Can I purchase a reatil windows 10 pro version that I can use to upgrade my existing OEM windows 10 licence which will then migrate to windows 11 on a new machine?

Hi trackhawk,

Yes, you can purchase a retail Windows 10 Pro license and use it to upgrade your existing OEM Windows 10 installation. Once upgraded, that retail license becomes the active entitlement on the machine. Unlike OEM licenses, which are tied to the original hardware, retail licenses are transferable, meaning you can later migrate that license to a new machine, including one running Windows 11—provided the new hardware meets Windows 11’s system requirements.

Here are a few key points to keep in mind:

OEM licenses are typically locked to the first device they’re activated on and cannot be transferred.

Retail licenses can be moved to a new device, but only one device can be activated at a time.

After upgrading to Windows 10 Pro with a retail key, you’ll be eligible for a free upgrade to Windows 11, assuming your hardware supports it.

When migrating to a new machine, you may need to reactivate Windows manually using your retail product key.

To check Windows 11 compatibility, I recommend using the PC Health Check tool, which will confirm whether your new machine meets the necessary requirements.

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T&B, Harry.