Solved Confused About Activating With Hyper V

Steven_1958 · Jun 29, 2021

I have read this thread, however when I installed Windows 11 using Hyper V, I was unable to activate Windows 11, I got an error code - although I signed in with my Windows 10 Pro account.

I presume the reason is that the VM is treated as 'new hardware' - but I am unsure??

JAM83 · Jun 29, 2021

Steven_1958 said:
I have read this thread, however when I installed Windows 11 using Hyper V, I was unable to activate Windows 11, I got an error code - although I signed in with my Windows 10 Pro account.

I presume the reason is that the VM is treated as 'new hardware' - but I am unsure??

I could be wrong, but I don't think you can activate Windows 11 in a VM. I could be wrong though.

Steven_1958 · Jun 29, 2021

Oh..okay. Well at least I got a peek at the new Windows 11 :)

NavyLCDR · Jun 29, 2021

Yes, you can activate Windows 11 in a VM. You just need a valid product key to do it. And, yes, a VM is considered to be a completely seperate computer from the host.

Steven_1958 · Jun 29, 2021

That would explain it, because my sign in for Windows 10 Pro is not accepted in the VM - so the VM is like a new motherboard, I guess. Thanks

hsehestedt · Jun 29, 2021

Steven_1958 said:
That would explain it, because my sign in for Windows 10 Pro is not accepted in the VM - so the VM is like a new motherboard, I guess. Thanks

Please see this tutorial from Kari. It's one the very first tutorials here on ElevenForum:

Hyper-V - Preserve virtual machine digital license (activation) Tutorial

In case you want to activate your Windows virtual machines, it is important that you will preserve the activation and resulted digital license. When done correctly, you can delete the virtual machine when it is no longer needed, then restore it whenever required. You can even import it to...

www.elevenforum.com

Steven_1958 · Jun 29, 2021

hsehestedt said:
Please see this tutorial from Kari. It's one the very first tutorials here on ElevenForum:

Hyper-V - Preserve virtual machine digital license (activation) Tutorial

In case you want to activate your Windows virtual machines, it is important that you will preserve the activation and resulted digital license. When done correctly, you can delete the virtual machine when it is no longer needed, then restore it whenever required. You can even import it to...

www.elevenforum.com

I did read it!!!

I did read it - not helped me at all. Windows refused to accept my Windows 10 login as an activation, in the VM. Another words, to be clear. I could sign on with my email and password, select a pin and an email was sent to verify my address, but when I got into windows 11, under activation, it said an error code. So failed to activate. The tutorial did NOT cover my question. If you think it did, perhaps you can help me??

hsehestedt · Jun 29, 2021

The point that I was trying to make in pointing to that tutorial was how you could preserve your VM so that you could use it again in the future without loosing your activation status.

Others had already explained earlier that you will need an activation key if you want to activate it on a VM the first time around, I was merely pointing out the tutorial to show how you could preserve the VM once activated.

johnlgalt · Jun 29, 2021

Psst - at least with the leak:

One of the digital licenses I have associated with my Microsoft account is from a Windows 7 --> Windows 10 upgrade, by using one of my TechNet Windows 7 keys to install Windows 10 the very first time.

I used the same windows 7 key in the WIn11 leak in a Hyper-V VM to activate it - and it activated.

JAM83 · Jun 29, 2021

Windows 11 just activated automatically for me as well. I done a fresh install from a USB Flash Drive. I had Windows 10 Pro.

Steven_1958 · Jun 30, 2021

johnlgalt said:
Psst - at least with the leak:

One of the digital licenses I have associated with my Microsoft account is from a Windows 7 --> Windows 10 upgrade, by using one of my TechNet Windows 7 keys to install Windows 10 the very first time.

I used the same windows 7 key in the WIn11 leak in a Hyper-V VM to activate it - and it activated.

Ahh - now that is interesting. Many thanks - I'll give that a go.

Steven_1958 · Jun 30, 2021

@johnlgalt Many thanks - that did it! Used my Windows 7 key. Accepted and working fine apart from low volume.

Kari · Jun 30, 2021

Steven_1958 said:
I have read this thread, however when I installed Windows 11 using Hyper V, I was unable to activate Windows 11, I got an error code - although I signed in with my Windows 10 Pro account.

I presume the reason is that the VM is treated as 'new hardware' - but I am unsure??

I hope this will explain it to you:

Windows license facts:

Windows 10 and Windows 11 use a so called Digital Licensing, based on machine's Hardware ID (HWID). See this post on our sister site Ten Forums for more information.

The virtual machine and your virtualization host (your PC) are two different machines, having both their unique HWID.

Whatever virtualization software is used, Hyper-V in your case, a Windows virtual machine is absolutely NEVER licensed / activated based on the virtualization host's activation status. You need a unique, separate license / product key to activate a VM.

Kari

johnlgalt · Jun 30, 2021

Right. But it did activate using the same key again. Which I found odd, until I learned more about hte Dev leak.

