In corporate world, PC may be deployed using different OEM brand and thus, it increases IT workload to maintain different base image.
Maintaining the same image for multiple OEM brand is not easy and it needs more space to maintain the images.
Pre-requisites:
- Imaging solution that can restore bare metal of Windows 7 OEM on different type of machine such as Acronis Universal restore.
- Windows 7 OEM DVD for installing OEM cert
- Windows 7 OEM key
Steps to clone and activate Windows OEM:
- Clone using your preferred cloning software
- Install missing drivers and remove conflict drivers (may need to enter Windows safe mode)
- Insert Windows 7 OEM DVD
- Activation Steps:
– Remove Previous Windows OEM key
slmgr /upk
– Install the target Windows OEM Cert
slmgr /ilc <DVD>:\sources\$OEM$\$$\system32\OEM\OEM.xrm-ms
– Activate by installing Windows 7 OEM Key
slmgr /ipk <WINDOWS_7_OEM_KEY>
Windows has been successfully cloned to different OEM brand and activated.
Note:
If you do not have Windows 7 OEM Key, search Windows OEM brand key in internet. It can be activated as long as Windows OEM Key is matched with OEM cert bundled in OEM PC.