Windows

Transfer a licence to a new PC

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  • Licence key sent by email
  • Perpetual licence, no subscription
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  • Help with activation

When you move to a new computer, the question arises of whether your existing Windows or Office licence can come with you. That depends on the licence type. This guide describes the technical steps and explains how to recognise your licence type.

Determining the licence type

For Windows, open the Command Prompt as an administrator and run slmgr /dlv. The dialog box shows the description text of the licence:

Retail Single-device licence. Not permanently tied to particular hardware.
OEM Comes from a complete device and is firmly tied to its hardware.
Volume / MAK / KMS Volume licence. MAK activates once online, KMS against a server on the network.

For Office you can see the type under File → Account: if the product appears in your Microsoft account under Services & subscriptions, it is a retail licence. Volume licences do not appear there.

Moving a Windows licence

  1. Make a note of the licence key. If you can no longer find it, slmgr /dli will at least show you the last five characters.
  2. Remove the key on the old computer with slmgr /upk in the Command Prompt with administrator rights. The computer is no longer activated afterwards.
  3. Also delete the key from the registry with slmgr /cpky, so that it cannot be read out.
  4. Install or start Windows on the new computer.
  5. There, go to Settings → System → Activation and choose Change product key.
  6. Enter the key and confirm with Activate.
  7. If online activation fails, Windows offers activation by telephone. You start this with slui 4.

With an OEM licence this route usually ends in an error message, because the key was issued for the original hardware.

Moving an Office licence

  1. Uninstall Office on the old computer under Settings → Apps → Installed apps.
  2. On the new computer, sign in at account.microsoft.com with the account the key was redeemed with.
  3. Open Services & subscriptions and click Install next to your Office version.
  4. After the installation, start Word and sign in under File → Account with the same account.
  5. With a volume licence, install through the Office Deployment Tool instead and enter the key with cscript ospp.vbs /inpkey:YOUR-KEY, followed by cscript ospp.vbs /act. On the old computer, remove it beforehand with cscript ospp.vbs /unpkey: and the last five characters of the key.

Back up first

  • Outlook data files in PST or OST format, and any accounts you have set up.
  • Your own templates, AutoCorrect entries and dictionaries.
  • Documents stored locally that are not in cloud storage.

If something goes wrong

  • Activation reports that the key is already in use: The old installation is still active. Run slmgr /upk there, or uninstall Office.
  • The old computer is broken: The key can then no longer be removed in the normal way. On the new device, use activation by telephone via slui 4.
  • Error code 0xC004C008: The key has already been used too often for online activation. Here too, activation by telephone is the intended route.
  • Office asks for a subscription: You are signed in with the wrong Microsoft account. Sign out and sign back in with the right one.
  • The edition does not match: A Pro key will not activate a Home installation. Check the edition under Settings → System → About.

If the move stalls at any point, write to us via the contact page – with your order number, licence type and error code.

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