It happens to all of us eventually: you buy a new computer, and after some time it is necessary to completely reinstall Windows. Ideally, you can restore a clean backup, but what if you can't?
You can of course just choose to go for a completely clean installation of Windows and borrow the DVD from someone else, but you do need a valid license code yourself. But how do you find out if you've bought a PC with Windows already installed?
In many cases there is a sticker on the side of your system cabinet with the license code on it. We would prefer to say in all cases, but the reality is unfortunately different. Fortunately, there are also other ways to find out your license code.
In many cases you will find the Windows license code on the side of your system cabinet.
Belarc Advisor
Belarc Advisor (www.belarc.com) is a free program that knows exactly where to look to find out which license key was used to install Windows. Once you have installed and started the program, you can immediately run a scan. You will be asked at the start whether you also need to scan for security elements, but that is not the approach of what we are doing now, so you can click no click.
In a nice overview you will see a list of license codes.
Scanning the system may take a few minutes. When the scan is complete, a web page opens with a really bizarre amount of information about your system (very interesting to see). Scroll down to see a list of your license keys, not only from Windows, but also from Office and Photoshop. Save this data and you'll never have to search for it again.
