If you had to format your computer and after reinstalling Windows you realized that you do not have the activation key, don’t worry, currently manufacturers save the Windows license in the BIOS, which allows you to easily recover it.
Perhaps you have heard of the BIOS many times but are not sure what it is. To put it simply, the BIOS is a secure storage space where computer manufacturers keep the operating system license key. This allows the user to get the activation key again if needed after reinstalling Windows 10.
Fortunately, today it is much easier to recover the Windows 10 activation license since we no longer depend on the OEM labels that were attached to the bottom of the laptop with the Windows version installed and the serial number printed on them and than after for a time the deterioration prevented the data from being read.
Currently, as we have already mentioned, the serial comes directly in the BIOS, this means that we never lose access to that data.
There is more than one way that we can use to extract the BIOS license from the computer.
How to license Windows 10 through CMD
We can retrieve the license key stored in the BIOS to activate Windows 10 by making a query through the CMD or command prompt.
- Simultaneously press the Windows + Q keys and type “CMD”.
- When you see the command prompt run the following command: WMIC Path SoftwareLicensingService Get OA3xOriginalProductKey
- The Windows activation key will immediately appear on your screen , you can copy and paste it into your notepad or write it down on a piece of paper to have it handy.
You can also use Powershell by typing the following command: (Get-WmiObject -query ‘select * from SoftwareLicensingService’). OA3xOriginalProductKey
Find your Windows 10 product key using a program
In addition to the commands we taught you before, there are also applications that can help you quickly obtain the Windows 10 activation key saved in the BIOS.
One of these programs is Windows Keyfinder. Using this program is very simple, here we detail the steps to follow:
- Download the program from the website.
- Install Windows Keyfinder on your computer.
- Use the desktop shortcut to start the program.
- When the program starts running, it will automatically show the installed Windows version and the product key.
And that’s it, we recommend you save the information in a document and also on paper to have it accessible when you need it.
If you do not want to install an additional program, you can use the OEM Product Key Tool, a portable software that will allow you to easily or obtain the Windows activation license stored in the BIOS .
As this software does not require installation you can easily use it from a USB stick.
You only need to run the program so that it will immediately show you the Windows license installed on your computer.
As you can see, recovering the Windows 10 activation license is very easy to do and you have more than one method available to achieve it.
From now on it will no longer be a problem for you to obtain the Windows 10 activation key in case you need to reinstall the operating system.
Surely you will also be interested in knowing How to see the serial number of your computer from CMD. Don’t stop reading it!