Do Cheap Windows 10 License Keys from eBay Work?
Recently, there has been a surge of very cheap Microsoft Windows 10 license keys on eBay, Amazon and other online stores. Everyone wonders, do these keys work and are those legit? The answer is, they do work, but are not the legitimate Windows license keys. These license keys are exploiting Microsoft licensing rules, and are sort of piracy.
We are not lawyers and this text isn’t legal advice on Windows 10 product licensing.
For the purpose of this article we downloaded Windows 10 from Microsoft website, installed it on two machines and went straight to eBay where we bought two Windows 10 Professional licenses from two random sellers.
Keys arrived via eBay message system within two hours. We went to Settings -> Update & Security -> Activation – > Enter Product Key and copy/pasted our Windows 10 Professional license keys there.
After a couple of seconds, Windows 10 connected to Microsoft servers and verified our keys as valid and voilà – Windows was activated for less than $5, quite different from $90 which is what Microsoft sells it for.
Both machines were activated and working…
So, one would say this system works, but legality of the licenses is questionable.
To find more about what licenses we’ve got and how these guys can sell it for so cheap, we tried digging into Microsoft licensing system.
As it is known, Microsoft has three types of license for Windows 10 Pro systems:
- Retail license
This is the license and a key for Windows 10, which you get when you buy it directly from Microsoft store or any other software retail store. - OEM license
This is the license Microsoft gives to hardware manufacturers. Basically, they build machines with preinstalled and activated Windows 10 copies. Key is tied up with the given machine and cannot be moved or transferred to another machine. - Volume Licensing (MAK/KMS)
Large companies and enterprises can decide to buy Volume licensing keys from Microsoft. Those are the keys sold in bulk for the need of the company. MAK version of the keys can be used only once, while KMS can be used multiple times.
Further, we opened command prompt in Windows 10 and entered following command:
slmgr -dli
After pressing “Enter” we got the following message:
As you can see, the first key we bought is obviously Volume licensing (MAK) key which means it can only be used once (eBay seller stated the same thing). The real problem here is that Microsoft does not allow resale of Volume license keys, so our key is obviously not in line with the MS licensing rules.
This means the following: as soon as Microsoft finds out that a company is reselling their Volume license keys it will disable the whole batch, basically company keys will get banned and your Windows install will ask for new activation.
In our case this hasn’t happened yet. It’s two months after the activation and Windows is still working. Updates, and everything else, works perfectly.
Our second key turned out to be a Retail key…
This looks good in the beginning, but after more investigating it we figured that this license is Microsoft Software Developer Network (MSDN) or MS TechNet license.
These are technically “Retail” licenses, but are not intended for sale or resale. These licenses are for developers and IT people who pay certain subscription to Microsoft and have specific reasons to use them. Also, these licenses never expire. However, these can only be installed up to N times, and as soon as they are installed more than N times, Microsoft will block them for abuse.
Besides these, it seems that on eBay, you can buy the OEM licenses for a similar price. Sellers claim that these are refurbished licenses, but buying these is technically not legal, especially if you are buying just the key. These licenses need to accompany specific hardware and you should not use them with anything else, neither you can transfer those to another PC.
In conclusion, all of these cheap eBay Windows 10 licenses are sort of pirated licenses. Technically, this works and you can activate your copy of Windows, but it’s not a moral thing to do, and there is no warranty.
If you buy these licenses from Amazon or eBay, your Windows might work for 10 days or 5 years, it all depends how soon Microsoft will catch the reseller who broke their licensing rules and suspend his keys and consequently, the key you bought.
There are users on Tomshardware and Reddit, who reported that their Windows license was deactivated in less than six months, but many users claim they bought licenses couple of years ago and these still work… So, it is practically gambling.
We will update this article when our cheap eBay license expires or Microsoft blocks it.
Are cheap Windows 11/10 keys legit? Do they work?
There are some websites on the internet that claim to sell original Windows keys for a nominal price. How do they get such Windows 11/10 keys for less? Are such grey market keys legal and safe? Do they work? In this post, we will discuss these aspects of cheap Windows 10 keys.
The cost of Windows 10 in the Microsoft Store is around $199 for Windows 10 Pro and $139 for Windows 10 Home.
