Licenses for Windows 10 are stored online, based on a signature built into your PC. Assuming the original was legit, you should be able to reactivate simply by activating online.
That said, a legit license should have also come with a code somewhere on the computer.
Apologies if this is a hijack, but the above brings up a question that I’ve never seen answered definitively. I recall reading shortly after the initial round of Win7 → Win10 upgrades that the license was only valid for the specific signature, and any modification would require purchasing a new license. There were other opinions (not from Microsoft) that this could not be true. And perhaps there is a basic flaw in my search magic, but I’ve never seen anything one way or the other on the MS site. Any information out in the Doperverse?
Probably best to record security cam footage onto a different storage device than the drive your OS is on. Could be a hard drive or a robust SD card.
I doubt MS publish the exact criteria for license continuation, but a new HD certainly is no obstacle.
If it’s a planned major change, basically a new mobo, make sure that your license activation is associated with an MS account on the old hardware before you proceed.
For an unplanned major change, like a fried mobo replacement, then contact MS via chat or voice. In my limited experience of doing that, they tend to err on the side of generosity. No guarantee on that though, obviously.
On the website Kinguin, the grey market seller “NextKeys.io” has 473,680 completed orders with 4.5 stars of rating. The sale price is $30.86.
Where is this seller getting the keys? At 30 bucks, it is entirely possible that these are legitimate OEM keys purchased in a foreign country where the prices are lower.
Will the key keep working? Given that this has been going on for at least 5 years, and the seller has a pretty high rating, probably.
Is this 100% legit and not in violation of some licensing agreement?
Microsoft corporation has written a several thousand page document that you “agree” to when you install their software. That document is written by Microsoft’s attorneys and is entirely one-sided in Microsoft’s favor. You either “agree” or you can use a different OS than Windows.
So yeah, no doubt this is in violation of the agreement in some way. Does this matter? Only if you are a corporation with deep pockets.