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I have Windows 7 copy that I upgraded for free Windows 10 a few years back. My SSD is getting too small to I want to swap it with a new SSD.
I want to do a complete wipe and install everything fresh instead of trying to make a backup and restoring it on the new SSD.
When I go to activation settings I see
Windows is activated with a digital license to your Microsoft account.
I am not sure where I can actually get my key and how to get a copy of windows that will bootup before startup so I can install it on my SSD that won't have anything on it.
In case it helps: I've read somewhere that the very latest Windows 10 does not show the "skip" button, unless you disable the network (say: unplug the ethernet cable or power down your WiFi modem) at that stage. – Arjan – 2019-10-18T17:31:00.060
OK that's good to know and how to I get a bootable version? Can I make that from my computer or can I download that somewhere to put on a usb stick? – chobo2 – 2019-10-18T18:00:32.217
To add a bit more info - it's actually your motherboard that is used as the hardware ID. You can replace literally everything else and still use the same license key – Havegooda – 2019-10-18T18:03:10.223
Yep all I am doing is harddrive so I should be ok. I also found Media Creation Tool but I need to find 8gb of free space lol. – chobo2 – 2019-10-18T18:09:46.477
The media creation tool is indeed what you need. @Arjan I install Windows 10 regularly, even the latest version and I have not found anything that makes me think the skip button is gone, and I usually install with a network cable attached. But most of the time I do not need a license key as the devices I install have them embedded so the setup automatically detects this. Good to know at least, so I'll keep that in mind. – LPChip – 2019-10-18T21:37:54.423
Also, you could technically clone your harddisk to the SSD and then in windows simply reset your installation to reinstall. No need to create an install medium that way. – LPChip – 2019-10-18T21:38:27.827
Ah, sorry, I was confused with Confirmed: Windows 10 Setup Now Prevents Local Account Creation.
– Arjan – 2019-10-19T08:23:43.243@Arjan even that is not true. It just is a bit more obscure. You have to press a few nearly invisible no's and the setup will attempt to make you create a live account, but you can still use a local account. I do it basically on every install I do. EDIT: oh, that seems speciffic to the Home version. We install Pro. That might be why.... – LPChip – 2019-10-19T13:11:35.570