Windows 7 keys & windows 10 keys - are they the same ?

[Tim Kohler]

every time i run windows repair. my copy of windows 7 de-validates itself. it works fine until that. I dont know why it happens. It installs fine. whatever. it was a disk i was given , and i have no idea if it was legit to begin with. with that being said, i need to buy one. so, im torn. I went online to see that the copy of windows 7 ultimate ive been using costs $250 ? what OS costs $250 ? on the MS website itself. i thought that cant be right, windows 10 is only $120.

so if i buy a windows 10 key - can i continue to use windows 7 ?
i really dont like the new interface. too ipod for my tastes. hopefully it becomes more intuitive by service pack 1. if not, will any windows 7 key work as i have a "unactivated" version of windows 7 ultimate x64 installed ? windows update should fix whatever is missing or wrong right ?

i seen product keys online for $35 , but im not surer of its authenticity. I want to pay around $70 from a reputable online store , if thats possible. I cant seem to find a good search line, or i am looking in all the wrong places, because it all comes back with no-name retailers, or the wrong thing. or help blogs, ect.

thanks.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

You're comparing the 'all bells and whistles' Ultimate to a basic windows. Of course one's going to be more expensive.

For 7 Ultimate, you'll only be able to use a 7 Ultimate key.

I'd suggest buying this and reinstalling. The feature differences aren't something you're likely to notice unless you're in an enterprise environment.

Yeah, those $35 key places are shady as hell.

 

[Tim Kohler]

it says supports up to 16gig ram... i have 32... is this an installer ? id rather buy a digital copy if at all possible.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Oh... you'll need professional then. Or any version of 8 or 10; they removed the 16GiB limit after 7.

You can't get a digital download from anyone but MS, and they won't sell you anything but 10. That's a disk.

 

[Tim Kohler]

thank you, i will probably just re-install my disk if it comes to that., and hope i dont have any boot problems, if i cant get a digital copy. i got an iso for 10 on my ssd if i have to end up going that route. man, someone really shot some holes in their security. i cant get my other HDD to pass the windows logo screen now or even boot into safe mode, and that one has no key problems. power surge took out my psu, mobo, and the c:\ wont boot for some reason now. so i cobbled this contraption together from parts until my RMAs come. do you think if i cleared CMOS it would boot ? sfc showed no errors. i know thats off topic, but the "not genuine" thing seems to be messing with my regular use.

 

[BadAsAl]

Just to clear things up. You are not legit unless you have a COA from Microsoft either on your computer or on the package that the disk came with.
So someone gave you a $250 piece of software that you have been using for free. Every computer I have ever come across with Ultimate on it was not legit. Very few people pay for that version of Windows. My guess is you had to run a little program after install to activate it?

If you want to run Windows 7 and Windows 10 you will need a license for both, regardless of how you do that (dual boot, virtual machine, etc.).

 

[Tim Kohler]

you cant have dual boot with win 7 n win 10 on the same key with digital upgrade ? bogus

my disc asks what version of windows i want to install. i always thought it was a help desk disc or something, or a MS cert tech tool.

 

[BadAsAl]

Dual boot is essentially having 2 computers, so that is why you have to license both OS's.
Try licensing servers, it will make your head spin with all the cores and processors, etc.!

There are a lot of different types of install disks out there. I have one that has every version of Windows 7 on it. As far as I know it is okay to have this as the license key determines legitimacy.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

One key of windows, one install. Deleting a previous install allows you to re-use the key, though on certain types of key it can only be used on that PC.

Microsoft doesn't give out any-version discs (except 10), but they're pretty easy to make and not useful. However, I suspect that if you google your key you'll get results - it's 95% certain pirated.