Windows volume activation deployment guide

The VAMT provides an overview of the activation and licensing status of computers across your network, as shown in Figure Several prebuilt reports are also available to help you proactively manage licensing. The VAMT makes it easier to track the various keys that are issued to your organization.

The tool can also describe what type of key it is and to which product group it belongs. Figure 19 shows an example of key types and usage. If a product is not listed, no key is required. Call your Microsoft Activation Center. Keys are assigned to and intended for the sole use of your organization. You may be held responsible for unauthorized use of VLKs issued under your agreement, so be sure to keep your keys secure and do not disclose them to unauthorized parties.

If you use the VLSC, you should regularly review and update the user permissions. Note: Not all Volume Licensing products require a key. Product activation and key information Microsoft includes product activation technology in some products sold through the Volume Licensing channel.

Read More About Volume Activation. Downgrade the machine to Windows Server Volume activation is a configurable solution that helps automate and manage the product activation process on computers running Windows operating systems that have been licensed under a volume licensing program.

Volume activation is also used with other software from Microsoft most notably the Office suites that are sold under volume licensing agreements and that support volume activation. This guide provides information and step-by-step guidance to help you choose a volume activation method that suits your environment, and then to configure that solution successfully.

This guide describes the volume activation features and the tools to manage volume activation. Because most organizations will not immediately switch all computers to Windows 10, practical volume activation strategies must also take in to account how to work with the Windows 8. This guide discusses how the new volume activation tools can support earlier operating systems, but it does not discuss the tools that are provided with earlier operating system versions.

By doing so, you verify that operating systems and applications are genuine, have not been compromised, and will be supported. Volume Activation Services in can help you accomplish these tasks.

Product activation is the process of validating software with the manufacturer. Activation confirms the genuine status of a product and that the product key has not been compromised. In earlier versions of the Windows operating system, activation and validation using the Windows Genuine tool occurred separately.

This caused confusion for users who thought the terms were interchangeable. In Windows operating systems starting with Windows Server or Windows 8, activation and validation occur at the same time. For released versions of Windows client and server operating systems, licenses can be obtained through the following channels:. Retail Microsoft software products that are acquired through a retail store are individually licensed and come with one unique product key printed on the product packaging , which the user enters during product installation.

The computer uses this product key to complete activation after the software installation is complete. This final activation step can be accomplished online or by telephone. OEM activation is performed by associating the operating system to the firmware of the computer. This process occurs before the computer is sent to the customer so that the software is already activated and no additional actions are required by the user.

If customers want to create customized images, they can use the image provided by the OEM as the basis for creating custom images. Volume licensing A volume license is a product key that allows an organization to activate a specific number of clients to use a particular piece of software.

Microsoft Volume Licensing offers customized programs that are tailored to the size and purchasing preference of a variety of organizations.

To become a volume licensing customer, the organization needs to set up a volume license agreement with Microsoft. Activation is designed to be relatively transparent to users. However, the operating system must be activated immediately upon installation. Failure to activate the Windows operating systems will prevent users from completing customization.

Customers can use one or all three of the volume activation scenarios described earlier KMS, Active Directory-based activation, or MAK to activate systems in their environments. If you have a network where multiple versions of Windows client and server operating systems are deployed, you will probably want to use KMS to activate them.

KMS enables organizations to activate systems within their network, eliminating the need for individual computers to connect to Microsoft for product activation. To use KMS activation, the computer must have the qualifying operating system license often obtained through OEMs as part of a new computer purchase , and they must contain a Windows marker in the BIOS.