But some websites, identify the countries where cheap Windows 10 key are available.
They then purchase some keys at a low price like $10 or $20!
These Windows keys may look legal, but they are not. Microsoft has priced Windows OS at different rates in different countries. There are reasons why Microsoft has different pricing for different countries. These reasons are based on the currency strength of the countries and some other factors. Besides, the law is different for digital purchases in different countries.
It is not legit to buy a cheap Windows 11/10 key from such websites. Microsoft does not endorse it and will file a lawsuit against the people behind such websites if it finds out the websites that sell such keys and bulk deactivate all such leaked keys.
How do they sell Windows key at such low prices?
Cheap Windows 11/10 keys could be:
- Keys bought from a country where prices are lower
- MAK or KMS keys
- OEM keys
- Used keys
- Keys for Student & other groups
- Pirated versions.
One method is buying from a country whose currency is weaker and selling them to other countries where the currency is stronger. That looks legit but is not.
Do not fall into a trap where you get Windows keys by paying as low as $5 to $10. Those are usually MAK or KMS keys. MAK keys are used to activate a specific number of devices. The count is pre-configured as a deal between Microsoft and Enterprise. Also, Enterprises use a KMS key using which they need to configure an in-house server using Microsoft’s Software Licensing Service. Such keys are bought it the bulk and then sold cheaply online.
Leaked OEM keys too are purchased by some websites who then sell dozens of copies to unsuspecting people.
Used or 2nd-hand keys can also find their way to this grey market. These in all, likelihood could work.
Microsoft offers keys to students, teachers, and other groups free or at discounts. Such keys can also find their way into this grey market.
Then there are cracks and patches available too, but they are illegal.
You should know that already and stay away from them. This might even compromise your computer.
Read: How long can you use Windows 10 without Activation?
Do cheap Windows 11/10 keys work?
If you have purchased a cheap Windows 11/10 key from any website other than Microsoft and partner websites, you have to make sure that the keys are being sold legally. Microsoft makes it very clear which websites are their partner websites and legal. You should always buy a valid or legit Windows license key. Buy it only from Microsoft or their official partner sites.
The keys will work as long as they are not caught. Once Microsoft finds out that the key is not legal, they’ll show you a message that you may have purchased an illegal key. You can continue using it even after you get the message, but most elements of original software are blocked. And there will be a watermark everywhere saying”, “This copy of Windows is not genuine.” Besides, you may also receive a legal notice from Microsoft.
Read: How to check if the Windows Key is Genuine or Legit?
Amazon and eBay too sell low priced keys, but they may or may not be illegal. There may be people or entities selling original Windows 10 keys on suche eCommerce sites. You have to make sure you are not being tricked into purchasing illegal Windows 11/10 key. If the price looks too less compared to the key cost in your country, it may be a con seller. If you are buying on these sites, make sure that you are buying from an official Microsoft or their partner account.
Summary
Cheap Windows 11/10 key may not work right from the beginning, or it may work for a while and then stop, or if you are lucky, it may end up working for long! But know that the key you are using may not be legit. And for those reasons, we recommend that you always buy genuine Windows product keys from the Microsoft Store or one of their official Partners.
Don’t fall for such tricks. The cheap Windows key you purchased on a third-party website is likely not legal.
These grey market keys carry the risk of getting caught, and once it is caught, it is over. If luck favors you, you may get some time to use it. You may go undetected for a week, month, or year, or maybe also for a lifetime – and that a choice you will have to make.
Your views, thoughts, comments, observations?
Date: Tags: Product License
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Arun Kumar has been a Microsoft MVP (2010-12). He is obsessed with technology, especially the Internet. He deals with the multimedia content needs of training and corporate houses.
Get a Windows Product Key for Cheap — Network Administration
by adminPosted on
If you want to buy a copy of Windows 10 directly from Microsoft, you pay $119.99 for Home and $199.99 for Pro on the Microsoft Store.
If you’re looking to buy a copy of a previous version of Windows, you’re out of luck as Microsoft no longer offers them for sale.
Retailers like Amazon may offer discounts and OEM versions in addition, but you will still spend a significant amount to get a license. You can also get copies of previous versions of Windows there.
