Hey everyone! I'm planning a setup for my site, and I've always relied on KMS for corporate Windows activation. However, since WSUS was announced to reach end-of-life last September, I'm starting to wonder if KMS might be on the chopping block soon as well. What are you all using for Windows activation services these days? Is KMS still the go-to option, or should I consider alternatives? Thanks for your input!
4 Answers
KMS still works well, but I find ADBA to be superior for domain-joined devices because it doesn't necessitate maintaining an extra service. Also, don't forget about AVMA if you're using Hyper-V hosts; it works excellently there!
I've been employing ADBA since it launched back in 2012 for Windows Server 2012 and later. KMS was phased out when I got rid of the last Windows 7 and 2008 R2 hosts, and I just use MAK for the few off-domain systems I have.
I've been using Active Directory-based activation (ADBA) for years now, both for servers and endpoints. For those few clients that aren't connected to AD, I use a Multiple Activation Key (MAK) or keep a KMS server for them. It's been a solid choice for my setups!
KMS used to be our standard for server activations, but recently, we've started transitioning to ADBA for all our 2025 server installations. This method simplifies things since it doesn't require an extra service, but I'm a bit concerned about how it will work for our DMZ. We'll figure that out when the time comes!
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