Win10 Laptop m/board swap

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Last time I opened it up, to replace a noisy fan, I managed to wreck the ribbon connector for the card reader + one USB slot - all were just push connectors, apart from this which had a flip up type bar to tighten. So I have been keeping my eyes open for a replacement m/board, since then.

I spotted one on ebay, made an offer, 'won' it and delivered this morning. Board installed, powered up and all looked OK in the initial boot, until it got to Win10 - then the horizontal of the display went like an old CRT where the horizontal was slipping, diagonal line across.

Rebooted and second time around, it went to an Outlook screen, wanting me to log in with my Outlook email address and password, which I couldn't remember the password, but I could get access only once I could get into Windows. The 'forgotten password' system was down.

Tried a third reboot, then a fourth one with the same result. At attempt five, it all booted up just as normal into Win10 and all working fine.

I sort of expected I would have to ring Microsoft, to reactivate Windows, due to a component swap.

[John Rumm]

For future reference. if you have you PC logged in with an online account (MS, outlook, live etc), then it can link the windows activation to the account. Hence you can change a mobo, and when you login again it will recover the activation state.

(which sounds like what happened here - even if not on the first attempt!)

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

I just didn't manage to log in at all, until it actually got as far as being fully booted up into Windows. It seemed to take pity on my predicament :-)

[John Rumm]

Generally if you had it linked to an account before the upgrade you should be ok. (the activation status will report something like "activated with a digital licenses associated with account bla bla" or similar. You just get the "activated with a digital license bit" if it s not linked to an account.

I have been caught out like that on machines that only had a local account, and that had a complete motherboard failure. Hence all the advice to protect the activation state by linking to an account is a bit moot since you can't boot it to link it - catch 22.

[Paul]

If you buy a Windows 10 laptop, it has a license key in the ACPI MSDM table (part of the BIOS presumably). If you move a hard drive to a different proprietary motherboard, like a Dell motherboard, Windows 10 as an OS, could recognize the Windows 10 key in MSDM and use that.

But the chances of that are pretty remote.

If the "Personalize" menu no longer works, that's a hint you're not activated. You can try this, and I think one of the lines of text indicates activation status.

slmgr /dlv

slmgr /? # see what options are on offer

slui /? # another command for license related stuff...

An uglier situation, would be you build your own computer with a retail motherboard, which has no key in it. Apply a purchased key. Then, need to change the motherboard later. When the NIC MAC value changes, that may serve to de-activate the OS. Now, we're talking about dealing with Microsoft Support, or, using the deal where you use an MSA account in some sort of transfer procedure. (I've never seen anyone recount such a transfer, what details are involved).

Paul

[Dave Liquorice]

Or just not bother activating the OS at all and ignore the "Activate Windows - Go to Settings to activate Windows" overlay in the bottom right corner of the screen. "Personalize" doesn't contain anything you need or would want to do, so no great loss.

[John Rumm]

Indeed - it might activate as a "different" license - but if it works I expect you don't care. :-)

BTSTGTTS

(IME a NIC change on its own will not usually prevent reactivation if the rest of the hardware is the same)

The transfer is supposed to work, but needs to be set in play before the old board is decommissioned. Alas not always an option.

(Apparently keeping a stack of old Win 7 OEM keys from scrapped machines will also work to activate win 10 if needs be... DAMHIK)