my windows 11 pro upgrade

Question

my old computer, I upgraded to windows 11 pro and paid the $99.00 dollars. Had to buy a new computer and it came with windows 11 home. how can I install and upgrade my new system to windows 11 pro without having to buy it again?

Answer 1

Hello

The pro upgrade portion is transferable, as long as it is used on a home edition that is already activated.

This is what you can do on the new computer:

You can go to Settings > System > Activation > Change product key

Disconnect internet, and disable any third party antivirus, key in the generic key instead: VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T

That should get you to Pro. Once restarted, you can connect back to the internet, sign into your Microsoft account. See if it is activated.

If not, go to Settings > System > Activation, run the troubleshooter, choose the hardware change option. When it asks you where it is installed on right now, you should choose the old device name. Then click on Activate button. And on the next screen when it asks you where to transfer it to, choose your new device name. See if that does the trick.

Answer 2

A Windows 11 Pro upgrade purchased through the Microsoft Store is a digital license that is linked to the Microsoft account used at the time of purchase, not to a specific PC. However, current guidance in the provided context indicates that older “free/loophole” style upgrades and some transferred activations are no longer honored for new devices, and new hardware generally requires a new license.

From the context:

• If a Pro upgrade was originally obtained as part of older free/upgrade paths (for example from Windows 7/8/10), that path is now closed for new devices and cannot be reused on new hardware.
• New devices (new motherboard/PC) are treated as new devices for activation and require their own valid license.

Because the new computer is a different device that came with Windows 11 Home, and the previous Pro upgrade was tied to the old device/upgrade path, the context does not provide a supported way to move that paid Pro upgrade to the new PC without purchasing Pro again.

To get Windows 11 Pro on the new PC according to the documentation in the context, the supported options are:

1. Purchase Windows 11 Pro (full license) or a Home→Pro upgrade for the new device, for example via the Microsoft Store upgrade flow.
2. Install Windows 11 Pro using valid installation media and activate it with a new, valid Pro license.

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References:

• Upgrade Windows Home to Windows Pro
• What does it mean if Windows isn't supported?
• Ways to install Windows 11
• Windows 8.1 support ended on January 10, 2023
• Which edition of Windows comes with your Surface device?
• Using the Windows Activation troubleshooter
• Unable to activate Windows 11 Pro digital license after device change - Microsoft Q&A
• Windows Activation when upgrading from Home to Pro - Microsoft Q&A
• Retrieve Product Key / New Windows 11 install - Microsoft Q&A
• Unable to activate Windows after reinstall - Microsoft Q&A
• Two laptops with the same credentials - Microsoft Q&A