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OEM Windows reuse question

TheStyne
By TheStyne
in Windows
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Posted

Fairly simplistic and basic question, but I know if you have a prebuilt you can't transfer OEM windows over to a new system, as it's locked to the motherboard.

 

My question is, if I buy OEM windows for a PC I'm building, will it be locked to my motherboard? 

 

Thanks!

REMEMBER:

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PUT @Fixinit1 IN YOUR RESPONSE!!!!!

 

 

Gosh, I hate it when people forget. Anyway, check out my PC below, and there's a PCPartPicker link on my profile, If you wanna see what I'm planning.

Spoiler

SYSTEM SPECS: Finally ditched the Pentium N3540, now I've got the following:

 

CPU - Ryzen 5 2400G

GPU - 1060 6GB Gigabyte G1 Gaming

RAM - 16GB DDR4 3000mhz Team T-Force Delta RGB

MOTHERBOARD - MSI B350 Tomahawk

PSU - EVGA 450BT

CASE - PHANTEKS  P350X

 

 

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https://linustechtips.com/topic/919325-oem-windows-reuse-question/
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If it's Windows 10 you can tie the key to your Microsoft account. When you swap out the motherboard in the future you'll be asked to login and be given an option and you select whatever is along the lines of "New build or hardware change"

Current Network Layout:

Current Build Log/PC:

Storage Server Setup:

 

Prior Build Log/PC:

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OEM keys that you buy from Microsoft can be transferred to new hardware, but are permanently linked to your Microsoft account.

Make sure to quote me or use @PorkishPig to notify me that you replied!

 

 

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CPU - Ryzen 9 3900X | Cooler - Noctua NH-D15 | Motherboard - ASUS TUF X570-PLUS | RAM - Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 32GB | Case - Meshify C

GPU - RTX 3080 FE | PSU - Straight Power 11 850W Platinum | Storage - 980 PRO 1TB, 960 EVO 500GB, S31 1TB, MX500 500GB | OS - Windows 11 Pro

 

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CPU - Core i5-11400 | Cooler - Noctua NH-U12S | Motherboard - ASRock Z590M-ITX | RAM - G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4-3600 32GB (2x16)  | Case - Node 304

PSU - EVGA B3 650W | Storage - 860 EVO 256GB, Sabrent Rocket 4.0 1TB, WD Red 4TB (x6 in RAIDZ1 w/ LSI 9207-8i) | OS - TrueNAS Scale (Debian)

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As mentioned, you can now tie your Windows key to your Microsoft account via the activation settings within Windows. See the Microsoft article here:

Reactivating Windows 10 after a hardware change

Seagate Technology | Official Forums Team

IronWolf Drives for NAS Applications - SkyHawk Drives for Surveillance Applications - BarraCuda Drives for PC & Gaming

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