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[SOLVED] Windows installation on an HP stream 11 not working

Anonymous
2018-11-06T20:26:07+00:00

I had windows 10 (free upgrade) on my HP stream 11, I decided to install Ubuntu because Windows 10 was having some serious issues. 

the computer works fine under Ubuntu, but I feel like it was quite a downgrade from windows.

this link is to a post saying my activation key would be safe

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_10-update/windows-10-os-accidentally-deleted/26fdb633-04df-4b4a-9f1d-94480d165e63

Resting easy knowing that I could get back to windows 10 at any time with a USB recovery drive (at least according to that post on the site). It says my activation key will be stored in the Microsoft activation servers. It apparently wasn't because now I can't get the recovery media to work. Some people said you can press "skip" or "I don't have a key", but it doesn't give me the option for the Windows 8 installer, while the windows 10 and 7 installers just say the hardware isn't compatible. I know it is compatible because It used run windows 10.

So, to summarize, I have tried installing windows 7, 8, and 10 using a USB recovery drive, but none worked.

All help is greatly appreciated, Asher

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Install and upgrade

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  1. Anonymous
    2018-11-11T09:09:13+00:00

    Hi Asher,

    Thanks for the reply.

    As mentioned earlier, the concept of digital license was introduced with Widows 10 and earlier versions (Windows 7, 8, 8.1) didn’t support digital license/key. In OEM machines, the license is tied to system BIOS. Modern computer systems come with preconfigured recovery partitions which can be used to reset the computer to the state it was in, when it was purchased. If you haven’t removed the recovery partition from it, you can follow the steps mentioned in the link below to perform factory reset.

    Perform factory reset on HP Windows machine.

    Factory reset will delete all apps and data from the system drive and reinstall Windows, drivers and the OEM specific applications. Please make sure to back up your files before initiating reset.

    In case the computer does not have a recovery partition, you may need to order the recovery media from the system manufacturer.

    Hope it helps.

    Thanks,

    Peer Samie

    Microsoft Community-Moderator

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  1. Anonymous
    2018-11-20T16:14:57+00:00

    thank you for all of your help!

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  2. Anonymous
    2018-11-09T01:53:07+00:00

    i used a windows 10 installation drive from Microsoft not HP, but when I agreed to the software license terms, it said my hardware isn't compatible. for windows 10, the windows 8 (also from Microsoft) didn't give me a skip option, and windows 7 wasn't compatible either.

    the computer came installed with 8. and it has a digital key.

    Thanks, Asher

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  3. Anonymous
    2018-11-07T11:48:51+00:00

    Hi Asher,

    Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

    Which version of Windows was it upgraded from?

    Was the recovery drive (USB) supplied by the system manufacturer or did you create the one yourself?

    If the recovery media was supplied by the system manufacturer, it would not need you to enter the product key during recovery process, the computer should fetch the license information from system BIOS and use the same to activate Windows. Once the product is activated, you can go ahead and upgrade it back to Windows 10 using the Windows 10 ISO.

    If it is a normal installation media rather than recovery image, you will be prompted to enter the product key while installing Windows from it, however if the product key was linked to your Microsoft account (as a digital license) after free upgrade, you can press Skip or I don’t have a product key to proceed with installation and Windows will use the digital license (linked to your Microsoft account) for reactivation. The option (skip or I don’t have a product key) will be available with Windows 10 normal installation media not with the recovery media supplied by the OEM (system manufacturer).

    For more information about digital license, refer to What activation method do I use, a digital license or a product key section of the article: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12440/windows-10-activation

    Hope the information above is helpful. Please feel free to contact back in case you need any further assistance.

    Thanks,

    Peer Samie

    Microsoft Community-Moderator

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