[SOLVED] Ok, so what's going on with the Windows licenses attached to my Microsoft account

[King_V]

Alright, so, the good news is that, I was able to successfully transfer a Windows 10 Pro license from an old Dell office machine (Optiplex 3020, working but has a physically damaged USB port) to Triple-V this week. Further, with Old Ironsides, I linked the OEM license (a single license purchased by the original owner of the motherboard) to my account as well.

Finally, at some time in the past, I had tied my Dell Inspiron 3647 Small Desktop's license (Win 10 Home OEM, but originally Windows 7 Home) to my Microsoft account as well.

So, this is what I have:

Computer	Operating System	Notes
Triple-V	Windows 10 Pro	Transfer from Optiplex 3020 OEM via "replaced hardware" option
Old Ironsides	Windows 10 Home	(originally Windows 7 Home)
Dell Inspiron 3647	Windows 10 Home	Dell OEM license, originally Windows 7 Home

My assumption was that Triple-V replaced the Optiplex 3020.

However, when I log into my Microsoft Account and look at my devices, this is what I see:

Computer	OS Edition	RAM
Triple-V	Windows Professional	32GB
Old Ironsides	Windows Core	8GB (but 16GB is installed)
Inspiron 3647	Windows 10 Home	8GB
Optiplex 3020	Windows 10 Professional	8GB

What is going on here? I'm confused as to a few issues

• Why do both Triple-V and the Optiplex 3020 exist in my account? I would've assumed that telling Windows on Triple-V that I have replaced hardware, and Windows ACCEPTING that, would have made Optiplex 3020 vanish. Should it have? If not, then why not?
• What is the difference between Windows Professional and Windows 10 Professional? Why is it designated differently on Triple-V, considering that the license was a transfer from Optiplex 3020 to Triple-V?
• Why is Old Ironsides limited to 8GB? I noticed on the Properties screen of the system that it lists 16GB as installed, but 7.96GB usable. CPU-Z, as well as the BIOS, also both agree that 16GB is installed in the system. Did I screw myself by linking the OS to my MS account?

Honestly, I was thinking of dropping Old Ironsides down to 8GB anyway, as I very rarely use the system, but this is all still really puzzling.

 

[tennis2]

• Not sure about the RAM issue. Is old ironsides an OEM mobo? Perhaps it has a mobo-induced RAM limit?
• You have to manually delete a machine from your MS account.
• (To the best of my knowledge) Deleting a machine from your MS account does NOT remove it's ability to be auto-activated on that same license via MS activation servers. Essentially you could still/now be concurrently using the same license for the 3020 and Triple-V.
  • I went through this predicament with my old system which I wanted to sell. Transferred the OS to my new build, wiped the old system's SSD, but the old machine could still grab activation (CPU/mobo/RAM/SSD were all sold together, so it wouldn't have gotten stuck/flagged for hardware changes). The only [sure-fire] way to get the old build off the license was to activate a new license on it before I sold it. That's pretty BS for anyone trying to sell old hardware since the OS license is effectively tied to it until it gets physically destroyed or until someone enters a new license key. I believe MS doesn't care much about having 2 systems concurrently activated on a single license, but I can't find anything official one way or the other. Apparently I'm getting old enough to get paranoid about the potential of a stranger "sharing" my license (who gets the license if MS decides to cut us apart?). If the old system were going to a family/friend, I probably would've let it ride. If you find anything more conclusive, let me know.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

when i've transferred license from one system to another the system has always been updated in my profile while the old system was removed.
this same license has been through 5-6 desktop builds now and, when just checking, it and my laptop are the only systems available under my MS profile's 'Devices'.

i would contact MS directly and have them edit the profile to the correct state.

 

[King_V]

• Not sure about the RAM issue. Is old ironsides an OEM mobo? Perhaps it has a mobo-induced RAM limit?

