VirtualBox Windows 10 64 bit question

[Liam Proven]

On Wed, 10 Nov 2021 at 10:33, Ralf Mardorf via ubuntu-users
<ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com> wrote:
>
> The web provides "activated" installs by ISO files.

This is true but they are pirate copies and are often infested with
viruses and other malware such as cryptocurrency miner apps. I advise
against them.

Win10 is pretty usable without activation; it's much less crippled
than older versions, because MS eventually realised that penalising
pirates by denying them security updates means MS created a huge pool
of out-of-date Windows machines to act as a malware reservoir and an
army of volunteer botnet troops.

So instead, unactivated Win10 won't let you set the wallpaper, change
the theme, customise the taskbar, etc.

Secondly, Win10 even today will happily activate using Win7/8/8.1
keys, or upgrade activated 7/8/8.1 and activate itself.  The free
upgrade programme never ended and is still running in 2021.

It also activates from MS keys embedded in the firmware of most UEFI
computers (though that does not work on VMs).

Something I tested out once but do *NOT* use and do not recommend is
that you can install something old and easily-cracked, such as Win7 or
8.1, activate it with a crack, then upgrade it to Win10. This gives
you an activated copy of Win10. Then record the new key it has
generated, using Produkey or something, offline. Write it on a piece
of paper with a pen like it was the 20th century.

Then format the machine, erasing all traces of the crack, and
reinstall a clean copy of Win10. Activate it using the key from the
1st pass.

Result, clean, activated Win10 with clean key and no malware.

I don't advocate this but I tried it a few years ago on a sacrificial
machine and it worked. I nuked the copy of Windows and replaced it
with Mint and gave the machine away, so I don't know if the key later
expires or something.

-- 
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