Downgrading Windows 8.1 pro back to windows 8.1 regular

okay so my friend sent me a code for Windows 8.1 pro (I already had windows 8.1 but I thought I'd use it so I could try out hyper-v) and it all worked perfectly, apart from the fact that the code was only an activator code and now I need to enter another
code to get it to stop asking me to activate it, I'd be happy going back to windows 8.1 non-pro version but I just really need it to stop asking me to put in a code as it gets very frustrating while I am doing this on my pc. I know I shouldn't have used the
code without asking my friend if it worked properly or not but I just need to know if there is a way to downgrade back to what I used to have, thanks for the help!
I should also say that I am on a laptop that came with windows 8 already installed and have no product key for my original version

Hi,
Let make clear something.
Was the Windows 8.1 pro or Enterprise 64 bit on your computer?
Hyper-V is only available in the following versions of Windows:
• Windows 8 Pro 64-bit Edition
• Windows 8 Enterprise 64-bit Edition
• Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit Edition
• Windows 8.1 Enterprise 64-bit Edition
If your laptop came with Windows 8 or Windows 8.1, how did you enable Hyper-V?
Please don't use the shared key with others. The key is the unique license for one copy of Windows.
Meanwhile, please reset or refresh your PC to roll back to Windows 8 If you upgraded your PC from
Windows 8 to Windows 8.1 and your PC has a
Windows 8 recovery partition.
How to refresh, reset, or restore your PC
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-IN/windows-8/restore-refresh-reset-pc
Karen Hu
TechNet Community Support

Similar Messages

Crypto failure when upgrading Windows 8.1 Pro install to Windows 10 Tech Preview 10041

Has anybody experienced the following error when trying to upgrade a Windows 8.1 Pro install to Windows 10 Tech Preview 10041
crypto_self_test_failed
The system reboots twice both times with the same error and then reverts back to Windows 8.1 Pro. This occurs during the upgrade process. Windows 10 never installs.
Thoughts? Suggestions?
Thanks
Eric Sten

Hi Eric,
It seems to be the upgrade self-test fails.
For testing Windows 10, you may consider take use of Hyper-V and install a VM of Windows 10:
Step-By-Step: Creating and Running A Windows 10 VM on Windows 8.1
Or try a dual boot:
How to Dual Boot Between Windows 7 (or Windows 8.1) and Windows 10 Technical
Preview (VHDX)
Best regards
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they help, and unmark the answers if they provide no help. If you have feedback for TechNet Support, contact [email protected]

Windows 8.1 Pro activation with Windows 8 product key

I know there are a few discussions going around on here and various other forums about this topic but I am completely stuck.
I have a valid Windows 8 Pro (64bit) product key. I did a fresh install of Windows 8.1, not thinking too much about how my product key would be affected - after all, it's all the same major version of Windows right?
So I fresh installed, the product key error message came up and I got on the phone to Microsoft and tried to enter that 9-10 part massive activation key thing and got error messaged and then hung up on multiple times. I put this down to bad phone reception.
I went ahead and re-installed all of my apps and configured everything to how I like it.
This afternoon I again jumped on the phone to Microsoft and talked to a real person. He told me that I cannot use my 8.0 key with 8.1. Fair enough, I had a feeling this was coming. I asked for a way around this and he told me to reformat, install windows
8 and then upgrade to windows 8.1.
Seriously guys? wtf.
Does anyone know of a way around this, or if there WILL be a way around this in the near future? I'm not wasting another day backing up, re-formatting and re-installing everything onto my computer again just to upgrade and use my key that SHOULD work on
the same major version of an O/S.
Rohan

Milos, I have had time to look at your link but come up empty handed. I had previously tried this approach and kept getting the same "this key didn't work, please check it and try again, or try a different key" error message.
I used one of the generic keys during the install phase in the hope of doing this method but it hasn't worked out.
Do you have any other ideas?