While you can pay $100 or more for a Windows 7 Pro product key, or a little less if you choose the system builder version instead, you’re still paying a lot of money for the operating system itself.
If you point your web browser to eBay’s online marketplace, however, you may notice that product keys can be obtained for less than $20.
Offers typically include the following claims:
- The product key is genuine and has never been used before.
- Activation for life.
- Updates are working.
- Licenses come from third-party Microsoft resellers (which usually means OEM/System Builder versions).
I decided to make a couple of test purchases to check the claims. First, the buying process itself has been great for all the purchases I’ve made (1 Windows 10 Pro, 1 Windows 8 Pro, 1 Windows 7 Pro, 1 Windows 10 Enterprise).
Most of the keys were sent to me in less than an hour after I made the payment, one arrived in less than 2 minutes after I pressed the payment button.
You only receive a product key with these purchases. Depending on the jurisdiction, vendors explicitly state that they are not selling operating system licenses, but only product keys.
Most vendors provide you with links to Microsoft servers from which you can download the operating system.
The product keys activated just fine — I haven’t tried Enterprise yet — and the operating systems have been working fine for the last couple of weeks without any problems.
Activation worked locally without having to contact Microsoft Activation Support to obtain an activation key.
While this is true, it is not possible to confirm right now whether the OS will remain activated for the next ten years or so. This comes with little risk since you cannot verify the source of the license.
A couple of observations:
- You can buy product keys for previous versions of Windows on marketplaces like eBay.
- The current rate is between $10 and $15 per product key.
- In addition to the regular Home and Pro editions, the Enterprise editions are also offered at roughly the same price as the Pro editions.
Before buying, it is important to check the seller on the marketplace. While this is not a guarantee that the keys will not be revoked later, it does make it less likely that this will happen.
Withdrawal
Purchasing product keys on eBay and other marketplaces involves some risk, as you may receive a deactivated key after a while.
On the other hand, you get a product key for cheap and get keys for operating systems that Microsoft no longer sells or sells to non-commercial customers.
Now it’s your turn : Would you buy a product key without eBay (or yours)?
Posted in Interesting
What are OEM keys and is it worth buying them?
- Post author: Vladislav Pavlov0070 Windows
When shopping online, many users soon find cheap versions of Windows 10 on sale. This can be very tempting, especially if you want to upgrade from Windows 7 when support has ended. Some of the inexpensive versions will no doubt be questionable, while others seem legitimate. So, in this article we will tell you what OEM keys are and should you buy them for your PC?
What is an OEM license?
Many of the cheap versions you’ll see on eBay and other links will be so-called OEM versions. OEM stands for «Original Equipment Manufacturer» and applies to PC and component companies. New desktops and laptops usually include a copy of Windows so you can use them right after you buy them.
While most OEM versions end up preinstalled on the PC, they can also be bought as license keys from places like eBay or Amazon. This is a common practice for users who like to build their own gaming PCs or buy used devices without an operating system.
How is an OEM license different from a retail version of Windows?
Most people never buy a copy of Windows itself. They buy a Windows computer and think about it last.
But those who still want to purchase an operating system often opt for the retail version. They are either sold in standard software packaging in stores and hence called boxed copies, or available online as a download and license key.
When used, there is no difference between OEM and retail versions. Both are full versions of the operating system and, as such, include all the features, updates, and functionality you would expect from Windows.
They part ways in two important areas: support and flexibility.
When you buy an OEM copy, you are essentially taking on the role of the manufacturer of your device.
This means that if you run into hardware compatibility issues or experience activation issues, contacting Microsoft for help will likely end up asking you to contact your device manufacturer. Which, of course, in this case, is you!
The second important difference is that when you buy a retail copy of Windows, you can use it on multiple PCs, although not at the same time, the OEM version is tied to the hardware it was first activated on.
This may not seem like a major problem, but if you decide to replace the motherboard on your PC, then you will most likely also have to pay for a new copy of Windows, since the old one will not be reactivated on the new hardware.
Should I buy a cheap OEM key?
There is nothing illegal in buying an OEM key as long as it is an official key. There are many legitimate sites on the internet that deal with this type of software.
Just be sure to read the description carefully and check the user ratings before spending any money.