install windows 10 without a product key free
Windows 10 has developed well since its launch in the fall of 2015. Nevertheless, Microsoft has far not convinced all users to switch to the current system. If you are still skeptical about whether Windows 10 is an improvement or not, we have good news: You can try the latest Microsoft operating system for free and completely legal! You even have more than one option to choose from. Compared to Windows 7 times, Microsoft is now much more flexible when it comes to testing new software. So you can officially test Windows 10 as a ready-made virtual machine, as an extended enterprise edition, or even as a “real” installation without a product key. We show you how it works.
- Install Windows 10 without a product key
- Install Windows 10 for free as a virtual machine
- Try Windows 10 Enterprise for free
Install Windows 10 without a product key
You can also temporarily install Windows 10 without entering a product key, bypassing activation for a maximum of 30 days. However, this is only legal if you already have a suitable license. To do this, simply click the ” I do not have a product key ” link during installation when he asks for the activation key . You can then continue to set up Windows 10 as normal and use the system on your computer.
Unlike its predecessors, Windows 10 allows installation without entering a product key.
Such a Windows installation on real hardware is fully functional and can (unlike the enterprise solution above) permanently use. After a period of 30 days , Windows 10 requires you to enter a valid product key to activate the system at Microsoft. Already before, various functions are disabled, such as the customization of the taskbar or the Windows design. Otherwise, Windows behaves normally and gets the important security updates. To catch up with the installation key, open the Windows 10 settings and navigate to the ” Update and Security – Activation ” section. Click ” Change Product Key ” and enter the key that activates your edition of Windows 10.
Install Windows 10 for free as a virtual machine
One of the easiest ways to try a new operating system is to use a virtual machine. The system runs in a program window on another computer, which acts as “host”. What sounds complicated is quite easy to implement in practice – especially if the related files are available for free. This is exactly what Microsoft is doing with Windows 10: the Windows makers are making the current system available as a ready-made virtual machine for download for free. The corresponding images are available for various virtualization solutions, such as VMWare , Parallels and the completely free for private users VirtualBox. That way, you can even try Windows 10 on another operating system like Linux. Simply visit the following website: https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/tools/vms/ . Here you select the entry ” MSEdge on Win10 ” with ” Virtual Machine ” and afterwards with ” Select platform ” your virtualization solution. Then click on ” Download ZIP ” to start the approximately 4.3 gigabyte download. Incidentally, the virtual machines always contain the latest edition of Windows 10, so you do not have to manually install the large updates to install windows 10 without a product key free.
Microsoft offers Windows 10 as a virtual machine for free download.
After download unzip the ZIP file . After that you have to import the finished virtual machine into the program of your choice. For VirtualBox, you can do this by clicking ” File – Import Appliance ” in the start menu, for example. Now navigate to the folder (in this case with an “OVA” file) and select it. Once the import is complete, you can start the free Windows 10 VM. This can run for 90 days without restrictions. Then you can simply download a new VM from the linked page and repeat the import.With ” Settings – Language & Input ” you can change the Windows system language from English to your language.
Thanks to Microsoft’s free VMs, you can also test Windows 10 on other operating systems, such as macOS.
Try Windows 10 Enterprise for free
Testing Windows 10 in a virtual environment gives a good idea of the system. However, even on fast hardware, virtual machines generally work slower than “real” installations. An alternative Microsoft provides with the evaluation edition of Windows 10 Enterprise . Although it is aimed at companies, it can also be downloaded and tested as a private individual. To do this, visit this link https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/evaluate-windows-10-enterprise and fill in the form under ” Start the Evaluation “. You can then download an ISO file from Windows 10 Enterprise and burn it to a bootable USB stick or DVD, for example. This allows you to install the Enterprise Edition of Windows 10 on a desktop PC or laptop and test it in a real environment for 90 days without any restrictions. Despite enterprise-centric Enterprise Centering, Windows 10 works just as well as the Home or Pro edition. So you get a good idea of the performance of Windows 10 and can decide whether you want to switch to the new system or not, with install windows 10 without a product key free solution.
Microsoft is offering the enterprise edition of Windows 10 for a free 90-day trial for download.
A major disadvantage of this method: After the 90-day trial period, you can no longer use the Windows installation . Windows 10 Enterprise then shuts down automatically after one hour. In other words, if you decide to switch to Windows 10, you’ll need to get back to scratch with a Home or Pro installation. This method is especially suitable if you can install Windows 10 via dual-boot or have a test PC available. If this is not the case, it is better to use the VM application described above.
To permanently use Windows 10 legally, you can not avoid being activated by a product key.
