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Bạn đang xem: How to legally get windows 10 key for free or cheap
About How-To Geekchrisbhoffman| ✔ Reviewed By Nick Lewis
UpdatedJul 20, 2022, 10:08 am EDT| 4 min read
Microsoft allows anyone to lớn download Windows 10 for miễn phí và install it without a sản phẩm key. It’ll keep working for the foreseeable future, with only a few small cosmetic restrictions. And you can even pay to nâng cấp khổng lồ a licensed copy of Windows 10 after you install it.
Whether you want lớn install Windows 10 in Boot Camp, put it on an old computer that isn’t eligible for a free tăng cấp, or create one or more virtual machines, you don’t actually need to pay a cent.
How to lớn Download Windows 10 và Install it Without a Key
RELATED: Where to lớn Download Windows 10, 8.1, & 7 ISOs Legally
First, you’ll need lớn download Windows 10. You can download it directly from Microsoft, and you don’t even need a product key to lớn tải về a copy.
There’s a Windows 10 download tool that runs on Windows systems, which will help you create a USB drive to lớn install Windows 10. If you aren’t on Windows, you can visit the Windows 10 ISO tải về page lớn tải về an ISO directly (say, if you’re installing Windows 10 in Boot Camp on a Mac). If you visit that page on a Windows machine, it’ll redirect you to the download tool page instead.
Just begin the installation process và install Windows 10 lượt thích you normally would. One of the first screens you’ll see will ask you lớn enter your sản phẩm key so you can “Activate Windows.” However, you can just cliông chồng the “I don’t have sầu a product key” liên kết at the bottom of the window và Windows will allow you lớn continue the installation process. You may be asked khổng lồ enter a product key later in the process, too — if you are, just look for a similar small liên kết lớn skip that screen.
If you don’t see this option, you can also provide a KMS client thiết lập key to lớn continue. These keys won’t give sầu you an activated copy of Windows unless you’re in an organization with a Key Management Service, but they will allow you to get through the Windows installation process.
When you select this option, you’ll be able lớn install either “Windows 10 Home” or “Windows 10 Pro.” Bear in mind that, if you plan to lớn pay to upgrade lớn the paid version later, it’ll be cheaper khổng lồ tăng cấp to lớn Windows 10 trang chủ, so you may want lớn install the trang chủ version. Whatever version you choose, Windows 10 will install normally.
The Cosmetic Limitations
RELATED: How Does Windows Activation Work?
After you’ve installed Windows 10 without a key, it won’t actually be activated. However, an unactivated version of Windows 10 doesn’t have sầu many restrictions. With Windows XP, Microsoft actually used Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) khổng lồ disable access lớn your computer. These days, Windows just complains at you in a few minor, cosmetic ways.
Initially, you won’t notice a difference. Eventually, Windows will start nagging you a tiny bit. First, you’ll notice a watermark in the bottom-right corner of your screen. You’ll also see a “Windows isn’t activated. Activate Windows now.” links at the bottom of the Settings ứng dụng. This is the only size of nag you’ll see — there are no pop-up windows, for example.
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Second, you’ll be unable to lớn change your desktop wallpaper & from the Personalization > Background screen in the Settings tiện ích. You’ll see a “You need to lớn activate Windows before you can personalize your PC” message at the top of this window, and the options for changing your wallpaper will be grayed out.
You can still change your wallpaper in other ways, however. For example, you can right-cliông xã an image in File Explorer and select “Set as desktop background.” You could also open an image in the Photos tiện ích, cliông xã the thực đơn button, click “Set as,” and click “Set as background.” Windows 7 eventually switched you baông xã to lớn a blachồng background, but Windows 10 doesn’t seem to lớn bởi this.
You’ll find Windows 10’s included wallpapers under the C:WindowsWeb folder in File Explorer.
Aside from these basic limitations, your Windows 10 system will continue khổng lồ work forever. There are no nag prompts aside from the watermark, you’ll get all the system updates, and everything else is completely functional. The only thing that could change this is a Windows 10 update, but Microsoft has become increasingly lenient since Windows 7.
How to lớn Upgrade Windows 10 to an Activated Version
With Windows 10, you can now pay khổng lồ nâng cấp a “non-genuine” copy of Windows to a licensed one. mở cửa the Settings tiện ích & head to lớn Update và Security > Activation. You’ll see a “Go lớn Store” button that will take you to the Windows Store if Windows isn’t licensed.
In the Store, you can purchase an official Windows license that will activate your PC. The trang chủ version of Windows 10 costs $1đôi mươi, while the Pro version costs $200. This is a digital purchase, & it will immediately cause your current Windows installation to lớn become activated. You don’t need lớn purchase a physical license.
We installed Windows 10 Professional as an example here, so the Windows Store will only let us purchase the $200 Windows 10 Pro license.
This option may not be available in all countries. The prices here are for the US version of the Windows Store. Microsoft charges different prices in different countries và currencies.
Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 worked about the same way. Microsoft just didn’t officially allow you to lớn download Windows without a hàng hóa key, và there was no way to fully nâng cấp lớn a licensed system from within Windows. That makes this all the more tempting with Windows 10 — for example, you can install Windows 10 in Boot Camp on your Mac for free và, if you find yourself using it frequently, you can quickly pay khổng lồ remove sầu the watermark if that’s worth it for you. It’s lượt thích a không lấy phí chạy thử, & you can use it to lớn make all the virtual machines you lượt thích for testing purposes.
Sure, the license agreement may say you’re not supposed lớn use it without a key, but Microsoft’s license agreements say all sorts of confusing things. Microsoft’s license agreement still forbids using the popular “OEM” copies of Windows 10 on PCs you build yourself. If Microsoft doesn’t want people using unactivated copies of Windows 10 for extended periods of time, it can release a system update that disables this.
