Store Windows 10 product key in BIOS?

[Bitter]

I'm building a PC for my friend and I'd like to be able to store the product key in BIOS so in case she has to replace the SSD drive or wipe it or something happens the key is in the board so she won't lose it. I can print it on paper and stick it inside the case but having it stored in BIOS means Windows installer just reads it and install goes and it's all simplified.

MSI B450 Tomahawk with latest BIOS.

How do I do this? I can't seem to find a guide online and there's no help in the motherboard manual either. I've had several OEM systems with the key stored in BIOS so I know this is a thing.

[Slottr]

Windows 10 activation Keys are tied to the motherboard as is

[GrockleTD]

Not literally stored in the BIOS, but when you activate a key it gets tied with the motherboard automatically 

[BrinkGG]

9 hours ago, Bitter said:

I'm building a PC for my friend and I'd like to be able to store the product key in BIOS so in case she has to replace the SSD drive or wipe it or something happens the key is in the board so she won't lose it. I can print it on paper and stick it inside the case but having it stored in BIOS means Windows installer just reads it and install goes and it's all simplified.

MSI B450 Tomahawk with latest BIOS.

How do I do this? I can't seem to find a guide online and there's no help in the motherboard manual either. I've had several OEM systems with the key stored in BIOS so I know this is a thing.

Just write the key down and save it for later. 
OEMs don't save it in BIOS, they save it in EPROMM that is associated with the motherboard. 

EDIT: Ignore that my brain wasn't working yesterday.

 

9 hours ago, GrockleTD said:

Not literally stored in the BIOS, but when you activate a key it gets tied with the motherboard automatically 

iirc it's tied with the hard drive (The actual install of windows), but I can't remember atm. 

[Bitter]

3 minutes ago, Slottr said:

Windows 10 activation Keys are tied to the motherboard as is

 

2 minutes ago, GrockleTD said:

Not literally stored in the BIOS, but when you activate a key it gets tied with the motherboard automatically 

You sure? I extracted a Windows 8.1 product key from the MSDM from a dead motherboard (swapped the BIOS chip to extract it in an identical board). I booted up Ubuntu and ran

ls /sys/firmware/acpi/tables

/sys/firmware/acpi/tables/MSDM

 

Which spat out the valid product key in plain text mixed in with some other information. How do I write this to the BIOS to store the key in the board?

[WereCatf]

17 minutes ago, Bitter said:

I can print it on paper and stick it inside the case but having it stored in BIOS means Windows installer just reads it and install goes and it's all simplified

That's how it already works¹; Windows generated a UUID for the PC, then sends that off to Microsoft's activation-servers and then, if you have to reinstall Windows on that PC, you don't have to re-enter the key as the installer will detect that "hey, this UUID has already had a successful activation earlier on, let's just re-use it again." It's really handy.

 

^{1) I'm not sure if this applies to the non-OEM Windows. I've always just bought those OEM-version keys, since they cost like 10€. For the OEM-keys it really is as easy as I just mentioned, though.}

 

5 minutes ago, Bitter said:

You sure? I extracted a Windows 8.1 product key from the MSDM from a dead motherboard (swapped the BIOS chip to extract it in an identical board). I booted up Ubuntu and ran

ls /sys/firmware/acpi/tables

/sys/firmware/acpi/tables/MSDM

 

Which spat out the valid product key in plain text mixed in with some other information. How do I write this to the BIOS to store the key in the board?

You are actually correct: the key is stored in the BIOS. I dunno how to write a key there, though, as I've never had any reason to bother.

[WereCatf]

28 minutes ago, BrinkGG said:

OEMs don't save it in BIOS, they save it in EPROMM that is associated with the motherboard.

It's the same Flash where the BIOS is, so yes, it is technically saved in the BIOS.

[Enderman]

Windows already remembers the motherboard.

As long as you don't change the motherboard it will activate itself automatically when it connects to the internet.

[Programmer Frank]

My Windows 10 is home edition, and the shop guys told my it saved in my CMOS. I don't know, because when i reinstall my Windows, my windows don't activate, i need to connect to the Internet to activate my windows. And if i don't connect to the internet for a long time, it didn't cause some problem, just likes activated windows. No watermark, i can change my wallpaper, all personalize is available.

