Can I use the same Windows 7 key on two windows 10 computers

[Windows9]

1 minute ago, IcarusLSC said:

Just because it works doesn't mean its legal!!!

If you want legal Windows 10. you can just download it for free from the Microsoft website anyway. Dosent really make a difference

[birdflyer]

10 hours ago, IcarusLSC said:

Just because it works doesn't mean its legal!!!

I can download a program change a few things and claim its mine, or even just download it and say mine? I can do 250kph in my car but is that legal? I can do many things in life but that doesn't mean they are legal.

 

The very last line of what I posted reads "4.b: You may not transfer the software to share licenses between devices." Is that not enough, and that's for stand alone software that is much more lenient in its licensing then oem..

2.a even says one instance of it at a time.

2.c.iv is what you are doing as well (working around technical restrictions or limitations in the software.)

4.a. says even upgraded from software preinstalled (oem) only with licensed device, which means using it on another system is illegal.

 

Read into the grey as much as you want, its technically not legal.

Yes I agree that using the same key on Multiple Devices may not be legal, however using one windows 7 key to upgrade one machine, is by no means illegal until Microsoft clearly states so. Also the part about using one key on multiple devices; as @Ryan_Vickers said, 

Quote

"in the event you use an old Win 7 key to generate multiple licenses for Win 10 and use all of those simultaneously, you're not using one key on multiple computers, you're using a different key on each computer, each of which granted officially, legally, etc. by Microsoft themselves."

I would also like to point out that all of the examples you gave applied to One Windows 10 key not multiple. 

 

Also as you said: 

Quote

 

Just because it works doesn't mean its legal!!!

I can download a program change a few things and claim its mine, or even just download it and say mine?

 

Yes you could "Call the program yours" and do whatever you like with it except for one thing. You are not to distribute it. 

 

You also said: 

Quote

I can do 250kph in my car but is that legal? I can do many things in life but that doesn't mean they are legal

Yes, doing 250kph in your car is legal,

on a track

 

See the point that I am trying to make is not that anyone should or shouldn't do this. My point is that depending on how you interpreted what Microsoft is saying, it can mean different things; Until Microsoft Clearly says something about the issue off using a windows 7 key to activate windows 10, I (personally) do not have an issue with it. That does not mean I would do that if I built a computer for someone else though.

[birdflyer]

8 hours ago, AMD1234 said:

If you want legal Windows 10. you can just download it for free from the Microsoft website anyway. Dosent really make a difference

Yes (although it may be watermarked) you can download the free version of Windows 10 legally.

[vanished]

9 hours ago, IcarusLSC said:

Just because it works doesn't mean its legal!!!

I can download a program change a few things and claim its mine, or even just download it and say mine? I can do 250kph in my car but is that legal? I can do many things in life but that doesn't mean they are legal.

 

The very last line of what I posted reads "4.b: You may not transfer the software to share licenses between devices." Is that not enough, and that's for stand alone software that is much more lenient in its licensing then oem..

2.a even says one instance of it at a time.

2.c.iv is what you are doing as well (working around technical restrictions or limitations in the software.)

4.a. says even upgraded from software preinstalled (oem) only with licensed device, which means using it on another system is illegal.

 

Read into the grey as much as you want, its technically not legal.

I want to make sure we are on the same page about what process is even being discussed.  The process I described is as such:

1. Upgrade a computer from Windows 7 or 8 to Windows 10
2. Move a retail copy of Windows 7 or 8 to a new computer
3. Repeat

There are thus two ways which this may be in violation of the terms:

• (A) Upgrading outside the free upgrade period
• (B) Upgrading multiple times on different machines

If you're not in agreement with anything up to this point, please let me know.  We can't possibly discuss what's ok and what isn't if we aren't even discussing the same thing.

 

This is what I would say regarding (A):

• I'm including this because I described doing this and so it will decide whether people can follow my instructions or not.  However, I think we agree that doing upgrades within the first year when it was actively promoted is 100% acceptable, and so this is not relevant to the original question as it did not ask about if you can do this still today, just if it could be done (ie ever).
• The FAQ you linked before did clearly state that the upgrade period ended 1 year after initial release and that all upgrades had to have taken place by that point, implying that upgrades are not allowed after that point.  However, that is not a license agreement, it's an FAQ.

