Hey everyone,
I recently bought some Panel PCs from a seller in China who uses an activation tool that isn't legitimate. Each unit has a Microsoft Certificate of Authenticity (COA) with unique serial numbers attached. To clean up these machines and remove any unwanted tools, I downloaded the Windows 10 IoT LTSC Enterprise ISO directly from Microsoft and did a fresh install. I didn't enter a product key during installation and never activated it manually. Surprisingly, the Windows OS activated itself without any online account.
After installing, I ran a PowerShell script to perform Windows updates and change language settings. I'm now wondering how I can verify if the COA sticker and the activated serial numbers are legitimate. When I run commands like `slmgr /dli` and `slmgr /xpr`, they seem fine, but out of 6 Panel PCs, only 4 activated automatically. What steps can I take to really ensure the authenticity of these licenses?
4 Answers
Haha, you're definitely in a unique situation! But I'd say don't stress too much about it; just enjoy your devices while they work! 🌟
If the PCs were activated before and you just reinstalled the same version, they should stay activated with no intervention required. It's designed that way for a smooth transition after such an update.
You’re probably looking at some chaotic but functional setup. If the other 4 Panel PCs have COA stickers and are just chilling, you've got a laid-back scenario where Windows is like, 'Eh, good enough'. It’s definitely not the worst thing considering the past activation issues with those devices.
You might want to check if there's a product key embedded in the UEFI firmware. You can pull it using PowerShell with this command: `(Get-WmiObject -query 'select * from SoftwareLicensingService').OA3xOriginalProductKey`. This will give you a good indication if the key is tied to a legitimate license. If it shows a valid key, there's a good chance you've got a legitimate setup.
I tried checking both activated and non-activated PCs but got empty results for the key. So it doesn’t always mean there’s one present.
Absolutely! Most devices come with SLIC keys in UEFI that auto-activate with a Digital License. Since Windows 10 is at the end of its lifecycle now, activation being 'legit' isn't going to be a big issue for you regardless.