 

I think the activate key is saved to my motherboard, on a chip, or something. If not, why my windows knows my it's activated even it didn't know that key is real.

When i bought this PC, i logged into my Microsoft account, then it linked to my ms account.

In the Activation tab, it says: Windows is activated with a digital license linked to your Microsoft account.

So if you login at first, maybe it linked to your Microsoft account.

 

 

[Programmer Frank]

If you had some special tools, you maybe can do that.

Except you know what are you doing and make sure your motherboard should be fine and shouldn't EXPLODE.

You can ask the manufacturer, maybe they can tell you and you can visit some programmer's blog and Google it!

[WereCatf]

27 minutes ago, Orwtmc Incorporation. said:

and the shop guys told my it saved in my CMOS

Nope. The activation-details are stored on Microsoft's servers on devices where the info isn't stored in BIOS-flash.

[Bitter]

6 hours ago, WereCatf said:

That's how it already works¹; Windows generated a UUID for the PC, then sends that off to Microsoft's activation-servers and then, if you have to reinstall Windows on that PC, you don't have to re-enter the key as the installer will detect that "hey, this UUID has already had a successful activation earlier on, let's just re-use it again." It's really handy.

 

^{1) I'm not sure if this applies to the non-OEM Windows. I've always just bought those OEM-version keys, since they cost like 10€. For the OEM-keys it really is as easy as I just mentioned, though.}

 

You are actually correct: the key is stored in the BIOS. I dunno how to write a key there, though, as I've never had any reason to bother.

Thank you, that's a better explanation. So if she were to need to reinstall Windows on the same motherboard then when it asks for the key she would skip that and then assuming she selected the correct version of Windows (and this is why I'd like to store the key) then it would be activated once she connects to the internet. What if she doesn't have internet? She honestly does not always have it available at home. They borrow out a hot-spot from the local library when it's available maybe once a month or every other month for a few days or a week, but otherwise don't have any internet. What if she picks the wrong Windows edition during installation because the installer doesn't know what the board is tied with?

 

I'm just trying to make this PC as fool proof as possible for her so I don't have to walk her through things for hours on the phone, make a house call, or haul it back home to fix it.

[WereCatf]

1 minute ago, Bitter said:

So if she were to need to reinstall Windows on the same motherboard then when it asks for the key she would skip that and then assuming she selected the correct version of Windows (and this is why I'd like to store the key) then it would be activated once she connects to the internet

Yup, she wouldn't have to do anything extra about it.

 

1 minute ago, Bitter said:

What if she doesn't have internet? She honestly does not always have it available at home.

Windows would obviously remain unactivated until it can activate itself. It does not need Internet 24/7 to remain activated, it only needs Internet for about 60 seconds to activate itself and then never again; she could e.g. tether the PC to her phone and use the phone's mobile-data for a few moments to get Windows to activate, or just wait until they get a connection from the local library you mentioned. Windows works perfectly fine even when unactivated, she just can't customize colours and wallpapers and such without additional tools, until it's activated.

 

3 minutes ago, Bitter said:

What if she picks the wrong Windows edition during installation because the installer doesn't know what the board is tied with?

She'd probably have to reinstall. I'm not aware of any method of changing the Windows-edition to/from home/pro on-the-fly. You could e.g. just simply put a sticker on her PC that says "if you need to install Windows, choose Home - edition when asked to choose which edition to use" -- all she'd have to do is to actually remember to look at the sticker.

 

There is also the option of making a bootable USB-stick with an image of an already-installed Windows, so that when she boots off of the stick, it formats the C:-drive and unpacks the image there, giving her a freshly-installed, working Windows. I think e.g. EaseUS sells software for such use (never used any of their stuff myself, so I can't really say much more)

[Bitter]

2 minutes ago, WereCatf said:

Yup, she wouldn't have to do anything extra about it.

 

Windows would obviously remain unactivated until it can activate itself. It does not need Internet 24/7 to remain activated, it only needs Internet for about 60 seconds to activate itself and then never again; she could e.g. tether the PC to her phone and use the phone's mobile-data for a few moments to get Windows to activate, or just wait until they get a connection from the local library you mentioned. Windows works perfectly fine even when unactivated, she just can't customize colours and wallpapers and such without additional tools, until it's activated.

