Stuart_C Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 I've already got a KMS server running activating Win7 and 2008R2. However it doens't seem to activate Win8. Now i've found this little KB article, Update adds support for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 to Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS hosts with a patch and some isntructions which all looks fine however it sat that I need to improt a KMS host key for Win8 or Server 2012 activation using the command cscript %windir%\system32\slmgr.vbs /ipk What exacly am I putting in the bit. Is it simply the KMS ket from my windows Volume licencing site or is there something else I should be looking for?
andy_nic Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 we just rebuilt our server with 2012, but before I did look in to this as we were running kms on 2008R2 I believe you need to put a server 2012 kms type B key in. as a windows 8 kms key would only activate clients 8 and below. and type b does servers as well as clients. I found the information about this subject very vague at times.
FN-GM Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 I used a server KMS key and it activates both server and 7 no problem. Can a 2012 key activate Windows 7?
andy_nic Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 The windows 7 ones here are still activated and a new machine I built has activated after we rebuilt the server.
Arthur Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 Can a 2012 key activate Windows 7? Yes (Vista too ). 1
Stuart_C Posted October 30, 2012 Author Posted October 30, 2012 So presumably I am going to need to buy a server 2012 licence then to the the KMS key. I presume that when I install it on my 2008 R2 server that server will keep running.
SYNACK Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 So presumably I am going to need to buy a server 2012 licence then to the the KMS key. I presume that when I install it on my 2008 R2 server that server will keep running. You could also use a Windows 8 VM as the KMS server, it just has to keep running and I'm sure theres probably a way to add it to other KMS keys.
AngryTechnician Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 (edited) Another option might be to look into Active Directory-Based Activation EDIT: Unfortunately it requires a Server 2012 domain schema, so not as useful in this scenario as I first thought. When the user joins their computer to the domain, the ADBA object automatically activates Windows installed on their computer, as long as the computer has a Generic Volume License Key (GVLK) installed. No single physical computer is required to act as the activation object, because it is distributed throughout the domain. Edited October 30, 2012 by AngryTechnician
FN-GM Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 Yes (Vista too ). Do activations of Windows 7 machines count towards activatations of Windows 8 machines? For example could i have 1 Windows 8 machine on the domain activated with KMS sitting with the other 700 Windows 7 machines? Thanks
Arthur Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 (edited) For example could I have 1 Windows 8 machine on the domain activated with KMS sitting with the other 700 Windows 7 machines? That should be fine. As long as you have 25 (or more) clients in total activating through KMS, you can have as many different combinations of Windows 7 & 8 PCs as you want. Edited October 30, 2012 by Arthur
FN-GM Posted October 30, 2012 Posted October 30, 2012 That should be fine. As long as you have 25 (or more) clients in total activating through KMS, you can have as many different combinations of Windows 7 & 8 PCs as you want. Thanks - Just need SCCM 2012 SP1 to come out so i can start supporting them!
FN-GM Posted November 1, 2012 Posted November 1, 2012 @Arthur is it the same for Office 2013? Can office 2013 KMS activate Office 2010 please?
k-strider Posted November 1, 2012 Posted November 1, 2012 i updated my kms server with the office 2013 preview key and any office 2010 copies still activate just fine
AngryTechnician Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 Just an FYI: I've now deployed the Office 2013 RTM KMS host licence, and while the Office 2010 installs are still fine, the activation threshold doesn't carry over to Office 2013, so you will still need at least five Office 2013 installs before they start activating, even if you have hundreds of Office 2010 installs activating from the same KMS server. 2
FN-GM Posted November 7, 2012 Posted November 7, 2012 Its odd that Office 2013 doesnt carry over but Windows 8 does.
SYNACK Posted November 8, 2012 Posted November 8, 2012 Its odd that Office 2013 doesnt carry over but Windows 8 does. I guess 5 is a lot less than 25 so they used different rules.
OverWorked Posted November 12, 2012 Posted November 12, 2012 So presumably I am going to need to buy a server 2012 licence then to the the KMS key. I presume that when I install it on my 2008 R2 server that server will keep running. If you have volume licensing and access to the VLSC, you should be able to get a Server 2012 KMS key from there, even though you're might not be licensed to actually install Server 2012. I can see a 2012 KMS key on mine, even though I haven't bought any licenses (is it just me?). Someone please shout if I've got this wrong.
OverWorked Posted November 12, 2012 Posted November 12, 2012 This explains it. It's not updated for 2012, but I think it's still the same. Server Standard/Enterprise editions are class B in the heirarchy, so they will activate anything below. How to Choose the Right Volume License Key for Windows
OverWorked Posted November 15, 2012 Posted November 15, 2012 (edited) Just an FYI: I've now deployed the Office 2013 RTM KMS host licence, and while the Office 2010 installs are still fine, the activation threshold doesn't carry over to Office 2013, so you will still need at least five Office 2013 installs before they start activating, even if you have hundreds of Office 2010 installs activating from the same KMS server. The Office 2010 and 2013 keys are separate. I've just upgraded my Office 2010 KMS host to do Office 2013 and added the key. Looking on the Volume Activation Management Tool 2.0, the server now has 2 Office keys: one for Office 2010 and one for 2013. So it would explain why the activation count is separate. Edited November 15, 2012 by OverWorked
FN-GM Posted December 28, 2012 Posted December 28, 2012 The Office 2010 and 2013 keys are separate. I've just upgraded my Office 2010 KMS host to do Office 2013 and added the key. Looking on the Volume Activation Management Tool 2.0, the server now has 2 Office keys: one for Office 2010 and one for 2013. So it would explain why the activation count is separate. @OverWorked Just to confirm i have 2 do KMS twice one for 2013 and one for 2010? Thanks
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