Bree · Jul 7, 2021

Whether it's a VM or a physical machine, each has a unique HWID and each need its own digital licence in order to activate. When I clean installed W11 in a VM I did it on one that already had a digital licence for W10, and it activated from that.

Unless you have an unlimited supply of Windows keys to burn, never ever just delete an activated VM when done with it. Export it or otherwise preserve its HWID for reuse later.

Kari · Jul 7, 2021

It all comes to this:

Why I can't change my hard disk drive letter from I: to D: ? - Windows 10 Help Forums

I did: Search Windows > Create and format hard disk partitions > Selected clicked on drive I: > Right mouse click > Change drive letter and Paths... > Change > Assign the following drive letter: In the list of letters I have B G H I J K

www.tenforums.com

That post is on our sister site Ten Forums, but applies to Windows 11, too.

Kari

cereberus · Jul 14, 2021

johnlgalt said:
Psst - at least with the leak:

One of the digital licenses I have associated with my Microsoft account is from a Windows 7 --> Windows 10 upgrade, by using one of my TechNet Windows 7 keys to install Windows 10 the very first time.

I used the same windows 7 key in the WIn11 leak in a Hyper-V VM to activate it - and it activated.

Whilst this worked, it is essentially piracy as you are using the same key twice UNLESS you have uninstalled Windows 10 on first device activated by the key.

You should consider deleting this post as it is giving advice that may be in breach of forum rules.

jimbo45 · Jul 14, 2021

cereberus said:
Whilst this worked, it is essentially piracy as you are using the same key twice UNLESS you have uninstalled Windows 10 on first device activated by the key.

You should consider deleting this post as it is giving advice that may be in breach of forum rules.

Hi there
@johnlgalt

I disagree with the premise that this is not legal.

Those old technet keys legally had multple activations -- so nothing wrong there as far as I can see. What surprises me is that those old Technet keys still work after all this time. !!! those technet keys as far as I remember (it's a long time ago) could be activated over 50 times each so 5 keys > 500 activations.

The technet program ended because a lot of those keys found their way into the Wild - the initial technet offering was far too good value for anybody who can remember it. Even Windows server versions were freely downloadable with up to 4 CAL's (Client access licenses) on W2003 server !!.

The technet subscription back in those days was actually cheaper than or certainly comparable to paying for a full retail copy of say W7 Ultimate in the first place so no wonder a lot of people signed up when they really should have been excluded. Remember Office , including VISIO and PROJECT was also included (Office 2010 still works BTW and unless you really do need the latest stuff it's still 100% fit for purpose).

I'm still creating the odd W10 / W11 VM via a W7 / W8/W8.1 technet key -- and there's nothing in the EULA that says this is not legal as my W7 keys were obtained by a proper technet subscription.

Retail and OEM keys etc are another issue of course.

Cheers
jimbo

johnlgalt · Jul 14, 2021

cereberus said:
Whilst this worked, it is essentially piracy as you are using the same key twice UNLESS you have uninstalled Windows 10 on first device activated by the key.

You should consider deleting this post as it is giving advice that may be in breach of forum rules.

Nah. I didn't just join yesterday. I'm pretty POSITIVE that if I had violated the forum rules, as you say, someone would have said it to me already.

ESPECIALLY as I mentioned it directly to a post created by Brink himself.

Thanks for looking out for me though.

jimbo45 said:
Hi there
@johnlgalt

I disagree with the premise that this is not legal.

Those old technet keys legally had multple activations -- so nothing wrong there as far as I can see. What surprises me is that those old Technet keys still work after all this time. !!! those technet keys as far as I remember (it's a long time ago) could be activated over 50 times each so 5 keys > 500 activations.

The technet program ended because a lot of those keys found their way into the Wild - the initial technet offering was far too good value for anybody who can remember it. Even Windows server versions were freely downloadable with up to 4 CAL's (Client access licenses) on W2003 server !!.

The technet subscription back in those days was actually cheaper than or certainly comparable to paying for a full retail copy of say W7 Ultimate in the first place so no wonder a lot of people signed up when they really should have been excluded. Remember Office , including VISIO and PROJECT was also included (Office 2010 still works BTW and unless you really do need the latest stuff it's still 100% fit for purpose).

I'm still creating the odd W10 / W11 VM via a W7 / W8/W8.1 technet key -- and there's nothing in the EULA that says this is not legal as my W7 keys were obtained by a proper technet subscription.

Retail and OEM keys etc are another issue of course.

Cheers
jimbo

Yeah, I know. I've not ever had to contact Microsoft to reset any of my TechNet keys yet. They just work.

cereberus · Jul 14, 2021

johnlgalt said:
Nah. I didn't just join yesterday. I'm pretty POSITIVE that if I had violated the forum rules, as you say, someone would have said it to me already.

ESPECIALLY as I mentioned it directly to a post created by Brink himself.

Thanks for looking out for me though.

Yeah, I know. I've not ever had to contact Microsoft to reset any of my TechNet keys yet. They just work.

Sure - I forgot about technet keys. However, for normal domestic keys, my point still stands though.