 

She'd probably have to reinstall. I'm not aware of any method of changing the Windows-edition to/from home/pro on-the-fly. You could e.g. just simply put a sticker on her PC that says "if you need to install Windows, choose Home - edition when asked to choose which edition to use" -- all she'd have to do is to actually remember to look at the sticker.

 

There is also the option of making a bootable USB-stick with an image of an already-installed Windows, so that when she boots off of the stick, it formats the C:-drive and unpacks the image there, giving her a freshly-installed, working Windows. I think e.g. EaseUS sells software for such use (never used any of their stuff myself, so I can't really say much more)

Would a Windows Recovery USB be used in conjunction with Windows Installer USB to get her up and running with the right edition without much user intervention? I'm trying to make this as much like an OEM system where she can just pop in the Windows Installer USB and keep clicking next.

[WereCatf]

2 minutes ago, Bitter said:

Would a Windows Recovery USB be used in conjunction with Windows Installer USB to get her up and running with the right edition without much user intervention? I'm trying to make this as much like an OEM system where she can just pop in the Windows Installer USB and keep clicking next.

Never used a Windows Recover USB, so I dunno. The most OEM-like solution would be the USB-stick with a preinstalled image, like I mentioned. I do recommend you look at what EaseUS offers, even if the software does cost some money. One good thing about just reinstalling an image like that would be that, if you had activated Windows before you made the image, it'd remain activated even if she had to restore that image.

[Bitter]

I'll look into that, might be able to do something with CloneZilla. Thank you!

[Programmer Frank]

21 hours ago, WereCatf said:

Nope. The activation-details are stored on Microsoft's servers on devices where the info isn't stored in BIOS-flash.

Yep, so i think that wasn't real.

[Kc7vwc]

On 2/3/2020 at 11:11 PM, Bitter said:

.

I 'rebuild' my PC often, so I'm very familiar with Windows install. The key Is not stored on/in the motherboard. It is, however linked to the motherboard's unique ID. 

A reinstall, on the exact same hardware, will not activate until an internet connection is made. That's when the activation system reads the board's identity & confirms with Microsoft that there is a key linked to that specific board. I can sit on a fresh install for weeks, and as long as I don't install the network drivers or connect it to the net, it won't activate. 

I have changed every competent in my system, even swapping CPUs, and nothing brings up a reactivation. If I pull the operating system HDD/SSD and put that in a different system, then it will ask for reactivation - as from it's 'perspective' the motherboard has been changed. 

[ZzLy]

On 2/4/2020 at 7:16 AM, BrinkGG said:

Just write the key down and save it for later. 
OEMs don't save it in BIOS, they save it in EPROMM that is associated with the motherboard. 

EDIT: Ignore that my brain wasn't working yesterday.

 

iirc it's tied with the hard drive (The actual install of windows), but I can't remember atm. 

It is not tied to the hard drive. 

[Bitter]

4 hours ago, Kc7vwc said:

I 'rebuild' my PC often, so I'm very familiar with Windows install. The key Is not stored on/in the motherboard. It is, however linked to the motherboard's unique ID. 

A reinstall, on the exact same hardware, will not activate until an internet connection is made. That's when the activation system reads the board's identity & confirms with Microsoft that there is a key linked to that specific board. I can sit on a fresh install for weeks, and as long as I don't install the network drivers or connect it to the net, it won't activate. 

I have changed every competent in my system, even swapping CPUs, and nothing brings up a reactivation. If I pull the operating system HDD/SSD and put that in a different system, then it will ask for reactivation - as from it's 'perspective' the motherboard has been changed. 

We've been over this point, it can be stored in the BIOS in the MSDM which is part of the ACPI tables and can be read with a couple simple command lines. However it seems to be that either no one knows how to write a product key to MSDM or this is an OEM only function. I thought it would be something I could simply do with a BIOS editor tool or a tool that could read the product key and pass it down into the BIOS from within Windows or some other OS, seems that's not the case. My intent was to make a re-install of Windows run like a OEM re-install where you simply keep clicking next and then you're done, no need to choose the correct edition and no need to enter a product key. I'll have to figure something else out, maybe make a disk image with the Windows tool and store it on a USB drive taped to the inside of the PC or something.