Frequently Asked Questions for product keys. (2024)

Most VLSC volume licensing key functions are now managed in Microsoft 365 admin center.See Volume Licensing Keys in Microsoft 365 admin center FAQ

A Product Key enables use of a software product you have licensed under a specific Volume Licensing program. The Product Keys listed in the VLSC should be used with only Volume License products and are intended for use by your organization only.

An Online Service Activation (OSA) Key is a type of Product Key. It is a single-use redemption key used to activate subscriptions to Microsoft Online Services.

For more information, review the Online Service Activation for Open programs FAQ here.

1. Sign into the VLSC Volume Licensing Service Center
2. Select Licenses > Relationship Summary > Licensing ID > Product Keys.

You will find product key information for each product, the type of licensing (Volume Licensing Key, KMS, and MAK) and the number of used and available Multiple Activation Key (MAK) activations.

You can also select the Download all product keys link to download the keys displayed for an entitlement to a local drive.

You can also locate product keys in VLSC for individual products on the Downloads and Keys tab in VLSC.

1. Sign into the VLSC Volume Licensing Service Center. Select Downloads and Keys > user will automatically be landed in Microsoft 365 admin center Downloads and Keys.
2. Sign into M365 admin center. Go to Billing > Your products > Volume licensing > Downloads & keys > hover on product and select View keys.

A Setup Key is used for each product/version combination to bypass activation (that is, unlock the product). You can obtain a Setup Key in one of the following ways:

1. Physical fulfillment - For products acquired through physical fulfillment, the Setup Key is printed on the media sleeve.
2. Download fulfillment - For products acquired by download from the VLSC, the Setup Key is displayed on the download screen and may be accompanied by the following text: Some products available for download require Setup Keys. Please take note of this Setup Key as it will be needed during product installation. For more on Setup Keys, visit KMS client setup keys.

Volume License Product Keys are provided for each Licensing ID listed in your Microsoft Relationship Summary. You may have several Licensing IDs:

• Enterprise Agreement (EA) and Select Plus customers receive Product Keys per product pool (Systems, Servers, and Applications).
• Select Agreement customers receive Product Keys per product pool (Systems, Servers, and Applications) based on their purchasing forecasts.
• Open License customers and Open Value customers receive applicable Product Keys based on their license purchases.

Volume activation is a configurable solution that helps automate and manage the product activation process on computers running Windows operating systems that have been licensed under a volume licensing program. Volume activation is also used with other software from Microsoft (most notably the Office suites) that are sold under volume licensing agreements and that support volume activation

• Tools to manage volume activation of Office
• Volume Activation for Windows 10

Volume Activation applies only to systems that are covered under a Volume Licensing program and is used strictly as a tool for activation. It is not tied to license invoicing or billing.

Volume Activation provides two different models for completing volume activations. Either or both key types may be used by customers to activate systems in their organization:

• Key Management Service (KMS) allows organizations to activate systems within their own network.
• Multiple Activation Key (MAK) activates systems on a one-time basis, using Microsoft's hosted activation services.

• For more information on Volume Activation, see the Volume Activation Planning Guide.
• Read the documents and review the videos related to Windows prior to deployment.

The Key Management Service (KMS) is an activation service that allows organizations to activate systems within their own network, eliminating the need for individual computers to connect to Microsoft for product activation. It does not require a dedicated system and can be easily co-hosted on a system that provides other services.

KMS requires a minimum number of either physical or virtual computers in a network environment. These minimums, called activation thresholds, are set so that they are easily met by Enterprise customers.

• Activation Thresholds for Windows
  • Your organization must have at least 5 computers to activate servers running Windows Server.
  • Your organization must have at least 25 computers to activate client systems running Windows.
• Activation Thresholds for Office
  • Your organization must have at least 5 computers running an edition of Office to activate installed Office products using KMS.

For more information about activation thresholds, see the Volume Activation Planning Guide.

KMS keys are no longer pre-assigned to Open agreements as use of MAK (Multiple Activation Key) keys is the preferred method for activation.

KSM keys can be assigned, by exception, to Open customers who meet the minimum KMS activation threshold for Windows Server, OS, and Office. To request such an exception, please submit a Web Form request to VLSC Support.

To do this, you must have VLSC Administrator, Key Administrator, or Key Viewer permissions and provide the following information:

1. Agreement / Enrollment Number or License ID and Authorization.
2. Product Name (include version and edition).
3. Last 5 characters of the product key.
4. The number of host activations required.
5. Business Justification or Reason for Deployment.

if you require additional KMS activations for activating more than six (6) KMS hosts, submit a Web Form request to VLSC Support.

To do this, you must have VLSC Administrator, Key Administrator, or Key Viewer permissions and provide the following information:

1. Agreement / Enrollment Number or License ID and Authorization.
2. Product Name (include version and edition).
3. Last 5 characters of the product key.
4. The number of host activations required.
5. Business Justification or Reason for Deployment.

A Multiple Activation Key (MAK) activates systems on a one-time basis, using Microsoft's hosted activation services (which requires connection with a Microsoft activation server). Once computers are activated, no further communication with Microsoft is required.

We recommend customers use Key Management Service (KMS) to activate Multiple Activation Keys (MAK). KMS is the preferred activation method for large scale deployments. Many factors determine the number of activations associated with each MAK, including licenses purchased, the customer purchase pricing level, and their Volume Licensing program.