As for (B):

• Nothing I've read mentions this in the slightest so really it's anyone's guess if this is ok or not

This is what I have to say regarding the specific aspects of the license agreement you mentioned:

• 2a is not broken as only one instance is in use at a time, as I explained.  Each Windows 10 PC is a separate license, as is the Windows 7 or 8 key which was used for the upgrade.
• 2c iv is to stop people using a cracking tool so that they don't need a key - essentially what you described by "downloading and program and changing a few things", or even just modifying an unactivated system to get access to personalization settings.  Nothing of the sort is going on here.  Everything is operating entirely as it was intended to when it was released by Microsoft, with no modifications.
• 4a disallows the movement of a single OEM key from one system to another (as you say), and this is something I'm well aware of.  Nothing I described is in violation of this though.  My process involves moving a retail key of Windows 7 or 8, which is allowed.
• For 4b, I see where you're coming from.  I'm reading that as intending to prevent people who, for example, have one license/key and install it on two systems at once, making efforts to not run both at the same time so the servers don't catch on, or just let that happen but constantly switch it back and forth when prompted.  This is certainly the most relevant part of the agreement in my opinion, but ultimately where it falls apart for me is you're not sharing one license by doing what I described, so I don't believe this would apply.  As I said in the first point above, every system has its own license.

To reiterate, I see nothing that clearly says in the license agreement that any part of what I explained is forbidden.  I don't feel like I'm stretching the definitions or going into a grey area at all either.

 

As for "Just because it works doesn't mean its legal!!!", I'm aware of this and can give examples as well, like DRM-free games.  With a DRM-free game, you conceivably could send to your friend, but by the terms of the agreement, you are not allowed to.  In such a situation, no system is in place to enforce the rules and people are expected to just behave themselves.  On the flip side, you have games with DRM that directly prevent you from copying it and sharing them with friends.  Sure, theoretically you could crack the game, but again, by the terms of the agreement, you are not allowed to (not to mention that the simple existence of the DRM should make it obvious that they don't want people doing this).  In this situation, a system is in place to enforce the rules, and it does exactly that unless you go out of your way to defeat it with hacking tools.

 

The fact is though that Windows 10 upgrades fit neither of these situations.  Microsoft has in place a robust licensing system and use it to activate (or refuse to activate) copies of Windows every day.  In this situation, like the DRM example, a system is in place that lets Microsoft decide exactly what they do and do not want to allow to happen.  It's not like a DRM-free game that has no protections, and it's also not like cracking the DRM off of a game, since no modifications or workarounds are being made.  As said previously, Microsoft could choose to no longer allow free upgrades at any time, and they could also have chosen to tie the granted upgrades to the original keys.  The fact that they have not is good evidence that they're doing so by choice, rather than by inability to stop it.  It's not taking advantage of them or exploiting a system.  The system is clearly setup to permit it.

[IcarusLSC]

Like I said, look into the grey as much as you want (and are by your last post.) It's technically illegal. Piracy is piracy.

 

[birdflyer]

On 4/11/2020 at 2:03 PM, IcarusLSC said:

Like I said, look into the grey as much as you want (and are by your last post.) It's technically illegal. Piracy is piracy.

 

May I ask how this is piracy? This is the definition of piracy: "the unauthorized use or reproduction of another's work."

As pointed out above, this is neither unauthorized nor reproduction of another's work. 

 

A: Unauthorized

How can this be unauthorized if Microsoft allows it? It does not clearly state that you are not to enter a windows 7 key. It's like saying that it is illegal to enter a store without an "Enter" sign. Just because something doesn't say "do this here" doesn't mean that you can not do it in a place that doesn't have that same sign. For instance, because your yard doesn't have a sign that says "Smoke here" does that mean you can't smoke there? However the rules are always clearly stated if someone is not to do something; and in this case, nothing is clearly stated. 

 

B: Reproduction

This is by no means reproduction. To put it short, that would be handing out the keys generated by that one windows 7 key which could certainly be classified as reproduction; but personal use (in my opinion)  is not.