Upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro

[mmp09]

Hi,
I have recently purchased a Chuwi laptop which has come with Windows 11 Home preinstalled OEM OS.

I want to test Pro version on it (without activation for the time being) but for the moment I do not want to buy a key. I also want to avoid clean install because Chuwi support has not provided any software installer downloads which are sort of bundleware in the existing image. I lose those apps if I do clean install.

Is there a way to do in-place upgrade from Home to Pro in such a way that while running Setup.exe it allows me to choose the version? Or is there any other way probably using generic key for the time being.

Chuwi support does not have their own space on their servers. They use Mediafire servers to offer downloads. Their downloads are missing installer exe files. All they provide is OS image which is Home edition.

Thx.

 

[USAFRet]

What features in WIn 11 Pro do you think you need?

The performance is basically identical.

 

[mmp09]

gpeditor, rdp, bitlocker etc

The basic questions is - Is it possible to do it that way?
I know clean install and activation. But that's what I want to avoid due to unavailability of apps.

 

[USAFRet]

gpeditor, rdp, bitlocker etc

The basic questions is - Is it possible to do it that way?
I know clean install and activation. But that's what I want to avoid due to unavailability of apps.

And those are valid functions for Pro.

Will that procedure work? Completely unknown.
The BIOS in your laptop may default to a WIN 11 HOME install, even during a full wipe and reinstall, or on a whole new drive.

But you can obtain the MediaCreation tool to build a valid WIn 11 install USB, and see if it works.

Download Windows 11

 

[SkyNetRising]

The basic questions is - Is it possible to do it that way?
I know clean install and activation. But that's what I want to avoid due to unavailability of apps.

You input a valid Pro key to upgrade to pro version.
There are default generic keys for pro version. Those will not allow activation though.

Using Default/Generic Product Keys to Install Windows 10

Generic/Default product keys for Windows 10 can be used in a variety of circumstances, including volume licensing and bulk installation, testing and evaluation, VM setup, and as part of the upgrade process from earlier versions of Windows. This list of keys has been put together to help KMS...

www.sysnative.com

 

[punkncat]

This is simply my take and opinion on the challenge this presents.

I would purchase a suitable cheap storage drive and do a clean install of the Pro version sans license, and take it for a test drive before commiting to attempting this on the OS and drive this laptop came with. You could use this as an opportunity for a better or bigger drive as your needs suit. I would keep the original drive and OS sitting by while you test drive and certainly before trying to register the new OS by hardware ID or tying to your MS account.

IF you decide you don't like it, could well result in paying for another license that was paid for with the hardware in the first place.

 

[SkyNetRising]

If laptop was sold with windows 11 home preinstalled, then
most likely windows key is stored in BIOS.
Windows installation doesn't ask for key in this situation and Home version will be automatically installed.
You can not install Pro version directly. You can only upgrade from Home to Pro by entering a valid Pro key.

 

[mmp09]

Thank you all.

@USAFRet @SkyNetRising - You can override the BIOS key by using ei.cfg config file. This is explained by MS long ago. But so far it has worked well during clean installs only.
Further, in 'change product key' section in Settings - System, generic pro key is not acceptable to Windows. It does not proceed further with generic key even if the existing Home version is activated.

@punkncat - As I tried to mention before, the chance of losing the bundled apps for which vendor has absolutely no support is the primary concern. So I am checking if inplace upgrade from home to pro is possible or not. I have done clean installs a number of times otherwise. So it's not strictly Pro related issues that I am testing. What I want to make sure is it gets to Pro properly and all apps & drivers remain intact as there's no separate exe to install them.
Had the vendor provided exe or msi or applicable installable, then this requirement wouldn't have come into picture at all. It's bit unusual but that's how Chuwi support works so far.

 

[USAFRet]

Our main question out here comes from:
"I have recently purchased a Chuwi laptop..."

We know little or nothing about their BIOS and how restrictive its properties are.
At least I do not.


What might these bundled apps be?
How critical are they to the operation of the laptop, or your workflow?

A direct inplace upgrade to Pro might just be in order.

 

[punkncat]

You are saying that the manufacturer doesn't have, and you don't have "restore disk" or installation media for the vanilla build of this computer? Is there a partition you are supposed to have burned or something?
What happens in the case of drive failure with this PC?

I am not familiar with the specifics of this device, so perhaps am speaking out of turn.

 

[mmp09]

Thank you all. English is not my first language. It seems I still have not been able to explain clearly what I wanted to do.

Nevertheless, I have succeeded in whatever I wanted to achieve by using pid txt.
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