC doesn't come with Windows 8 preinstalled (OEM), then it's fully transferable to another PC using the clean install method I posted above without any activation issues. At worse you may have to activate by phone. The tutorial will cover activation as well. :)

Thanks very much for your reply, and sorry to be a pain, but does that mean there is no process to just upgrade the new PC's Windows 8 Core to Pro and then to WMC without doing a clean install?

Thanks again.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro WMC

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    64-bit Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self built
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    OCZ Series Gold OCZZ1000M 1000W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gb/s Download and 35 Mb/s Upload
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
That's an interesting situation. My laptop came with 8 core preinstalled. I can't clean install 8 Pro with a regular Windows 8 ISO. My core key is auto detected and 8 core is installed by default. To get to 8 Pro I have to enter my 8 Pro key though add features. Then do it again to add Media Center. The Op having upgrade media instead of full install media seems to put a wrinkle in things. It will be interesting to see if it ignores the OEM embedded key. If it was me I think I would try entering the 8 Pro upgrade key in add features. If its rejected your no worse off and if it takes it you might save some hassle. I guess there's still the chance that it accepts the key and upgrades, but doesn't activate.
 

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
When using a Upgrade key in add features, the key will not work.

key not.PNG

Upgrade Pro Pack 001.PNG

A full product key will work.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    ME, XP,Vista,Win7,Win8,Win8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    Notebooks x 3

    Desktops x 5

    Towers x 4
I had a feeling that's what would happen, but I figured it couldn't hurt to try it. For future reference, now I know for sure it won't work.
 

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
Thanks for your responses.

Just to update the post, I am happy to report that I have updated Core to Pro WMC on the new PC by the following method:

  • Add Features to Windows 8 > I already have a Product Key > Enter Windows 8 Pro Product Key;
  • Activate by phone, and when they ask how many computers Windows 8 Pro is installed on, say one.
  • Windows 8 Pro is now activated.
  • Add Features to Windows 8 > I already have a Product Key > Enter Windows 8 Pro WMC Product Key;
  • Activate by phone, and when they ask how many computers Windows 8 Pro WMC is installed on, say one.
  • Windows 8 Pro WMC is now activated.

I am very happy (and I have to admit, somewhat surprised) to find that this method has worked and was extremely simple.

Thanks again for all of your help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro WMC
:thumb: A lot easier than a reinstall to be sure.
 

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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