Students keeping laptops once they leave school

[mwild]

My school is looking into options for students to purchase laptops they use in school. 
 

Do other schools do this and if so what is the process when the student leaves school?

 

My question is more on the technical side as currently all school devices have a school build and when I test a factory reset the new Windows install is insisting on a school userid so a personal microsoft id cannot be used.
How do other schools deal with this to allow the student to have a working windows build at home when they leave school?

 

[Steve101]

How would that work with windows licensing? Assuming you would need to wipe the device and put windows home edition on it?

[mwild]

2 minutes ago, Steve101 said:

How would that work with windows licensing? Assuming you would need to wipe the device and put windows home edition on it?

That is why I am asking here to see what other's do (e.g.is the bios key valid etc). I know other schools do similar schemes so there must be options.
 

[DalekSec]

Make sure to wipe it and check your license, along with removing from various MDMS

 

If license doesn't pass over point out cost of license or Ubuntu it! 

[Fazza]

You need to get one and test if installing the original version of Windows gets licenced via the Key in the BIOS/EUFI and then get the drivers installed etc. and see how much time it is going to take to get the students to return the laptops to you, test them and reinstall Windows etc.

 

Then you need to get ready for them asking where Microsoft Office, Adobe Suite and any other piece of software they assumed would be on there are as they had access to it at the School/Academy and then whey it develops a hardware fault in the coming weeks how will you deal with that?

 

We avoid selling any computers for these reasons.

[JazzFlute]

52 minutes ago, Fazza said:

You need to get one and test if installing the original version of Windows gets licenced via the Key in the BIOS/EUFI and then get the drivers installed etc. and see how much time it is going to take to get the students to return the laptops to you, test them and reinstall Windows etc.

 

Then you need to get ready for them asking where Microsoft Office, Adobe Suite and any other piece of software they assumed would be on there are as they had access to it at the School/Academy and then whey it develops a hardware fault in the coming weeks how will you deal with that?

 

We avoid selling any computers for these reasons.

 

 

Yes this and more! by the time you strip it all back and remove licensed programs etc. then your left with a browser and even selling them at a nominal cost is a loss making exercise when you factor in time spent on them doing all the work.

[2ilent8cho]

When ever purchase of old equipment comes up here we are told it cannot be purchased because of VAT fraud, ie we buy them, claim the VAT back and then if we allow them to be purchased from us in a few years VAT won't have been charged and  it opens up a whole can of worms of financial regulations.. So we just don't allow old equipment to be purchased. I'm not sure if 'donations' are the way around this. 

[mwild]

11 minutes ago, JazzFlute said:

 

 

Yes this and more! by the time you strip it all back and remove licensed programs etc. then your left with a browser and even selling them at a nominal cost is a loss making exercise when you factor in time spent on them doing all the work.

All valid observations and all part of the discussion I have had / am having which is why I am asking if anyone is actually doing this. I can see schools are but not the details of how they manage this technically.

 

It seems the only way would be to reinstall a completely new Windows home install on all laptops with all the time/issues that goes with that.

[JazzFlute]

Just now, mwild said:

All valid observations and all part of the discussion I have had / am having which is why I am asking if anyone is actually doing this. I can see schools are but not the details of how they manage this technically.

 

It seems the only way would be to reinstall a completely new Windows home install on all laptops with all the time/issues that goes with that.

 

I have done it on the odd occasion with headteachers permission for SEN or "needy" students to help them out but nothing on a bulk scale

[mwild]

2 minutes ago, JazzFlute said:

 

I have done it on the odd occasion with headteachers permission for SEN or "needy" students to help them out but nothing on a bulk scale

And how did you do that? Did you have to install a copy of windows home? Thanks.

Edited June 25, 2025 by mwild

[JazzFlute]

3 minutes ago, mwild said:

And how did you do that? Did you have to install a copy of windows home? Thanks.

 

Yes and it should activate ok using bios windows key if Windows came preinstalled but i know others have had problems activating it this way with bios issues, if lucky its all ok if not that's more hours to diagnose to fix the problem.  In theory its a plausible way to give out old tech to children in need but in reality its time consuming and you'll end up with a product the end user will likely say "is that it" 🤣

[buzzard]

I've done this by flattening them once you've deleted any hardware hash from MDM/Autopilot\Cloud systems etc, and had a task sequence  in MDT to put on the licenced edition of the OS (I bought all devices with pro), I then had a script fire as a step to grab the OS key from the BIOS and then activate it. Then given as is with no warranty etc. This obviously depends on there being an OS key embedded!

 

<# 
Reads Windows OA3 product key from BIOS/UEFI and installs the key and activates Windows
Written by Ben Drew 2017
#>

$ProductKey = (Get-WmiObject -Class SoftwareLicensingService).OA3xOriginalProductKey
Invoke-Expression "cscript /b C:\Windows\System32\slmgr.vbs -ipk $Productkey" 
Start-Sleep 5
Invoke-Expression "cscript /b C:\Windows\System32\slmgr.vbs -ato"

 

[MartinT]

It's very important that you insist on the budget reflecting sales of old laptops.  Otherwise, your fleet will keep shrinking and they'll give you some cobblers about not being able to afford new ones.

 

No budget compensation?  No selling off of old laptops.