How to solve the problem?(reinstalling windows 11 Home)

Question

I am planning to format my computer and reinstall everything from scratch. Since this is my first time doing this, I would like to prepare in advance and ask for your assistance. I need your help very much.

I am using Windows 11 Home 23H2. In the Start menu > Settings > Accounts > Your Info, it shows that I am an administrator and my email is displayed. Also, in the Start menu > Settings > System > Activation, the activation status is shown as activated. When I click the details button, it only says that Windows is activated using a digital license linked to my Microsoft account.

When I ran the command slmgr /dli, it showed "oem_dm channel," and when I ran wmic path softwarelicensingservice get OA3xOriginalProductKey, it only returned "OA3xOriginalProductKey."

I am curious if, after formatting and reinstalling using the installation USB, if automatic activation does not work, I can seek support from Microsoft for activation. I purchased my computer from a custom PC manufacturer, and although it is still under warranty, they explained that it is an OEM version and cannot provide a product key. Therefore, I am wondering what to do if I encounter issues with activation after reinstalling.

The manufacturer stated that even within the warranty period, only hardware is covered under warranty, and software is not. I suspect this is because I bought a budget PC. I am worried that if I attempt the reinstallation myself and encounter problems, I may need to seek help from the company I purchased the PC from.

Answer 1

Product keys were required for Windows 7 and 8.

For Windows 10 and 11 licensing data is entered into Microsoft servers during activation.

This enables later clean installs and drive replacements.

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If you want to view available product key information then some options are:

wmic path SoftwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/find-your-windows-product-key-aaa2bf69-7b2b-9f13-f581-a806abf0a886

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/activate-windows-c39005d4-95ee-b91e-b399-2820fda32227

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Activation troubleshooters:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/using-the-windows-activation-troubleshooter-d717cdff-cf19-9770-7198-40119c2a696c

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/reactivating-windows-after-a-hardware-change-2c0e962a-f04c-145b-6ead-fb3fc72b6665

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Third party software:

https://www.tenforums.com/software-apps/2577-showkeyplus.html

https://www.belarc.com/products/belarc-advisor

https://www.magicaljellybean.com/keyfinder/

https://neosmart.net/OemKey/

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Clean install:

https://www.elevenforum.com/tutorials/?prefix_id=7

https://www.elevenforum.com/t/clean-install-windows-11.99/

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