Nope, it was a machine they built, and the MB is an ASRock 970 Extreme4 ATX AM3+ board, and they had 16GB on it when I got it.

I could've sworn it was always fine about it, until I did a clean install yesterday and linked it to the MS account, but I couldn't say for absolute certain. I only happened to notice it, almost accidentally, when I was looking at other info on the PC.

• You have to manually delete a machine from your MS account.
• (To the best of my knowledge) Deleting a machine from your MS account does NOT remove it's ability to be auto-activated on that same license via MS activation servers. Essentially you could still/now be concurrently using the same license for the 3020 and Triple-V.
  • I went through this predicament with my old system which I wanted to sell. Transferred the OS to my new build, wiped the old system's SSD, but the old machine could still grab activation (CPU/mobo/RAM/SSD were all sold together, so it wouldn't have gotten stuck/flagged for hardware changes). The only [sure-fire] way to get the old build off the license was to activate a new license on it before I sold it. That's pretty BS for anyone trying to sell old hardware since the OS license is effectively tied to it until it gets physically destroyed or until someone enters a new license key. I believe MS doesn't care much about having 2 systems concurrently activated on a single license, but I can't find anything official one way or the other. Apparently I'm getting old enough to get paranoid about the potential of a stranger "sharing" my license (who gets the license if MS decides to cut us apart?). If the old system were going to a family/friend, I probably would've let it ride. If you find anything more conclusive, let me know.

Yeah, that is a bit strange... I mean, it may be a moot point considering that this particular 3020 has physical damage, though it's still technically usable, so that machine is just being used for parts.

That said, I have another 3020 that I may hijack for the license on a future PC, so I guess I'll have to figure it out at that point.

when i've transferred license from one system to another the system has always been updated in my profile while the old system was removed.
this same license has been through 5-6 desktop builds now and, when just checking, it and my laptop are the only systems available under my MS profile's 'Devices'.

Weird. Might be because I gave the new machine a specific name? Not sure..

i would contact MS directly and have them edit the profile to the correct state.

That sounds like a good idea, and is probably what I'll have to do.

 

[Colif]

I wonder why old one Ironsides seen as running windows core now. And not 10

Windows Core OS is the cornerstone of the new, modular operating system which will power the Surface Neo

Windows is no longer an operating system for only PCs, laptops and tablets. Core OS is the future of Windows.

www.techadvisor.com

maybe this - https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/device-experiences/oem-highly-secure

8gb makes no sense, its not a limitation of core os.
I can't find anything new on it - https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us...g-system/425e8d20-b335-4977-9559-d33f0b188d52

could be Windows Professional is the workstation version, as opposed to the "normal" Professional - link

What Is Windows 10 Pro for Workstations, and How Is It Different?

Microsoft has announced Windows 10 Pro for Workstations.

www.howtogeek.com

MS are only people who can fix mistakes

 

[King_V]

Bit of an update... got in touch with MS support (via chat system), was some back and forth, and they had me do an sfc /scannow and a DISM.exe (can't remember which options) on Old Ironsides. That made the license then, ultimately, show up on MS's site as Windows 10 Home instead of Core.

As to the Optiplex still being there after Triple-V got the license, they told me to just unlink the Optiplex and everything should be fine. I did so. The tech did assure me that no future use of the Optiplex's motherboard would hijack the license back away from Triple-V, so I guess I have to go with that.

Triple-V is still showing as "Windows Professional" instead of "Windows 10 Professional," but they didn't really have a clear answer on that, so
🤷‍♂️

EDIT: as to Old Ironsides' RAM issue, they suggested swapping the RAM. I thought that was weird, but I swapped the RAM sticks. That seems to have solved the problem. Another 🤷‍♂️ , but I guess maybe one of the RAM sticks wasn't quite seated 100% right.

EDIT 2: RAM swap I took to mean swap their positions, not put in different sticks. That it fixed it is what kind of puzzled me, but not looking a gift horse in the mouth and all...