tl;dr - how can I do a fresh install of Win8.1 on a new SSD when I don’t have the key and no installation disc?
Longer version with more details:
My mom is complaining about her laptop being slow in some instances (like closing a spreadsheet in LibreOffice), so I suggested swapping the HDD for an SSD.
We have the exact same laptop model and I did swap the HDD for an SSD in mine before but I don’t remember if I was able to do a fresh install of Win8.1 after wiping Win10 and before saying “fuck it” and moving on to Fedora.
There was no product key provided by the manufacturer and I’m not sure if it came with an installation/recovery disc (if it was then it got lost, but I just downloaded the Win8.1 iso from MS’s website, just in case).
Due to my memory not being the best sometimes and some annoying fiddling around with Win7 and an OEM key (they were from the same place, one worked, another didn’t, all were used in an office until a few months ago) on a different machine today, I’m not sure if a fresh install of Win8.1 on a new SSD will work in terms of proper Windows activation with an OEM key.
Not a fan of cloning OS drives.
Computers with an OEM version of windows 8 or later sometimes have the key embedded in the UEFI and not on a sticker.
This means that it should be picked up by windows 8 during install and windows will auto activate. You have to install the correct windows edition, presumably home for this to work.
If you still have the install on the old HDD, you may be able to grab the key, just use the utility that @behindthetimesgamer suggested. The cd key viewer will also work on a non-booted OS, so you could stick the drive in another computer and still grab the key.
Also, sometimes the key sticker is under the battery or something.
@behindthetimesgamer Thanks, I’ll use give that a try the next time I get my hands on that laptop.
@TheCakeIsNaOH nope, no sticker with a key either, so it’s most likely embedded in the UEFI. and yes, it’s Win8.1 Home 64bit. Haven’t touched it yet as I wanted to make sure I’m not missing anything (iso, drivers, backup, etc).
It would be a good idea to print the product key onto a sticker and stick it in the battery compartment just in case something happens in the future as well.
EDIT: One thing i tend to do when reinstalling Windows on laptops is to save and label the drivers and store them locally, that makes the driver installation part so much easier when i reinstall in the future.
Basically, my mom called me and told me she found the recovery disc and a piece of paper with where I apparently wrote the product key on. Seems that I already used a product key viewer in the past.
But both the key being store in the UEFI being mentioned and the product key viewer as a means to find the key provide enough input for me to cross the concerns off my list.
Those are already in a folder on one of my backup HDDs. But thanks for mentioning that. It made me remember that I had them for a long time now and also had to use them which means I already did a fresh installation of Win8.1 on my laptop before (and apparently without issues).
Yeah, there’s nothing more annoying than having to figure out what drivers you need after a reinstall.
It seems you’re ready for a painless reinstall then !
Huh, tell me about it!
Had the pleasure of dealing with that on a Win7 PC. Always nice to have a working PC around when you need to download the network driver cause the machine won’t connect to the internet.
Same with handy USB thumb drives with stuff like GParted, memtest, live version of a linux distro, etc. Especially when you make them BEFORE you actually need them
Not too long ago i worked on a HP Probook 4xx G4, i suspected i had to reconnect the battery to get the bios to play, and according to HP the battery was “non replaceable”.
It ended up with me and a friend with knives trying to opening the chassis while Elvis were happily singing in the background.
That’s actually the only time figuring out the drivers were the easy part.
Ugh…those can be a pain in the ass. With my old Acer netbook I ahd to remove the keyboard (pry it out, then gently remove the flimsy ribbon cable) before I could remove the screws for the bottom door.
I’ve seen Acer do a similar thing where you had to pry open the chassi (maybe 1cm or so) and carefully disconnect a ribbon cable. Without knowing that you’d easily rip that cable and say good bye to your laptop.
My Medion Akoya E6416 MD99544 fortunately has a nice, big bottom door that’s easy to remove and gives access to the whole motherboard.
It’s easy IF you can find them. Especially when they’re OEM parts that won’t play nice with the non-OEM drivers (and the OEM drivers are no longer listed on any website).
Laptops in general is a pain to dismantle, especially the newer ones.
I think the HP i was working on was either glued or very heavily clipped together, i only know that those are designed to be impossible to disassemble.
It’s probably the most homoerotic experience i’ve had my whole life.
Yes, i’ve had a few machines where the OEM drivers were gone officially, i did get them from some very interesting russian websites though !