Clean Windows 8.1 Pro install over Windows 8.1 SL

Hi,
I have a Lenovo H520g desktop, which came with Windows 8 Single Language installed. The machine is currently updated to Windows 8.1 Single Language.
As I am a software developer, I need to use Windows 8.1 Pro, because the SL version doesn't have Hyper-V, which is necessary to run the Windows Phone SDK emulator.
For the reason explained above, I would like hear the advice of an official Microsoft representative on the matter discussed on this topic.
I do know I can update from Windows 8.1 to Windows 8.1 Pro by using the "Add features to Windows 8.1" item on the Windows 8.1 Control Panel and buying the Windows 8,.1 Pro Pack. Nevertheless, I prefer buying the full retail version of Windows 8.1
Pro on a DVD from a local Microsoft reseller. I need a quick way to restore my machine in the case of a HDD failure and having the full retail DVD is definitely the best way to do that. If I upgrade by buying the Windows 8.1 Pro Pack, should my HDD ever failure,
I'll have to do the Lenovo restore procedure (which would restore the computer to Windows 8 SL), then upgrade to Windows 8.1 and only after that I could apply the Windows 8.1 Pro Pack.
My question is: will I be able to do a fresh install of Windows 8.1 Pro on my computer? Of course I'm aware I'll have to delete the partition Windows 8.1 is currently installed on. No problem with that.
But what about the license key? I've read that computers that come with Windows 8 pre-installed have the Windows license key embedded on the BIOS. Will I be able to start the standard Windows 8.1 Pro installation from the DVD and use the license key that comes
with the DVD?
It's very important for me being absolutely sure I'll be able to do a clean install of Windows 8.1 Pro on my Lenovo desktop. The Windows 8.1 Pro full retail DVD is rather expensive here in Brazil (about US$ 320).
Cheers,

Hi PauloBR1,
If you upgrade to Windows 8.1 Pro by Windows 8.1 Pro Pack,you can use
System Image Backup feature to backup your system.Also,you can use this feature to restore your system quickly.
In addition,britishdhez is right.
We can use the Retail license key to active the Windows 8.1 Pro.
Regards,
Kelvin Xu
TechNet Community Support

Enter file - new private window, FF opens new window, then immediately switches back to window that request was made from

Hit file - new private window, FF opens new window (not private) for about 5 seconds, then immediately switches back to window that requested the new private window. This happens on three different machines at my location, all with Win 7.

This happens in safe mode?
*[http://mzl.la/MwuO4X Firefox in safe mode]
Can you see what is the content of that tab?
Also:
*[http://mozilla.com/plugincheck Plugin check]

Reinstall windows 7 and then back to windows 8

Hi would like to reinstall windows 7 for the programs I missed.
What happen to me was I installed files for windows 7 not 8 and a720 crashed and when I installed windows 8 again some things were gone that I wanted to keep. The f2 key will not work after you install windows 8 and that fine.
I have windows 8 working fine now but what I want is to be able to reinstall back to factory and then upgrade to windows 8 again I understand this is what I need from your parts 51-29051 and would like to get this sent to me.
I still have the oem partition with the ork files but don't know how to use them at this time.
My thoughts are I should be able to set my a720 i5 back to the factory settings like how I bought it.
I never thought I would not be able to use onekey for this to happen.
Hope you can help after this I will call Lenovo and see what they can do.

What programs are you missing from W7 installation? If the preinstalled Lenovo software then it's not compatible with W8 anyway.

Can install directly Windows 8.1 Pro without upgrading Windows 8 Pro upgrade on Windows 7 Home Premium

Hi,
I have Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium OS which is pre-installed when I buy the Laptop.
I buy Windows 8 Pro upgrade before releasing Windows 8.1.
I formatted my Laptop and re-install Windows 7 64-bit and want to install directly Windows 8.1 without upgrading Windows 8 first then Windows 8.1.
Is this possible then please let me know where can I download Windows 8.1 and how I use Windows 8 Pro product key in Windows 8.1.ad
Thanks.
Best Regards
Syed Arshad

See http://m.winsupersite.com/windows-8/windows-81-tip-download-windows-81-iso-windows-8-product-key but note that you will need a
placeholder key to install Windows 8.1. Follow the comments on the article to find one.

What is the Windows 8 Pro/Windows 8.1 Pro OEM Downgrade Rights expiration date to Windows 7 Pro?

As per the title, what is the last date we can downgrade Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8.1 Pro OEM to Windows 7 Pro?
Thanks

Hi,
As far as I know,we haven't gotten any notifications about this issue.
Regarding downgrade rights,you can refer to the following article:
http://download.microsoft.com/download/6/8/9/68964284-864d-4a6d-aed9-f2c1f8f23e14/Downgrade_Rights.pdf
Meanwhile,if you would like further assistance about downgrade rights,please contact Customer Service Center:
http://support.microsoft.com/
Regards,
Kelvin hsu
TechNet Community Support

Clean installation of windows 8.1 pro on Thinkpad e550 activation problems.

