I manage around 300 Windows 10 Enterprise devices, but unfortunately, they don't have any internet access. We have valid Multiple Activation Keys (MAK), but can't activate them online. I'm looking for a supported method to activate these devices offline, ideally through an SCCM package. I've also looked into the Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT), but it's not viable since TCP 135 and the necessary dynamic RPC ports are blocked from the server where VAMT is installed. What would be the best approach for offline activation in this case? Should I consider KMS, SCCM-based activation scripts, or perhaps other methods? Any advice or best practices would be greatly appreciated!
2 Answers
Since your environment is air-gapped, you’ll primarily rely on MAK keys here. KMS requires internet to activate itself and also to stay updated, which rules it out for you. You have two options in an offline scenario: licensing the hypervisor or licensing each VM. Licensing per hypervisor is cheaper but ties the VMs to a specific host, while per VM is more flexible but costs more.
It’s a bit unusual to have so many PCs without internet access. If you're looking for a solution, traditionally Microsoft would suggest using their activation hotline for these situations. It used to allow phone activations, but that may have changed to online only now, which could complicate things for you.
Right, our setup definitely doesn’t allow for online communications. Luckily, we have a KMS server that is internet-enabled.