Activate Windows Through Registry

Collection of Windows 10 Hidden Secret Registry Tweaks. We know that Microsoft regularly releases free Insider Preview builds of Windows 10 operating system to public which can be downloaded and installed to test new features and provide feedback and suggestions to Microsoft. The first thing, every user should do, is to activate his/her Windows 8, as soon as it is purchased. A registered and activated copy of Windows provides many relieves to the operators, in terms of update and support services. How to Clear Product Key from Registry in Windows Information When you install and activate a retail copy of Windows, the product key is stored in the registry.

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Applies to

Windows 10
Windows 8.1
Windows 8
Windows 7
Windows Server 2012 R2
Windows Server 2012
Windows Server 2008 R2

Looking for retail activation?

There are three possible scenarios for volume activation of Windows 10 or Windows Server 2012 R2 by using a Key Management Service (KMS) host:

Host KMS on a computer running Windows 10
Host KMS on a computer running Windows Server 2012 R2
Host KMS on a computer running an earlier version of Windows

Check out Windows 10 Volume Activation Tips.

Key Management Service in Windows 10

Installing a KMS host key on a computer running Windows 10 allows you to activate other computers running Windows 10 against this KMS host and earlier versions of the client operating system, such as Windows 8.1 or Windows 7.Clients locate the KMS server by using resource records in DNS, so some configuration of DNS may be required. This scenario can be beneficial if your organization uses volume activation for clients and MAK-based activation for a smaller number of servers.To enable KMS functionality, a KMS key is installed on a KMS host; then, the host is activated over the Internet or by phone using Microsoft’s activation services.

Configure KMS in Windows 10

Open an elevated command prompt.
Enter one of the following commands.
- To install a KMS key, type slmgr.vbs /ipk <KmsKey>.
- To activate online, type slmgr.vbs /ato.
- To activate by using the telephone, type slui.exe 4.
After activating the KMS key, restart the Software Protection Service.

For more information, see the information for Windows 7 in Deploy KMS Activation.

Key Management Service in Windows Server 2012 R2

How To Activate Windows Through Command Prompt

Installing a KMS host key on a computer running Windows Server allows you to activate computers running Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 7, and Windows Vista.

Note You cannot install a client KMS key into the KMS in Windows Server.

This scenario is commonly used in larger organizations that do not find the overhead of using a server a burden.

Note

If you receive error 0xC004F015 when trying to activate Windows 10 Enterprise, see KB 3086418.

Configure KMS in Windows Server 2012 R2

Sign in to a computer running Windows Server 2012 R2 with an account that has local administrative credentials.
Launch Server Manager.
Add the Volume Activation Services role, as shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4. Adding the Volume Activation Services role in Server Manager
When the role installation is complete, click the link to launch the Volume Activation Tools (Figure 5).
Figure 5. Launching the Volume Activation Tools
1. Select the Key Management Service (KMS) option, and specify the computer that will act as the KMS host (Figure 6).This can be the same computer on which you installed the role or another computer. For example, it can be a client computer running Windows 10.
Figure 6. Configuring the computer as a KMS host
Install your KMS host key by typing it in the text box, and then click Commit (Figure 7).
Figure 7. Installing your KMS host key
If asked to confirm replacement of an existing key, click Yes.
After the product key is installed, you must activate it. Click Next (Figure 8).
Figure 8. Activating the software
The KMS key can be activated online or by phone. See Figure 9.
Figure 9. Choosing to activate online

Now that the KMS host is configured, it will begin to listen for activation requests. However, it will not activate clients successfully until the activation threshold is met.

Verifying the configuration of Key Management Service

You can verify KMS volume activation from the KMS host server or from the client computer. KMS volume activation requires a minimum threshold of 25 computers before activation requests will be processed. The verification process described here will increment the activation count each time a client computer contacts the KMS host, but unless the activation threshold is reached, the verification will take the form of an error message rather than a confirmation message.Note

If you configured Active Directory-based activation before configuring KMS activation, you must use a client computer that will not first try to activate itself by using Active Directory-based activation. You could use a workgroup computer that is not joined to a domain or a computer running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2.

To verify that KMS volume activation works, complete the following steps:

On the KMS host, open the event log and confirm that DNS publishing is successful.
On a client computer, open a Command Prompt window, type Slmgr.vbs /ato, and then press ENTER.
The /ato command causes the operating system to attempt activation by using whichever key has been installed in the operating system. The response should show the license state and detailed Windows version information.
On a client computer or the KMS host, open an elevated Command Prompt window, type Slmgr /dlv, and then press ENTER.

The /dlv command displays the detailed licensing information. The response should return an error that states that the KMS activation count is too low. This confirms that KMS is functioning correctly, even though the client has not been activated.

For more information about the use and syntax of slmgr.vbs, see Slmgr.vbs Options.

Key Management Service in earlier versions of Windows

If you have already established a KMS infrastructure in your organization for an earlier version of Windows, you may want to continue using that infrastructure to activate computers running Windows 10 or Windows Server 2012 R2. Your existing KMS host must be running Windows 7 or later. To upgrade your KMS host, complete the following steps:

Download and install the correct update for your current KMS host operating system. Restart the computer as directed.
Request a new KMS host key from the Volume Licensing Service Center.
Install the new KMS host key on your KMS host.
Activate the new KMS host key by running the slmgr.vbs script.

For detailed instructions, see Update that enables Windows 8.1 and Windows 8 KMS hosts to activate a later version of Windows and Update that enables Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS hosts to activate Windows 10.

Enabling the Hidden Administrator Account

Now prepare your Windows 7/Vista DVD and restart the computer with the DVD in the DVD Drive—you’ll want to boot from the DVD so you may need to change the boot order in the BIOS. Depending on your system you will need to press Del, F2, or F12.

After you’ve successfully booted from the DVD you’ll be presented with the language setting of the Windows setup. Click next.

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In the next screen click “Repair your computer” from the bottom left corner of the window. Now the setup will search for Windows installations then display them, choose the Windows you want and click next. The setup may try to search for problems and may ask you if you want to restore your computer, just click no. Finally you’ll arrive at the System Recovery Options window that looks like this:

Click Command Prompt. This will open up a command prompt window where you’ll have to type “regedit” and press enter. From this point on you have to be extra careful as one mistake might ruin your Windows and render it unusable. In the left side of the Registry Editor click “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE” then in File menu click “Load Hive”.

In the file name field type the following and hit enter.

%windir%system32configSAM

The hive needs a name, give it a name and remember it. For the purpose of this article we will name it “test” so replace it with the name you chose for the next steps. What you just did is load the SAM file into the Registry Editor so we can edit it. The SAM file is the Security Accounts Manager and contains encrypted information about the account names and passwords. Now that it’s loaded into the registry, navigate to “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINEtestSAMDomainsAccountUsers”. Click on “000001F4” and from the right side pane double-click the “F” entry.

A new window will open allowing you to edit the “F” entry. The line that starts with “0038” is what you want to edit. The value next to “0038” is “11”, replace it with “10”. Be careful not to change anything else. Just double click the “11” and type “10” then hit the OK button. “11” is for disabled and “10” for enabled.

Back in the Registry Editor, from the left side click on the name you gave to the hive you loaded earlier and click “Unload Hive” from the File menu, restart the computer and you are done. The Administrator account is now enabled.

Windows Registry Fix

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Activate Windows Through Cmd