I have installed a SSD hard drive and need a clean instalations of windows for development using multiple platforms.
My plan was to have a tri-boot on three partitions on a mbr formated drive.
-Windows 8.1 Pro 64bit;
-WIndows 8.1 Pro 32bit, and;
-WIndows 7 Ultimate 64bit using downgrade rights.
The following steps were used:
1. Switching the hard drive and cloning the oem copy to the first partition;
2. Activate windows getting the OEM key from the system (so I had no hardware changes);
3.Use the anytime upgrade in the system properties to upgrade to pro;
4.Clone the windows 7 OS from the old PC and place in on a partion;
5.Download both install media for windows 8.1 Pro from MS Creating Install media;
6. Create media as detailed here;
7. Modify the install to allow entry of key after install as shown here because pro license and oem keys where not acepted during install;
8.Went to BIOS. Turned on Legacy and disable secure boot;
9.Install Windows 8.1 both versions, and;
10. Repair boot to load all three OS.
Good, Now I have all three OS installed all working. However, The pro product key will not activate the windows 8.1 pro and the oem key won't be acepted saying it is the wrong version of windows.
So called MS activation line and they say i need to contact the OEM for activation and downgrade keys for 7 even though i paid for the upgrade through the MS store and the product was already activated once on the system.
Questions:
1. How can i activate the Windows 8.1 pro via Lenovo?
2. How can I activate the Windows 7 copy under downgrade rights with Windows 8.1 pro?
3. Am i missing something with the UEFI/BIOS? (Note:I need to use mbr not GPT format on the drive.)
I have switch the UEFI mode/duel modes during install without success.

EvanTPE550 wrote:
"Is a Win 7 32 virtual client an option?"
What VC are you using?
I use VMWare Player (free) and use it to create virtual clients as needed. Typically the virtual clients are "clean installs" from ISOs. VMWare has it so well mechanized that there's not much to it.
It's pretty quick and easy to install Player and give it a try. Another advantage to that approach is that there's only a single OS at the top level and backups can capture the whole mess w/out having to deal with 2 or 3 different OSs and their partitions.
Z.
The large print: please read the Community Participation Rules before posting. Include as much information as possible: model, machine type, operating system, and a descriptive subject line. Do not include personal information: serial number, telephone number, email address, etc. The fine print: I do not work for, nor do I speak for Lenovo. Unsolicited private messages will be ignored. ... GeezBlog
English Community Deutsche Community Comunidad en Español Русскоязычное Сообщество

Help Needed: Returning Back to Windows 8 after downgrading to Windows 7

Hi guys, im just new here.
I have a MSI GE40 gaming laptop which I bought 2 months back.
Within those 2 months of usage, I always encounter my laptop to be very slow in shutting down. It always take, maybe up to 10 minutes to fully shut down. The screen goes black but the power button stays on orange color, & as I said, it takes a long time for the power button to be completely unlit. But for start up, its blazing fast.
Thinking that windows 8 itself is the culprit of super slow shutting down, I searched the net on how to downgrade to windows 7.
Of course I did make a back up first on a 16gb usb flash drive using the pre-installed recovery software from MSI which was completed successfully.
Then I made some tweaks on the bios (ie select legacy & disable secure boot) & boot using windows 7 installation DVD, deleted all partitions (since the notebook comes with GPT partition) to be able to install windows 7. I installed all the drivers which I downloaded from MSI website specific to my notebook.
But the problem is not solved, it is still very slow in shutting down, & now even boot up becomes very slow too.
So I downloaded & execute the firmware & bios for windows 7 from msi website (again, specific to my model). But still the same, the notebook is still very slow both in shutting down & start up.
So I decided to go back again to windows 8, I tried to boot from the flash drive (I adjusted from the bios & make the flash drive to be the first priority) but it did not boot from it. I tried F11 on start up & selected to boot from usb flash drive but again, to no avail.
So the last one I did was downloaded windows 8, make a bootable flash drive out of it, boot from it and luckily, I succeed - I have now again a windows 8 msi ge40 laptop.
But I wanted my laptop to be reinstated to factory setting, i.e, all preinstalled softwares are there, the bios is default for windows 8. So I tried to update the bios to the one for windows 8 again (since I downgraded the bios to the one for windows 7 when I downgraded the OS to windows 7). But I could not update the bios, the laptop is not booting from usb flash drive containing the bios.
I tried also to recover using F3 on start up but the system does not recognize the flash drive (with system back up). I tried also on PC settings but to no avail.
Now guys, I need your help.
How can I return back my laptop to default factory settings?
Thank you.
(sorry for my not so good English)

