A semi-transparent notice stays in the bottom-right corner of your screen.

The easiest way to activate is right at the start. When you are installing Windows 10 from a USB or DVD, the setup wizard will prompt you to enter your .

If you've purchased Windows 10:

Running an unactivated version of Windows 10 comes with several drawbacks:

Activating Windows 10 allows you to:

If you previously activated Windows 10 on the same PC:

If your PC came with Windows 10 pre-installed, you likely do not need to enter a key manually; it will activate automatically once connected to the internet via Digital Entitlement .

If you recently replaced your motherboard, Windows might think it's a new computer. In this case, use the Activation Troubleshooter found in the Activation settings menu. Is it safe to use "Free" Activators?