Overview
This is a collection rather than a single program. Several separate activation utilities, each handling a different situation, gathered into one launcher with a plain list of what does what. Most images on this site arrive with licensing already applied and do not need any of it. This package exists for the ones that do not, and for machines where an existing install has lost its licence state after a hardware change or a repair install.
It runs portable, so nothing is installed and nothing is left behind when the folder is deleted. Every scanner on earth flags this package, because a tool that rewrites licence state is indistinguishable from tampering by any reasonable definition. That is expected rather than a sign of a problem with this particular copy.
What is in the collection
The launcher lists each utility with a short description. There is a general purpose tool for the volume licensing path, one for the digital licence path that ties to the hardware rather than a key, a licence state inspector for finding out what a machine currently thinks it has, and several smaller tools for specific product families.
The inspector is the one to open first. It tells you the current edition, channel and licence status, which usually makes it obvious which of the other tools is the right one. Guessing and running them in sequence is the common mistake and the usual cause of a machine ending up in a worse state than it started.
Using it safely
Create a restore point before running anything. This is not optional advice. The tools rewrite system licence state, and while a failure is uncommon, recovering from one without a restore point means a reinstall.
Real time protection has to be suspended for the duration, and the folder needs an exclusion if you intend to keep it. Re enable protection immediately afterwards. Run the launcher as administrator, since none of the tools can do anything useful without it.
When it is the wrong answer
If a build from this site is described as preactivated, it does not need this and running it anyway can undo a working state. Check the activation page in settings first.
If a machine came with a manufacturer licence embedded in its firmware, a clean install of the same edition will activate on its own with no tool involved. Reinstalling the matching edition is the correct fix there.
What you get
- Several activation utilities collected behind one launcher
- Licence state inspector for reading the current edition, channel and status
- Volume licensing path handled
- Digital licence path tied to hardware rather than a key
- Separate tools for specific product families
- Fully portable, nothing installed and nothing left behind
- English and Russian interface
- Works on 32 and 64 bit systems
- Offline operation with no network requirement
Inside the archive
- Launcher with the full utility list
- Licence state inspector
- Product family specific tools
- Readme covering which tool suits which situation
System requirements
| Operating system | Windows 7 or newer, 32 or 64-bit |
|---|---|
| Processor | Any current x86 or x64 processor |
| Memory | 512 MB |
| Storage | 150 MB unpacked |
| Rights | Administrator, required by every tool in the package |
| Other | Real time protection suspended during use |
Installing it
- Create a system restore point before doing anything else.
- Suspend real time protection and add the unpacked folder as an exclusion.
- Unpack the archive. Nothing is installed.
- Run the launcher as administrator and open the licence state inspector first.
- Pick the single tool that matches what the inspector reported. Do not run them in sequence.
Mirrors
| Route | Region | Note | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct, primary | Europe | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Direct, secondary | North America | No wait, resumable | Online |
| Torrent magnet | Global | Not needed at this size | Online |
Release history
- Support added for the current Windows feature update
- Licence inspector now reports the channel correctly on repair installs
- Two obsolete tools removed from the launcher
- Fixed the launcher failing to start from a path with spaces
- Updated the readme with the inspector first workflow
- Launcher rebuilt with a plain description for each tool
Questions about this release
Do I need this for the images on this site?
Usually not. Anything described as preactivated already carries its licence state. Check the activation page in settings first.
Why does every scanner flag it?
Because rewriting system licence state is what it does, and that is indistinguishable from tampering to a scanner. Suspend protection, run it, re enable protection.
Which tool should I run?
Open the inspector, read what it reports, then pick the single matching tool. Running several in sequence is how machines end up in a worse state.
Does it install anything?
No. It is portable and leaves nothing behind when the folder is deleted.
Comments
Restore point advice is worth following. Took two minutes and I did not need it, but still.
Portable, no installer, folder deleted afterwards. Exactly what it says.
Comments are read before they appear. If a build stops working, say so here and it gets rebuilt rather than quietly left up.
Motherboard swap wiped the licence state. Inspector told me which path, one tool, done in a minute.