The number of activations available for a product may not always match the number of licenses purchased. Usually you will receive a higher number of activations in case you need to reinstall and activate some of your products. Please check the Licensing Summary section of your agreement to see your number of licenses.

Increases to MAK Activation quantity can be requested via Web Form and may be granted by exception. For Canada and USA, use N.America MAK ADD Web Form

To do this you must have VLSC Administrator, Key Administrator, or Key Viewer permissions and provide the following information:

1. Agreement/Enrollment Number or License ID and Authorization.
2. Product Name (includes version and edition).
3. Last 5 characters of the product key.
4. The number of host activations required.
5. Business Justification or Reason for Deployment.

You can activate licenses in one of two ways using MAK:

• MAK Independent Activation - Each computer individually connects to Microsoft via the web or telephone to complete activation.
• MAK Proxy Activation - One centralized activation request is made on behalf of multiple computers with a single connection to Microsoft online or by telephone. This method uses the Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT), which is a part of the Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK). VAMT enables IT Professionals to automate and centrally manage the Volume Activation process using MAK and includes a check on the number of activations on the MAK.

Refer to the following resources for information on VAMT:

• Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) Technical Reference
• Managing Activation Using the Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT)
• Download Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT)

Refer to the following resources for assistance in determining which key to use when activating a Microsoft Volume License product:

Read these Microsoft documents about Windows licensing and activation prior to deploying Windows or Windows Server. Additional resources include this video on Fundamentals of Volume Activation.

If you deploy Windows using Key Management Service (KMS) as the activation method, note that:

• Windows Server is not supported as a KMS host to activate Windows.
• A patch is available to allow activation of Windows client machines. (A Windows Server KMS key is required.)

If you are using Windows Server as a KMS host, your alternatives are:

• Upgrade the KMS host machine to Windows Server.
• Downgrade the machine to Windows Server 2003.
• Run the KMS host on a Windows volume edition machine.
• Run a Windows Server virtual machine.

Yes, the following Volume Activation changes are related to Office, Project and Visio:

• Office KMS Host activates any Office suite or application.
• Only one Office KMS key needs to be installed and used for activation.

If you deploy Office using Key Management Service (KMS) as the activation method, note that:

• Windows Server is not supported as a KMS host to activate Office.
• A patch is not available to allow activation of Office clients.

If you are using Windows Server 2008 as a KMS host, your alternatives are:

• Upgrade the KMS host machine to Windows Server.
• Downgrade the machine to an older version of Windows Server.
• Run the KMS host on a Windows PC.
• Run a Windows Server virtual machine on a newer version of Windows Server.

After you download your Server media from the VLSC you can active it via the product's activation wizard and don't need to locate a volume license key or product set up key in the VLSC. Completing all the activation wizard steps will prompt the Server to connect with Microsoft's Clearing House via the internet in order to validate the information inputted. Alternatively, for Offline Servers the activation wizard offers Phone or Web Activation as alternatives.

To begin the process, you must first assign a Remote Desktop Licensing role for the server, (from your “Start” menu, go to “Administrative Tools”, then “Server Manager”) and then activate the RDS Service (from your Remote Desktop License Manager, click on your Start button, select “Administrative Tools”, select “Remote Desktop Services” and then select “Remote Desktop/Terminal License Manager).

During activation, you are requested to select the License Program and Agreement Number. Note for Open License customers, you should enter your Authorization Number. For MPSA, enter your Purchase Account Number (not the MPSA Agreement number). If you are unsure of the program type for the License ID under which your CAL licenses were purchased, go to the VLSC Relationship Summary and see the Parent Program column.

For information on the Licensing of Terminal Server go to Terminal Server licensing - Windows Server | Microsoft Docs.For information on how to install the Remote Desktop Licensing role and activate the license server go to Activate the Remote Desktop Services license server | Microsoft DocsTroubleshooting Cannot connect to RDS because no RD Licensing servers are available - Windows Server | Microsoft Docs

To activate Windows IoT Enterprise LTSC purchased via volume licensing, you will need to download the Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021 (x64) installation media and activate using an on-prem Key Management Service (KMS) key or a Multiple Activation Key (MAK).

See Windows IoT Enterprise LTSC in Volume License.

Yes. Re-imaging rights are granted to all Microsoft Volume Licensing customers. Under these rights, customers may re-image Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) or Full Packaged Product (FPP) licensed copies using media provided under their agreement as long as copies made from the Volume Licensing media are identical to the originally licensed product. As a Volume Licensing customer, the Volume License Keys you need can be found on the Product Key page. You can also request your keys through a Microsoft Activation Center.

For more information on Re-imaging Rights, see article on this page about reimaging rights.

The VLSC offers an option to download your Product Keys to a local file for later use. When downloaded from the Downloads and Keys page, the file contains all Volume License Keys associated with agreements in your VLSC profile. However, if you download keys from the Licensing ID specific view on the Relationship Summary page, the file contains only the keys associated with the Licensing ID you are viewing.

A downloadable Product Key file is in a tab-delimited format and can be opened in Excel to sort and view keys. You may also view the file using any text editor. The columns included in the file are: Licensing ID, Parent Program, Organization, Product, Product Key, Type, and MAK Activations-Used/Available. To open a downloaded file in Excel, complete the following steps:

1. Open Microsoft Excel.
2. Click File and then Open - select the downloaded CSV file.
3. Select Delimited (the default) and then select Tab-separated (to prevent the display of all data in a single column).
4. Click Finish. The .CSV file opens in Excel and the data is displayed in separate columns.

You can find more VLSC training resources on this site, including videos..