3 ms·

Unless things have changed, usually the sticker key is only valid for a certain kind of media. E.g. VLK's only work with VLK images, retail keys only work with

Unless things have changed, usually the sticker key is only valid for a certain kind of media. E.g. VLK's only work with VLK images, retail keys only work with retail images...

ptaipale 12y ago
Just recently installed Windows 7 Pro on a HP ProBook thing: - looked up the Windows and Office license keys of the existing installation, using an utility - download Windows 7 disk image from Microsoft and burn on a DVD - take out the old disk with recovery partitions and installation with crappy bloatware - put in a new SSD disk, boot DVD to install OS and install Office - download and install HP specific drivers for peripherals (display adapter, fingerprint reader, wlan/3g, whatever) - enjoy a relatively bloat-free Windows experience with improved battery life
- CptMauli 12y ago
  I did the same, worked flawlessly. The only PITA was to put the ISO image on an USB stick.
  - techtics 12y ago
    It shouldn't be. You either use the "Media Creation Tool" which also can download the ISO or you the "Windows USB/DVD Download Tool". http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-reset-refresh-media http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/create-reset-re... http://wudt.codeplex.com/ http://wudt.codeplex.com/
mahouse 12y ago
I usually use a KMS key to install and then use the Windows+Pause dialog to change my product key to the key that is stored in my BIOS.
malexw 12y ago
That's true, but in the past I've found that if I call Microsoft support and explain that I'm re-installing, they'll give me a new key over the phone.