Can I activate Windows 10 with a Windows 11 Digital License?

Riley 1

Hi,

My organization is about to be purchasing new laptops for our upcoming refresh cycle. We purchase through a authorized reseller of Dell, and purchase Windows Pro licenses with the PC at this time in the form of a digital license.

From there, we image it with our base image, which activates fine because of the digital license. I know Windows 11 will activate just fine digitally with license keys all the way back to Windows 7. I'm wondering if that works the other way around as well since new laptops are being offered with Windows 11 Pro. Would I be able to "Downgrade" by putting our current base image that is Windows 10 Pro and have it activate successfully as normal with a Windows 11 Pro Digital License? We are not quite ready to update our base image for probably 6 months or so and by then all of this next fiscal years refreshes will be purchased.

Thanks in advance!

3 answers

Docs 15,146 Reputation points

2022-03-12T02:48:55.387+00:00

Can I activate Windows 10 with a Windows 11 Digital License?

Yes.

You can clean install an OEM Windows 11 and install Windows 10.

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2 people found this answer helpful.
Get Wrecked 1 Reputation point

2022-06-17T19:45:52.633+00:00

thank you for a clear and precise answer, unlike other community folk spitting out info that was never tested.
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Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP

2021-11-10T14:59:16.947+00:00

We purchase through a authorized reseller of Dell, and purchase Windows Pro licenses with the PC at this time in the form of a digital license

Your Dell rep or the Dell forums will be your best resource for licensing questions.

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Riley Jones 1 Reputation point

2021-11-10T15:23:03.397+00:00

@Dave Patrick

I guess I should have taken Dell out of the equation, I was just giving some context.

A more simple question would be will a Windows computer with Windows 11 preinstalled be able to be downgraded to Windows 10 and retain the digital license?

Thanks!

Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP

2021-11-10T15:27:37.837+00:00

a Windows computer with Windows 11 preinstalled be able to be downgraded

Doesn't change really, this is still a question for the OEM to answer. OEM's are bound under contract with microsoft to provide support for the products they sell.

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Riley Jones 1 Reputation point

2021-11-10T15:35:16.383+00:00

I still don't see how this is an OEM question. I'm asking about windows licensing, not support for the licensing.

I simply want to know if I had a computer that was activated with Windows 11, will that license be recognized in Windows 10. Ever since Windows 8, the hardware retains the license and will activate just fine in the event of a reinstall of your OS as long as it is recognized that the hardware was activated using a Windows 7 and above key. The only time it needs to be re-validated with a product key is usually with a motherboard swap.

Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP

2021-11-10T15:44:14.377+00:00

I fully understand the question but microsoft licensing is almost never simple. We here wouldn't know what agreements were made between Dell and microsoft with regard to this digital license. I was just suggesting to take the question direct to the source (Dell) for the most accurate answer.

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Dave Patrick 426.1K Reputation points MVP

2021-11-11T12:49:37.59+00:00

Just checking if there's any progress or updates?

--please don't forget to upvote and Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--
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Limitless Technology 39,371 Reputation points

2021-11-11T10:36:32.88+00:00

Hi RiggyPC,

Thank you for your question.

Windows 11 Digital License is generally not possible to activate on any other edition of Windows, for reasons of being different editions. However, imagine the following scenario:

You have windows 10 and want to upgrade to windows 11, windows 10 in your case is already activated, when the change to windows 11 occurs it will be activated, because the change occurred in an update and not an activation process, understand?

In addition, I recommend that you check the topic below, which will deal with licenses and other issues that can help you better understand the scenario:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/frequently-asked-questions-windows-11/c97076fc-f361-44ec-9a01-33029ffaa987

If the answer is helpful, please vote positively and accept the answer.
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Get Wrecked 1 Reputation point

2022-06-17T19:46:24.517+00:00

you should test before you say false info - thats how people stop listening to you
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