Upgrade 11 Home to Pro for free?


poe

Member
Local time
7:06 PM
Posts
9
Location
Ohio, USA
OS
Windows 11 Home
I successfully upgraded my 10 Home machine to 10 Pro a few years ago for free using a Win 7 Pro key.

I don't suppose there is a known way to upgrade 11 Home to Pro for free?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8940
    CPU
    i7 11700
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
    Hard Drives
    256 GB SSD
    1 TB HDD
Is that the same machine? then it should work the same, if not it will warn you and not upgrade or BUY a key
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware M18 R1
    CPU
    13th Gen Core i9 13900HX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Geforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    Sound Card
    Nvidia HD / Realtek ALC3254
    Monitor(s) Displays
    18" QHD+
    Screen Resolution
    25660 X 1600
    Hard Drives
    C: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    D: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    Case
    Dark Metallic Moon
    Keyboard
    Alienware M Series per-key AlienFX RGB
    Mouse
    Alienware AW610M
    Browser
    Chrome and Firefox
    Antivirus
    Norton
    Other Info
    Killer E3000 Ethernet Controller
    Killer Killer AX1690 Wi-Fi Network Adaptor Wi-Fi 6E
    Bluetooth 5.2
    Alienware Z01G Graphic Amplifier
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51m R2
    CPU
    10th Gen i-9 10900 K
    Memory
    32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Sound Card
    Nvidia
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Hard Drive C: Samsung 2TB SSD PM981a NVMe
    Hard Drive D:Samsung 2TB SSD 970 EVO Plus
    Mouse
    Alienware 610M
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
  • Like
Reactions: poe
Is that the same machine?
Sorry, I omitted that info - it's a new Windows 11 Home machine. So, yes, I will buy a key. Thanks.

(I would have bought a new machine with 11 Pro except it would have cost me $300 more than the Home machine due to a Black Friday deal).
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8940
    CPU
    i7 11700
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
    Hard Drives
    256 GB SSD
    1 TB HDD
If you can find a spare win7/8/8.1 key you could try that. @NavyLCDR got one for ten bucks or something like that. perhaps you could ask him how it works.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5-8400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x8gb 3200mhz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    benq gw2480
    PSU
    bequiet pure power 11 400CM
    Cooling
    cryorig m9i
  • Operating System
    win7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    pentium g5400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    1x8gb 2400
    PSU
    xfx pro 450
  • Like
Reactions: poe
a friend of mine tried a 8.1 pro key for windows 11 and it did not work, so i wound up buying a pro upgrade myself. suppose it could be hit and miss with ms activation servers.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 15IMH05
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-10300H CPU @ 2.50GHz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    intel UHD Graphics/nvidia geforce GTX 1650
    Sound Card
    built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    built in
    Screen Resolution
    native 1080p
    Hard Drives
    256gb nvme / 1tb hard drive all built in. and 2 external 1tb seagate drives
    PSU
    brick
    Case
    laptop
    Cooling
    fans
    Keyboard
    built in
    Mouse
    logitech gaming mouse
    Browser
    edge
    Antivirus
    microsoft / malwarbytes
  • Like
Reactions: poe
a friend of mine tried a 8.1 pro key for windows 11 and it did not work, so i wound up buying a pro upgrade myself. suppose it could be hit and miss with ms activation servers.
More likely key did not match e.g. a MAK key, or key has been blocked. A full retail 8.1 key should work fine, and even in most cases an OEM key would work.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro + others in VHDs
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Vivobook 14
    CPU
    I7
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    N/A
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Optane NVME SSD, 1 TB NVME SSD
    PSU
    Yep, got one
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois
    Keyboard
    Built in
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wired
    Internet Speed
    72 Mb/s :-(
    Browser
    Edge mostly
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0
  • Like
Reactions: poe

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro Version 22H2(OS Build 22621.963)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    AMD
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8 Core
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte X570 Aorus Pro WiFi
    Memory
    32 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    PCI Express 3.0 x16: PowerColor RX Vega 56 Red Dragon
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220 and AMD Greenland - High Definition Audio Controller
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 - 27 inch Westinghouse
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    2 SSD - 2 TB each
    1 HDD - 2 TB
    Keyboard
    logitech
    Mouse
    logitech
    Internet Speed
    1 GB
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge
    Antivirus
    Avast Premium
a friend of mine tried a 8.1 pro key for windows 11 and it did not work....
A clean install of Pro using a W7 or W8/8.1 key usually won't work. But once Home is installed it can be upgraded to Pro by changing the installed key to a W7/8/8.1 Pro key.

I successfully upgraded my 10 Home machine to 10 Pro a few years ago for free using a Win 7 Pro key.
No, it was not 'free'. You 'paid' for it by using up a Win 7 Pro key.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire 3 A315-23
    CPU
    AMD Athlon Silver 3050U
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop screen
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768 native resolution, up to 2560x1440 with Radeon Virtual Super Resolution
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung EVO 870 SSD
    Internet Speed
    50 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    fully 'Windows 11 ready' laptop. Windows 10 C: partition migrated from my old unsupported 'main machine' then upgraded to 11. A test migration ran Insider builds for 2 months. When 11 was released on 5th October it was re-imaged back to 10 and was offered the upgrade in Windows Update on 20th October. Windows Update offered the 22H2 Feature Update on 20th September 2022. It got the 23H2 Feature Update on 4th November 2023 through Windows Update.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro (and all my Hyper-V VMs).

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 4GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Beta as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 4GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds as a native boot .vhdx.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Lattitude E4310
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i5-520M
    Motherboard
    0T6M8G
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics card(s)
    (integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    500GB Crucial MX500 SSD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    unsupported machine: Legacy bios, MBR, TPM 1.2, upgraded from W10 to W11 using W10/W11 hybrid install media workaround. In-place upgrade to 22H2 using ISO and a workaround. Feature Update to 23H2 by manually installing the Enablement Package.

    My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro (and all my Hyper-V VMs).

    My SYSTEM FOUR is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e 20DA, Celeron N2930, 4GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device: currently running Win10 Pro, plus Win11 Pro RTM and Insider Beta as native boot vhdx.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 4GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus the Insider Beta, Dev, and Canary builds as a native boot .vhdx.
A clean install of Pro using a W7 or W8/8.1 key usually won't work. But once Home is installed it can be upgraded to Pro by changing the installed key to a W7/8/8.1 Pro key.
If you do the clean install with the generic product key or disconnect from the internet and upgrade using the generic product key, then you can activate the clean install or upgrade with the Windows 7/8/8.1 product key. However, entering the product key during the Windows setup phase, or to attempt to trigger the upgrade sometimes will not work.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!

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