Roll back windows 11 pro upgrade and reinstall once machine has been exchanged

Question

I am a Photographer and have a Microsoft 365 Business Standard subscription. Requiring windows login to be using (Azure) Microsoft Entra ID.

On purchasing a new laptop for photography I had to upgrade the supplied windows 11 Home to Pro this was purchased on Friday 24th January 2026 via the Microsoft store using my personal account ******@hotmail.com. Only then did I discover that the manufacturer (Asus) had misrepresented the machine specifications with regard to the Colour Space of the monitor screen. Claiming it to be 100% accurate for sRGB (75% Adobe RGB). in reality it achives only 64% of sRGB (48% of Adobe RGB). I now need to send the machine back to the manufacturer and exchange it for a different machine that is actually the same price and will achieve 100% of sRGB.

I know I can roll back the machine to Home version before sending it back and hopefully receiving the right machine after a few days.

How do I ensure that I can the reinstall the upgrade on this new machine without having to incur another £119.99 payment for the upgrade.

Invoice No.6390481452512973371

Date of Purchase 24/01/2026

Yours
Philip Bailey

Answer 1

1

There is no native method to roll back from the Pro version to the Home version, if the PC manufacturer does not provide an OEM Factory Reset method, check if there is any Asus app installed to perform a factory reset.

If that is not available, then the only way to go back to the Home version is to create a bootable Windows 11 USB an use that to clean install the Home version.

2

When you get a new PC provided that is installed with an activated version of Windows Home you will be able to use your Home to Pro upgrade licence again on the new PC, you will not need to purchase a new Pro upgrade licence.

Answer 2

The Go Back option does not appear. Having done a factory reset to remove an account that did not revert the windows pro to home.

Again how do Go back it is only 5 days since the upgrade? other than using a USB installation meding and selecting I do not have the key so it reverts to the window home key in the bios.

That would almost certainly result in the loss of my money.

Answer 3

To roll back from Windows 11 Pro to Windows 11 Home, you can follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings: Click on the Start menu and select Settings.
2. Navigate to System: Click on System and then select Recovery.
3. Reset this PC: Under the Recovery options, you should see an option to Reset this PC. Click on it.
4. Choose to Keep Files or Remove Everything: You can choose to keep your files or remove everything. If you are returning the laptop, you may want to remove everything.
5. Follow the Prompts: Follow the prompts to complete the reset process, which will revert your system back to Windows 11 Home.

After you receive your new machine, you can reinstall Windows 11 Pro without incurring another payment if you have a digital license associated with your Microsoft account. Here’s how:

1. Sign in to Microsoft Store: On the new machine, open the Microsoft Store and sign in with the same Microsoft account you used to purchase the upgrade.
2. Search for Windows 11 Pro: Look for the option to upgrade to Windows 11 Pro.
3. Install: If your digital license is recognized, you should be able to install it without any additional payment.

Make sure to keep your purchase invoice and any related information handy, as it may help in case you need to verify your purchase with Microsoft support.