this post was submitted on 28 Sep 2023
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You can buy a used mini PC for less than the price of a new Windows 11 license. I know there are cheaper license sites out there (unclear how legit they are) but this way you get a Windows license and a spare PC to run Linux!
There could be a bit of a caveat here. I when I purchased my laptop it had windows 10 installed. When I installed Mint, I could not reuse that key in a VM because it was “different hardware”. The license, could not be transferred under any circumstance. I had also purchased the upgrade to Pro through the windows store. That’s also lost.
I seldom run windows, even in the VM, but it still leaves one a bit bitter.
I reused a Win10 Pro key from a mini PC from 2015 onto a brand new build and it worked right away. Not sure what the difference is with your situation. Maybe it was your license type?
Laptop licences are linked to the hardware. You technically do not have a key to begin with.
It was the license that came on an Acer laptop. Completely non transferable per Microsoft.