Can I deactivate old OEM key and change product key?

I have Windows 11 Pro retail with product key.
If I buy a pc with Windows OEM can I deactivate the old and change he product key on the new?

Hello,

Yes, you could just change the product key if wanted. No need to deactivate the old first.


I wouldn't waste a new retail key on it though unless your upgrading from Home to Pro.

Great. So, I can buy local like BestBuy and just enter my key to go from OEM TO RETAIL Win Pro just like I had when I bought it.
Thank you

If the OEM PC already came with Windows 11 Pro preinstalled and activated with an OEM key, then there's no need to buy a retail Pro key to activate with instead.

I am a bit confused. I have a key for Win 11 Pro retail and thought retail had some benefit. I am unsure what they would be.
I was not planning on spending money when I entered my key.

An OEM key can only be used to activate the specific computer it was first activated on, and cannot be transferred to another computer.

A retail key can be transferred to another computer to activate instead.

Other than the above, there's no other benefit between an OEM and retail key.

A retail key would be a waste if the OEM PC already has an activated Pro edition on it.

It would only make sense to use/buy a Pro retail key if the OEM PC has the Home edition, and you wanted to upgrade to Pro with the retail key.

Maranna said:

I am a bit confused. I have a key for Win 11 Pro retail and thought retail had some benefit. I am unsure what they would be.
I was not planning on spending money when I entered my key.

Click to expand...

There's no difference between OEM and retail, pointless getting a machine with Windows 11 pro and then buying a retail pro key

If I were to move the Win again, I would need retail, or not?

Is there an explicit de-activation now?

In the past, a key could be deleted from a PC, but with no effect on Microsoft's activation servers.

I have had to do it so rarely that my memory is weak on the subject, but I believe that activation can be transferred between machines. And that the distinction between OEM and retail licenses has mostly been lost.

It may be necessary to use one of the generic Windows keys to do the initial Windows install on a new machine. Windows won't be activated by that, but the activation could be transferred to it online.

Corrections from more knowledgeable people will be welcome.

If I were to move the Win again, I would need retail, or not?

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Theoretically not but the practical difficulties that arise from firmware embedded key makes it tricky.

If you already bought the retail pro key you could use that after tranferring the os to a different machine. No need to use it now unless that machine has Home edition and you want Pro

I understand and thank you for your patience.

If you purchase a computer with OEM Windows 10 or 11 installed on it, you can change it to retail simply by changing the product key to the generic retail product key for the same edition (Home or Pro). No need to use any unique product key for that.

So instead of using my own product key which I have, I would use a generic retail product key Pro.
You see at my level; I don't know how to do that. So could I use my product key to keep it easy?

Maranna said:

So instead of using my own product key which I have, I would use a generic retail product key Pro.
You see at my level; I don't know how to do that. So could I use my product key to keep it easy?

Click to expand...

To help avoid confusion and further repeating of information, are you buying an OEM PC with Windows 11 Home or Windows 11 Pro installed on it?

I am sorry to be so vague. It is b/c I am undecided. I was trying to weigh my options, but I think I will keep the older pc as is and treat the new as new and pay the freight. I'll have a more specific question next time.
Thanks for your patience.

No worries. We're happy to help when ready.