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Activate Windows 10 using Previous Windows 7 Product key without installing win 7 again

I have original Windows 7 product key.Once I've updated windows 7 pro to windows 10 pro and activated.But now I have to format my hard drive and install fresh clean copy of windows 10 pro once again and activate with windows 7 product key without installing windows 7 once again and upgrade it to windows 10 again.
Can we format drive C: and clean install windows 10 and activate it with previous windows 7 product key (without installing win 7 again) ?
Please reply with supportive answer thank you.
Hi,

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community.
I understand that you would like to know if you can perform a clean reinstall Windows 10 instead of upgrading from Windows 7.

Yes. Once you’ve upgraded to Windows 10 using the free upgrade offer, you can reinstall or perform a clean installation on the same device. You won’t need a product key to re-activate Windows 10 on the same hardware. For more info on how to create your own Windows 10 installation media, go to the following link.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
 
Hope this answers your question. Post back if you need further assistance. We’ll be glad to assist you.

Thank you.

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Thank you 

Azaruddin Syed very much for you quick reply.But to get more clear if you don't mind please tell me if I have updated windows 10 then I format(wipe out entire C: drive)  the hard disk, should I have to reinstall fresh copy of windows 7 with valid product key to upgrade it to Windows 10? or instead of that , Since I 've already updated to win 10,

Can  I undoubtedly  format the hard drive and only install fresh copy of win10  then activate with previous win 7 product key? 
I have windows 10 build 10240 and I burned it to dvd using media creation tool.
(Note: I am not updating from Windows 10,I want to Format hard drive and install fresh copy of windows 10 then activate with windows 7 product key,Currently I am using windows 10 pro which has been update from windows 7 pro ,now I want to wipe out my current OS and reinstall again this is not regarding repair or troubleshoot ,just format and install then activate with old win7 key. Should I download

Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 10547 ?

).
Need a reply ASAP.
Thank you.

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Hi,

Thank you for keeping us posted.

I would like to inform you that if you upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10 and the copy of windows 10 is activated, then after formatting hard drive also you don't have to reinstall the copy of windows 10 again.
 
Hope, this information helps.
 
Please get back to us with updated status, we will be happy to assist you.

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No what I asked was  . Should I install windows 7 again  and activated then upgrade  to windows 10  or now onward can I install windows 10 directly after format C:\ drive and activated with WIN 7 product key.
Note that currently my PC is running with  Windows 10 which has been upgraded from activated Windows 7 already.
I am going wipe out entire C:\ drive.

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Hi,

Thank you for keeping us updated on this query. We will assist you in resolving your issue.

If you format C: drive, you do not have to activate your copy of Windows 7 prior to upgrading Windows 10. 

After upgrading from Windows 7, your copy of Windows 10 would have been activated already. So when you format the C: drive, there is no need to activate your copy of Windows 7 to activate Windows 10. You can install Windows 10 anytime after formatting the drive, if it was already activated once on your device.

Hope this answers your query!

We will be  happy to assist you with any issues pertaining to Windows.

Thank you. 

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Thnx for the quick reply.Microsoft given one year of period to get free upgrade from windows 7 to windows 10 ,assume we might have to format upgraded windows 10 and install windows 10 again but given free upgrading period has been expired , so what will happen then? can we activate windows 10 with previous key (because we've already upgraded our win 7 to win 10 within given period) ?
Once we upgrade our windows 7 to windows 10 given period,is it permanent activation key for windows 10 ?  format and install clean fresh windows 10 won't affect?

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Hi,

Thank you for posting your query in Microsoft Community.
I'd be glad to help you.

Product Activation was first introduced into the Windows family with the release of Windows XP in 2001. Activation pairs your product key with your computer. It is also used as a mechanism for copy protection in addition to defining support rights depending on the product channel from which the software was acquired: Retail, OEM, Volume License, Trial. With Windows 10, Microsoft has made huge announcements regarding product distribution. The most notable being that Windows 10 will be free to existing Windows 7, 8/8.1 users for the first year. Regardless of this, product activation remains a part of Windows 10. In this article, we take a look at product activation and troubleshooting steps.

Let’s try to refer to the article, created by Andre Da Costa, replied on January 26, 2015, in the below mentioned link, for further assistance and check, if it works

How to Activate and resolve common Product key issues in Windows 10.

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/insider/wiki/insider_wintp-insider_install/how-to-activate-and-resolve-common-product-key/33f31475-93b3-4d1c-812f-4b21fbd807a7

Please feel free to contact us, if you face any issues with Windows.

Thank you.

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Thank you  AntonyJose .
You mentioned - "The most notable being that Windows 10 will be free to existing Windows 7, 8/8.1 users for the first year." ,so what will happen after the first year ?

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Last updated March 11, 2022 Views 6,423 Applies to: