Windows 8 PRO/ and ENT x64 and X86 VOLUME leaks!


Recommended Posts

Quick Question

I just got done downloading 64 bit of windows 8 Pro and I'm planning on upgrading my current Windows 7 Ultimate to it. Will the keys you guys provided will work? Which key is going to work for me. I plan on buying a key once its Oct. let me know. Thanks

Your windows 7 key wont work to activate this, you can upgrade windows 7 to windows 8 when its released in October to the public. In October your just need to buy windows 8 upgrade and place the key into this windows 8 activation via the activate option.

The keys with this release are Core, Pro normal (the one your most likely want) and MCE (you might be upgrading to this it will cost a little extra?) so install windows 8 with one of the 3 keys. but choose the key for the one your going to upgrade to when you buy it legit.

The keys provided wont activate windows it will just allow you to install windows 8 and features. so you cant install windows 8 pro with a MCE key provided and then just buy w8 upgrade without Media center and activate it. But if you installed windows 8 without media center using the key and you buy windows 8 without media center the key will then work.

In any case you cant activate this only install it! your have to wait till October regardless of your choice.

Please take a read of the official windows blog regarding upgrading windows 8 http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2012/07/02/upgrade-to-windows-8-pro-for-39-99.aspx

Your windows 7 key wont work to activate this, you can upgrade windows 7 to windows 8 when its released in October to the public. In October your just need to buy windows 8 upgrade and place the key into this windows 8 activation via the activate option.

The keys with this release are Core, Pro normal (the one your most likely want) and MCE (you might be upgrading to this it will cost a little extra?) so install windows 8 with one of the 3 keys. but choose the key for the one your going to upgrade to when you buy it legit.

The keys provided wont activate windows it will just allow you to install windows 8 and features. so you cant install windows 8 pro with a MCE key provided and then just buy w8 upgrade without Media center and activate it. But if you installed windows 8 without media center using the key and you buy windows 8 without media center the key will then work.

In any case you cant activate this only install it! your have to wait till October regardless of your choice.

Please take a read of the official windows blog regarding upgrading windows 8 http://windowsteambl...-for-39-99.aspx

Thanks for the info but I never mention about using my Windows 7 key to activate Windows. All I know of are the 3 keys for installations. All I was asking if those keys will work still even if I did a upgrade and not a clean install. I am going to buy the upgrade package for 39.99 in oct. I just rather use RTM now

Thanks for the info but I never mention about using my Windows 7 key to activate Windows. All I know of are the 3 keys for installations. All I was asking if those keys will work still even if I did a upgrade and not a clean install. I am going to buy the upgrade package for 39.99 in oct. I just rather use RTM now

Why not give it a go? Someone over at MDL couldn't get it to allow him to keep files and programs etc, only a fresh install.

Your windows 7 key wont work to activate this, you can upgrade windows 7 to windows 8 when its released in October to the public. In October your just need to buy windows 8 upgrade and place the key into this windows 8 activation via the activate option.

The keys with this release are Core, Pro normal (the one your most likely want) and MCE (you might be upgrading to this it will cost a little extra?) so install windows 8 with one of the 3 keys. but choose the key for the one your going to upgrade to when you buy it legit.

The keys provided wont activate windows it will just allow you to install windows 8 and features. so you cant install windows 8 pro with a MCE key provided and then just buy w8 upgrade without Media center and activate it. But if you installed windows 8 without media center using the key and you buy windows 8 without media center the key will then work.

In any case you cant activate this only install it! your have to wait till October regardless of your choice.

Please take a read of the official windows blog regarding upgrading windows 8 http://windowsteambl...-for-39-99.aspx

I thought Microsoft were going to throw in MCE keys for a limited time as an additional "early adoption" bonus?

Thanks for the info but I never mention about using my Windows 7 key to activate Windows. All I know of are the 3 keys for installations. All I was asking if those keys will work still even if I did a upgrade and not a clean install. I am going to buy the upgrade package for 39.99 in oct. I just rather use RTM now

All 3 keys will work I'd imagine, and you'll be able to rearm it for long enough to keep the install going until general availability.

Thanks for the info but I never mention about using my Windows 7 key to activate Windows. All I know of are the 3 keys for installations. All I was asking if those keys will work still even if I did a upgrade and not a clean install. I am going to buy the upgrade package for 39.99 in oct. I just rather use RTM now

Oh you mean just upgrade your current windows 7 install to windows 8? Then yes them keys will work but as i said pic the key for the edition your going to be buying :) I would not recommend doing an upgrade though windows 8 has only just come out there will be bugs and it wont be activated untill you buy the licence. So your going to be getting a msg every 3hs asking to activate and your have the watermark and things to deal with also.

Oh you mean just upgrade your current windows 7 install to windows 8? Then yes them keys will work but as i said pic the key for the edition your going to be buying :) I would not recommend doing an upgrade though windows 8 has only just come out there will be bugs and it wont be activated untill you buy the licence. So your going to be getting a msg every 3hs asking to activate and your have the watermark and things to deal with also.

Ive upgraded before and done clean installs in the past. Regardless of the choice I pick, I always seem to get strange bugs lol So yeah thats what I meant. I just plan on getting the retail. None MCE. So every 3 hours? I always get notification about my antivirus needing updates so this wont concern me any lol

Agreed, I personally hate in place upgrades. If I get a new version of Windows I always do a clean install.

So do I, but I have so many programs installed and settings place the way I want them. I dont have the time to redo all of this lol Otherwise I would perform a clean install.

@freak180 Remember that the $39.99 upgrade can apparently only be installed on machines with a previous legit Windows installation. I do not know if upgrading your current Windows 7 installation to the Windows 8 RTM will allow you to enter your upgrade key (once you buy it). Keep that in mind. It might not work.

If you perform a clean install, you definitely won't be able to use the $40 upgrade key to activate.

As far as I'm concerned a clean install is possible but only if you format the hard drive during the installation. It won't work it you format the HDD and then install the upgrade. It has to be done during the upgrade process. That's what I've read anyway.

As far as I'm concerned a clean install is possible but only if you format the hard drive during the installation. It won't work it you format the HDD and then install the upgrade. It has to be done during the upgrade process. That's what I've read anyway.

I had to read that several times, but I get it now!

I had to read that several times, but I get it now!

Yep you get an option read this http://www.winsupers...-version-143574

You can just put this windows 8 RTM cd back in the drive and click upgrade even if you say upgrade windows 7 to windows 8 now and buy a key. Just place the cd back in drive click upgrade option and your get faced with a screen asking if you want to keep nothing, keep files etc etc etc just do that and enter key.

You can also download windows 8 release preview and upgrade from that to windows 8 without having to have a prior OS installed.

You can also download windows 8 release preview and upgrade from that to windows 8 without having to have a prior OS installed.

I think that you can do this as long as the Release Preview was installed as an upgrade over Windows 7. If the Release Preview was a clean installation I don't think the upgrade offer works. Lots of confusion about this. I guess we'll know more in the coming weeks.

So do I, but I have so many programs installed and settings place the way I want them. I dont have the time to redo all of this lol Otherwise I would perform a clean install.

I back up program data from any programs I don't want to lose, most of your program data is in /users/<username>/AppData/Local and /Roaming. I keep most of my games and files on separate hard disks so it's not that much trouble for me.

It's strange that the releasers never included them though, without them the images are useless :laugh:

On another note what are the actual uses for the volume keys compared to the normal ones? Also, I presume the media centre key is one of those that you add after install to get the feature?

It's strange that the releasers never included them though, without them the images are useless :laugh:

On another note what are the actual uses for the volume keys compared to the normal ones? Also, I presume the media centre key is one of those that you add after install to get the feature?

No idea. Someone said it might be easier to pirate. And yeah, you need to use the second key to get WMC after installation.

I made a tutorial for how to set a task so that the watermark nag goes away automatically every 3 hours. Some people may just prefer to restart it via Task Manager.

STEP 1 (Screenshot for Assistance)

Download the batch file text from here: http://paste2.org/p/2095655

Open "Notepad" and paste the text

Save as "All Files" and name it "restartexplorer.bat"

STEP 2 (Screenshot for Assistance)

Open "Task Scheduler"

Create a "New Task" (NOT a Basic Task)

Name it what you want. Give it a description. Move on.

STEP 3 (Screenshot for Assistance)

Click the "Triggers" tab

Begin the task "On a schedule"

Select "One Time" (NOTE: This is the part where I'm not sure if it would actually work, experiment if it doesn't)

Under "Advanced Settings" tick "Repeat task every" and fill in " 3 hours"

Select "for a duration of... indefinitely"

STEP 4(Screenshot for Assistance)

Click the "Action" tab

Click "New"

Find the batch file we made earlier. Click OK.

Now finish it and we're done! You should end up with a task scheduler screen that looks like this.

As I said, not sure if it will actually run since it's set to trigger "one time" but "repeat" every 3 hours. Try it! The process literally takes a second, depending on the speed of your computer. You'll hardly notice it.

Credit to AskVG for the batch file I was too lazy to write, and for Google peeps for pointing me to the Task Scheduler.

couldn't we just buy a key trough activation control panel since i give you the option to buy a key online? it say the activate itself if do :p

were are is my cc when i need it :s

If you buy via creditcard your get a test transaction and invalid key and best, paypal option will just always send you to local store to buy it ;) already tried it like 5x now.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Posts

    • Ditto that, I have a few Alexa devices around the house to control lighting and such for a disabled person I live with, and it shows a *lot* of ads on the display. The dots are simple but effective. A lot cheaper too.
    • Go for a Echo Dot or Pop instead. These Echo shows just advertise to you.
    • NetSpeedTray 1.3.3 by Razvan Serea NetSpeedTray is a lightweight, open-source Windows network monitor that shows live upload and download speeds directly on the Taskbar. Designed for efficiency, it quietly sits in the system tray, conserving CPU and battery with dynamic updates. It blends seamlessly with Windows 10/11, adapts to light/dark themes, and auto-positions to avoid overlaps. Features include accurate interface detection, customizable display, optional mini-graph, color coding, granular font and unit control, detailed per-interface history graphs, safe data management, and easy CSV export—bringing the network monitoring Windows forgot. NetSpeedTray key features: Lightweight & Efficient Runs quietly in your system tray without consuming resources. Features a "Dynamic Update Rate" that lowers refresh frequency when the network is idle to save CPU and battery life. Native Look & Feel Blends seamlessly with Windows 10/11 UI. Smart detection for light and dark taskbar themes ensures text is always visible. Intelligent & Adaptive Positioning Automatically finds empty space next to your system tray and shifts to make room for new icons, preventing overlaps. Seamless OS Integration Behaves like a native Windows component. Hides instantly with auto-hiding taskbar Hides when a fullscreen app is active Smart Network Monitoring Accurate by Default: Auto mode identifies your main internet connection and ignores noise from VPNs or virtual adapters. Easy Interface Selection: Switch effortlessly between Auto, All, or Selected network interfaces via intuitive radio buttons. Total Visual Customization Free Move Mode: Unlock and place the widget anywhere on your screen. Optional Mini-Graph: Real-time graph of recent network activity with adjustable opacity. Color Coding: Customize colors and speed thresholds to quickly see network status. Granular Display Control Text & Font: Adjust font family, size, weight, and alignment. Units: Automatic (B/s, KB/s, MB/s) or fixed Mbps display. Precision: Set decimal places and always show them for uniform appearance. Detailed & Intelligent History Graph Smart Scale: Logarithmic scale shows low-level traffic and large spikes clearly. Per-Interface Filtering: View speed history for specific adapters (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, VPN). Safe & Efficient Data Management: Adjustable retention, automatic cleanup, optimized database. Easy Data Export: Export raw data to .csv or save high-quality graphs for reports. NetSpeedTray v1.3.3: The Updater Fix A stabilization release that repairs a critical regression in v1.3.2: the app shipped without OpenSSL, which silently broke every HTTPS request — including the built-in update checker (the "Could not check for updates" error many of you hit). This release restores it, hardens the build so it can't happen again, and fixes a startup crash plus four other reported bugs. Changes: Fixed update checking — Resolved a critical issue that prevented the app from checking for updates ("Could not check for updates"). Fixed startup crash with Auto-Cycling — The app no longer crashes on launch after enabling Cycle display mode. Fixed incorrect network speeds on 10GbE adapters — Multi-gigabit network cards now display speeds correctly instead of being stuck at 0. Improved color coding — Default color is shown when idle, and color/threshold changes now apply immediately without restarting. Fullscreen visibility fix — The widget now correctly stays visible over fullscreen apps when Keep Visible is enabled. Improved AMD Ryzen temperature detection — More reliable CPU temperature monitoring for Ryzen processors. Cleaner upgrades — Installer now removes outdated application files during upgrades, preventing DLL/version conflicts while preserving user settings. Improved stability — Fixed potential DLL loading issues by excluding critical OpenSSL and NumPy components from UPX compression. Better settings window — Scrollbars removed and layout improved for a cleaner experience. Localization improvements — Updated translations and completed missing UI text across all supported languages. More reliable releases — Added regression tests covering recent critical fixes, bringing the test suite to 196 passing tests. [full release notes] Download: NetSpeedTray 1.3.3 | 87.9 MB (Open Source) Download: NetSpeedTray Portable | 101.0 MB View: NetSpeedTray Home Page | Screenshot Get alerted to all of our Software updates on Twitter at @NeowinSoftware
    • Why Delta Chat is the best decentralized messenger you have probably never tried by Paul Hill There is no shortage of messaging apps out there; we have WhatsApp, Messenger, and Telegram, just to name a few. While Meta has taken steps to incorporate encryption into Messenger and WhatsApp, they still leave a lot to be desired. If you are in the market for a messaging app that promotes security, privacy, and optional anonymity, you'll want to read what I have to say about Delta Chat. For those not familiar with Delta Chat, rather than relying on centralized servers as you do with Facebook Messenger, it relies on email. Essentially, it is a chat interface that feels like a messaging app, but secretly in the background, it is firing off emails. In the past, you used to have to sign in with your email account. When you sent messages to people, it would just be sending encrypted messages to their inbox, which their Delta Chat client would decrypt. When I first learned about Delta Chat, it required users to sign in with an email account, but I was pleasantly surprised upon trying it in 2026 that this is no longer a requirement, or the preferred method was to use the app. Recently, I’ve tried UAD-ng on my old Nokia 3.4 to disable most of the Google apps because the bootloader is locked, and this is the next best option. While finding replacement apps in F-Droid, I came across Delta Chat again, and it has undergone quite a big change since I last used it, with its new chatmail relays, which no longer require you to sign in to your own email account, providing anonymity, and they offer greater security. Android and Desktop Delta Chat apps. Not only does it run on my de-googled phone, but it also works on desktop computers and iOS, making it truly ubiquitous. For me, Delta Chat is a wonderful alternative messenger because it gives you more control. It supports switching between different profiles, which you can set up super quickly; you don’t register a username, you don’t register a password. The only thing you do have is a random string email address on a chatmail relay (which you don’t have to memorize). To maintain access to your profile, you just need to add a second device to your account via QR code or make a backup of your account, which you can restore later. Fail to do these, your account is gone - as it should be if you don’t want to leave accounts that could get hacked later on. My decision to block Google stuff on my Nokia was done for practical reasons; the device sucked when it launched, and it sucks even more now. The nice thing about F-Droid and the apps within is that they’re usually lightweight, free of bloat, and work well on that device. What was inconvenient for me was that it was hard to send messages from that device, say if I wanted to copy a code over to my main phone or send family members a link from that device. That’s when I decided to look at the available chat apps and saw Delta Chat. Another nice thing about Delta Chat is its notifications. Some messaging apps rely on Google’s ecosystem for notification transport on Android; however, with Delta Chat, it can use Google’s solutions if you have Play Services or MicroG installed. Otherwise, it is able to keep a background connection to the chatmail relay server so that you can get notified when you receive a message. As free software, the code of Delta Chat is open for all who want to take it and build upon it. In the future, if the developers of Delta Chat make a catastrophically bad decision and take the app in an undesirable direction, users can take the code and fork the project. This contrasts with closed-source apps from corporations that can take their products in any direction they like. By relying on free software instead of closed-source programs, you actually control your computing. I’ve spoken at length about how running this type of software is like owning your own home rather than renting it. The same applies here; if you use Delta Chat, you don’t need to worry about it going away in the future. Whether it is Telegram, WhatsApp, or Messenger, you are required to register a username and password to use these services. A major flaw in this design is that anyone can try various passwords and potentially break into your account with your complete chat history intact. Sure, there is encryption in Messenger, where you need a second PIN and two-factor authentication in Telegram, but breaches happen all the time. Unlike before, when you used to sign in to your email account to send and receive messages, the primary way to do it now is to create an account on a chatmail relay. The resulting email address is a random string followed by the name of the relay you pick. This means you can start and begin adding contacts Without a username and password, you either need to ensure you have a backup or at least one device running your Delta Chat profile. The primary way to log in on another device is to go to the settings and add a second device. Then, you’ll just scan a QR code with your new device, and it’ll log in to your account and sync all your chat history and contacts. To end users, Delta Chat just looks like any instant messenger; however, it is really sending your messages as encrypted emails to your contact. This is pretty cool from a censorship perspective, as it makes the service more difficult to block. Previously, the main way to use the app was by logging in with email, but nowadays, it’s recommended that you use chatmail relays. Chatmail relays temporarily hold messages in case your device is offline. They are cheap, simple servers that don’t store data as group states. Other information, like your name and avatar, only exists on your device and the devices of those you share your contact information with. The relays are also decentralized and operated by various groups and individuals. It is even possible to set up your own chatmail relay, but most people will want to use one hosted elsewhere. To keep your messages secure, Delta Chat uses a secure subset of the OpenPGP standard that gives you automatic end-to-end encryption. It also uses Secure-Join to exchange encryption setup information through QR-code scanning or invite links. Autocrypt is also used to automatically establish end-to-end encryption between contacts and all members of group chat, but sometime this year Autocrypt v2 will be rolled out, bringing post-quantum resistant encryption and forward secrecy. The Delta Chat FAQ is an interesting read that explains many more details about the app. Credit: Pexels Delta Chat is unique among messaging apps because it is built on email, a technology that’s decades old and isn’t going anywhere soon. What’s more is that email is not centralized either, so it’s far more difficult for any authoritarian regime to disrupt the Delta Chat app. I haven’t spoken too much about features yet, so I will do that now. Delta Chat allows you to do one-on-one chats, group chats, and create channels. It also supports file sharing and making audio and video calls when chatting one-to-one, but it’s not available for group chats right now. At the time of writing, the calling functionality is disabled and can be enabled in Settings > Advanced > Debug Calls. I have used the video calling feature, and the quality is excellent. It works over WebRTC, another open standard. The app also lets you send voice notes, enables disappearing messages, and has its own app ecosystem. I did try playing chess one time there, but it was a bit spotty; though, we did manage to complete the game with a victory for me. To add people to Delta Chat, you can either give them your Delta Chat link or your QR code to scan. These are the only ways to add users, so you won't have any spam bots bothering you. If the people you want to chat with don't have the app yet, just send them your link, and it will take them to a webpage where they can install the app and then add you. It's really quick for them to install it and get started, which is nice. Credit: Microsoft. The Majorana 2 quantum chip unveiled in 2026. I do not think quantum computers are too far out now, and I do hope that Delta Chat is able to push out Autocrypt v2 sooner, rather than later, so bad actors do not attempt to collect encrypted communications and then decrypt them in the future using quantum computers. By getting people’s messages post-quantum-safe now, users won’t have to worry when quantum computers start cracking legacy encryption. Overall, I would recommend this app to people who are already past WhatsApp and Messenger and have perhaps begun using apps like Telegram or Session. It shares a lot of characteristics with these apps and goes a lot further than Telegram in terms of security. By being based on email, it is also resistant to censorship, and the lack of a username and password makes you anonymous (if you want to be) and safe from brute force password cracking attempts. Let me know in the comments if you’ve tried Delta Chat recently. Do you think it's a good bulwark against governments that are tightening their grip on the internet?
  • Recent Achievements

    • One Year In
      bernmeister earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Week One Done
      Scoobystu earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      tuben earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • First Post
      OffsetAbs earned a badge
      First Post
    • Reacting Well
      OffsetAbs earned a badge
      Reacting Well
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      474
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      220
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      156
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      73
    5. 5
      FloatingFatMan
      71
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!