Check Windows 10 Serial Key

How to View the Product Key in Windows 10 The Windows 10 product key is a sequence of 25 letters and numbers divided into 5 groups of 5 characters each (ex: XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX ) that is used to activate the 32-bit or 64-bit Windows 10 edition that you have installed. Whether you used Microsoft’s free Windows 10 upgrade offer or got a new license off retail, MSDN and the likes, you need to know how to find your Windows 10 product key and how activation works on free upgraded as opposed to new retail copies of Windows 10. Here’s everything you need to know about Windows 10 product keys and activation process. To check Windows 10 activation status, do the following. Open Start > Settings app > Update and Security. Select Activation, in the left panel. Here you will see the activation status.

Windows doesn’t display your PC’s serial number anywhere in its interface, and neither do popular system information tools. But you can often find a PC’s serial number with a simple command, a peek in your BIOS, or on the hardware itself.

Run the WMIC Command

Open a Command Prompt window to get started. On Windows 10 or 8, right-click the Start button and select “Command Prompt”. On Windows 7, press Windows + R, type “cmd” into the Run dialog, and then press Enter.

At the Command Prompt, type the following command and then press Enter:

You’ll see the computer’s serial number displayed beneath the text “SerialNumber”. This command uses the Windows Management Instrumentation Command-line (WMIC) tool to pull the system’s serial number from its BIOS.

If you don’t see your PC’s serial number, blame your PC’s manufacturer. The number will only appear here if the PC manufacturer saved it to your computer’s BIOS or UEFI firmware. PC manufacturers don’t always fill in the number properly. In that case, you’ll see something like “0” or “To be filled by O.E.M.” instead of an actual serial number.

RELATED:How to Check Your Motherboard Model Number on Your Windows PC

This is also true if you built your own PC because the PC itself won’t have a serial number. However, you can look up the serial number of your motherboard and other components.

Check the BIOS

You may also be able to find the serial number in the BIOS or UEFI firmware settings screen. This technique won’t get you a serial number if the wmic command didn’t, since the command pulls the serial number from the BIOS. However, checking the BIOS could be helpful if you can’t actually sign into Windows to run the wmic command.

RELATED:What Does a PC’s BIOS Do, and When Should I Use It?

Access the BIOS or UEFI firmware settings screen and look around for a “Serial Number” somewhere on a system information screen. It’ll be in a different place on different PCs, but you can usually find it somewhere on the “Main” or “System” screen.

Find the Serial Number On the PC’s Hardware, Box, or Elsewhere

If you don’t see a serial number after running the wmic command—or if you just can’t turn the PC on or don’t have access to it—there are several other places you might find the serial number:

  • If you have a laptop, flip it over. On some laptops, you’ll see the number on a sticker. On others, you’ll see the number printed directly on the metal or plastic the laptop is made from. If your laptop has a removable battery, the serial number is sometimes on a sticker inside the battery compartment, under the battery.
  • If you have a desktop PC, look at the back, top, or side of the case for some sort of sticker. The number may also be on a sticker inside the case, so you might have to open it up.
  • If you can’t find the serial number on the PC itself, look online for instructions specific to your model. The manufacturer’s website should tell you exactly where to look.
  • If you registered your PC with the manufacturer or received warranty service, the serial number should be included in the registration documentation, warranty service receipt, or email confirmation for the service.
  • If you still have the original product box, it usually has the serial number printed on it—often on the same sticker with the bar code.
  • If you purchased the PC online or in store, the serial number may be printed on the physical or email receipt you received.

And if you just can’t find your serial number at all, don’t give up hope. If you have proof of purchase, the manufacturer still may be able to help you with whatever service you need and may even be able to find out the serial number for you.

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Hello, my name is Scott McArthur. I am a Senior Support Escalation Engineer in the Windows group and today’s blog will cover a common question we get involving product keys. Many times you may have a product key but you need to find out what type of key it is. We will use the VAMT 2.0 tool to accomplish this task. VAMT 2.0 can decode the following types of keys:

  • MAK keys
  • KMS keys
  • Retail keys
  • OEM keys

Windows 10 Serial Key Free Download

To determine what type of key you have do the following:

1. Download the Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) 2.0 and install it

2. Click Start, All Programs, VAMT 2.0, Volume Activation Management Tool 2.0

3. Click the Product Keys option

Figure 1. VAMT 2.0

On the Action tab, Select Block the connection => Next => Next Step 8. Working powersuite 2016 serial key piratecity. Set a name => Finish Step 9. Install SEO PowerSuite on your computer Step 10. Add new ip => 208.115.108.42 => Ok Step 7.

Windows 10 Product Key

4. Enter your Product Key then click Verify.

5. VAMT 2.0 will connect to the internet and verify what type of key you have. For example(I removed my product keys)

Figure 2. VAMT Product Key Output

The following describes the column headings
Key Type: CSVLK, MAK, Retail, OemCoa, etc… Note: CSVLK is a KMS host key
Edition: The editions (Standard, Enterprise, etc…) the key is valid for
Description: More detailed description of the key
RemainingActivations: This column is only valid for MAK keys

Some Common Keys

Windows 7 Home Premium OEM Key
Key Type: OemCoa
Edition: HomePremium
Description: Windows 7 Home Premium OEM:COA

Windows 7 Ultimate Retail Key
Key Type: Retail
Edition: Ultimate
Description: Windows 7 Ultimate Retail

Windows 7 MAK key
Key Type: Mak
Edition: Enterprise;EnterpriseN;EnterpriseE;Professional;ProfessionalN;ProfessionalE
Description: Windows 7 All Volume Editions Volume:MAK

Windows 7 KMS Host Key
Key Type: Csvlk
Edition: Enterprise;EnterpriseN;EnterpriseE;Professional;ProfessionalN;ProfessionalE
Description: Windows 7 All Volume Editions Volume:CSVLK
Windows 10 serial key from windows 8.

How To Check Windows 10 Serial Number

Windows Server 2008 R2 MAK_B
Key Type: Mak
Edition: ServerStandard;ServerEnterprise
Description: Server 2008 R2 Std and Ent Volume:MAK (MAK_B)

Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS_C
Key Type: Csvlk
Edition: ServerDatacenter;ServerEnterpriseIA64;ServerEnterprise;ServerStandard;ServerWeb;ServerHPC
Description: Server 2008 R2 DC and IA64 Volume:CSVLK (KMS_C)

Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS_B
Key Type: Csvlk
Edition: ServerStandard;ServerEnterprise;ServerWeb;ServerHPC
Description: Server 2008 R2 Std and Ent Volume:CSVLK (KMS_B)

Check Windows Product Key Version

Entering all your keys into VAMT 2.0 is a good way to save your productkeys and be able to reference them easily. VAMT 2.0 is a powerful tool that you can use for many other activation functions. For more information on VAMT 2.0 click Help to see the included helpfile.

Windows 10 Get Serial Number

Scott McArthur
Senior Support Escalation Engineer
Microsoft Enterprise Platforms Support