Hello:
I think it's not only about the OS version, you need to return this back to your shop to repair with the slow shot down issue, because the OS should be shot down in 30 seconds, far from your GE40 times.

How can i get back to windows 8 if i downgrade my laptop to windows 7

My laptop was been downgrade from windows 8 to windows 7because of graphics not funtioning properly. how can i get back to windows 8 again? is there a recovery disc for this?

Hi:
Did you install the correct W7 x64 graphics driver that should work on your model?
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=ob-111285-1&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en...

Windows 8.1 pro N apps open and comes back to start again

I have just installed windows 8.1 pro N and I have got an issue. the issue is when I download any app from windows store it opens and comes back to start again. I had faced this problem before also.
I have made a video but cannot send the link

May I know if this issue happen to all apps?
Did you try to update your Windows?
I suspected this issue related to regional setting since you are using N version of Windows 8.1
Check your country or region setting
Step 1: Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Settings.)
Step 2: Tap or click Change PC settings.
Step 3: Tap or click Time and language, then tap Region and language.
Step 4: Under Country or region, look to see that your location is set correctly, and change it if it's not.
The app is no longer available in the Store
Maybe this app not available in your country
Family Safety settings or app locker might be hiding or lock apps
Contact apps developer if this only happen to spesific app

Windows 8-1 Pro retail OEM downgrade to Windows 7 Pro

I have just purchased 6 licenses of Windows 8.1 Pro OEM along with ACER desktops. On installation, I realised that one of my applications is not supported under Windows 8.1 Pro.
Please let me know my downgrade rights from Windows 8.1 Pro retail license to Windows 7 Pro license and also how to go about downgrading the systems.
skumar

Hello,
retail(FPP) licenses of Windows 8.1 pro are not qualified to downgrade it to Windows 7 pro. however, OEM prienstalled licenses allowed downgrade rights to Windows 7 pro.
more details about how to downgrade OEM licenses of Windows 87.1 pro on this link:
http://www.microsoft.com/OEM/en/licensing/sblicensing/Pages/downgrade_rights.aspx#fbid=5TYicMOm8K9
thanks
diramoh

Windows 7 Professional downgrade from Windows 8.1 Pro OEM

Hi,
I purchased new computers for a small business with Windows 8.1 Pro OEM licenses and disks. I was intending to install windows 7 Pro using downgrade rights but when I enter the product key that came with Windows 8.1 it gives me an error with "Invalid
Character".
How can I activate Windows 7 Pro using downgrade rights from Windows 8.1 Pro?
Thank you.
André Gomes

You cannot use a Windows 8.1 product key with a Windows 7 installation. You must "activate by phone" and hold on to speak with a Microsoft Activation
Specialist and explain your desire to invoke your downgrade rights to Windows 7. The Microsoft Activation Specialist will then review your request and if approved, will issue you an activation code for Windows 7.
Carey Frisch

How to revert back to windows 7 home premium 64bit from windows 7 pro 64bit. Window 7 home premium came preinstalled on my dell inspiron N4110

Please assist me; I need to revert back to windows 7 home premium service pack 1 running a 64 bit system from windows 7 pro service pack 1 running a 64 bit system. Windows 7 home premium came preinstalled on my dell Inspiron N4110. I added
4GB of DDR3 1333MHZ speed memory. My processor is a Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-2330M CPU @ 2.20GHz 2.20GHz.
FYI the windows 7 pro disk and key don't match and pro expires in a few days.
Thanks for your assistance

Hi clinvestigations,
I recommend posting your question in the
Windows 7 forums. The forum where you posted this is focused on discussing general software architecture.
Esther Fan | Visual Studio | If a post answers your question, please mark it as the answer. Thanks!

Downgrading Windows 8.1 pro back to windows 8.1 regular

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for