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My laptop had Windows 8 pre-installed, and now I need to know the product key, how do I find it?

Tina S
2014-05-01 16:12:51
This article should answer your question: 4 Places To Find Your Windows 8 Product Key
Dalsan M
2014-04-30 21:22:09
You shouldn't have to enter the product key when installing Windows 8 or 8.1 on a computer that originally came with it. As Bruce mentioned, it is embedded in the BIOS. This meant that a that I bought online, which was refurbished but did not have an installed operating system, only needed me to use a Windows 8 installation disk to install and activate Windows (the computer was a Windows 8 machine). This would not work for a Windows 7 or previous version machine, including if the computer originally had Windows 7 but was upgraded to Windows 8 or 8.1.The tools listed in the link, including Magic Jellybean, would be able to get the product key for you should you need it.
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Danijel Jovanovic
2014-04-30 20:42:23
@Bruce E - actually he doesnt need to have recovery discs if laptop manufacturer preinstaled OS. In that case its just important to launch windows OEM instalation or VL instalation so he can skip ''enter product key'' part and finsih instalation. When install finishes,windows activator will automaticly get key from BIOS and activation will be done with no problem.
Bruce E
2014-05-01 05:27:21
The entire question of any discs other than the laptop's hard drive and recovery partition came up because of the way OP phrased the question which could indicate that the drive may have been reformatted, replaced, etc. In that case, the system recovery discs or a Windows 8 OEM installation disc is required. It must be OEM though. A VL installation disc will not allow activation with the OEM key embedded in the BIOS and it may not even allow the OS to install.
Craig S
2014-04-30 10:47:54
Check everywhere on your laptop, especially the bottom, to see if there's a Windows sticker on it. It should have the key on that. If not, there's really no other way you're going to get a key for an OEM install. There is a way to obtain the key if you still have Windows actively installed on your system. Check this post for more details: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-portable-applications-to-help-you-find-serial-keys-on-your-pc-windows/
Bruce E
2014-04-30 13:13:09
Booting the system with another Windows OS and using one of the tools in the above article should still give you the Win8 product key since it is embedded into the BIOS. That is where MS pulls it from when performing a OS reset and activation/reactivation.Even if the original OS was wiped from the system, including the recovery partition, if the user created recovery discs (DVDs) before wiping the system, he should be able to use those to reinstall on the system and restore it to its original working condition without needing to ever have the product key in his hand.I was able to do the exact same thing after a hard drive crash in my sister's laptop. Just put in the new drive, used the recovery discs to rebuild the recovery partition and the system reinstalled the OS without the need for me to enter a product key. Once the system rebooted, I ran through OOBE and applied all of the current updates. Activation happened automatically. No muss, no fuss.
Hovsep A
2014-04-30 08:07:30
check if there is a sticker on your laptop.what do you mean by had, is windows 8 erased?