Why does Windows 10 display the partial product key 6MT6Y after upgrading from Windows 8.1 Pro activated with a MAK key, while the system still shows Licensed and Permanently activated?
Volume Licenses ID:68938283
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Our organization owns Windows 8.1 Pro Volume Licenses ID:68938283 with MAK keys under our Microsoft Volume Licensing agreement.
We performed the following test on a new computer:
- Installed Windows 8.1 Pro.
- Activated Windows 8.1 Pro successfully using our organization’s valid MAK key, with the partial product key ending in 3JY93.
- The activation status was Licensed.
- We then performed an online in-place upgrade from Windows 8.1 Pro to Windows 10 Pro using Microsoft’s official update mechanism.
- After the upgrade, Windows 10 Pro showed the following information:
Windows for business | Windows for IoT
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Hoang Le 2,250 Reputation points Independent Advisor2026-08-26T11:16:56.47+00:00 Hello,
Your Windows 8.1 Pro MAK key cannot activate Windows 10 Pro after the upgrade because MAK keys are edition-specific. Once the system moves to Windows 10, it requires either a Windows 10 Pro MAK key or activation through your organization’s KMS host. The upgrade process itself is valid, but the activation state resets since the 8.1 key is not recognized for 10.
You should log into the Volume Licensing Service Center with your agreement credentials and retrieve the Windows 10 Pro MAK key assigned to your license ID. Enter that key under Settings > Update & Security > Activation > Change product key. If your agreement only covers Windows 8.1 Pro, you will need to request Windows 10 Pro licensing through your administrator or Microsoft support.
If your environment uses KMS, install the Windows 10 Pro KMS client setup key (W269N-WFGWX-YVC9B-4J6C9-T83GX) and run slmgr /ato to activate against your KMS host, provided it has a valid Windows 10 Pro KMS key configured.
In short, the MAK key for 8.1 cannot activate 10, so you must use the correct Windows 10 Pro key from VLSC or rely on KMS.
I hope you've found something useful here. If it helps you get more insight into the issue, it's appreciated to accept the answer. Should you have more questions, feel free to leave a message. Have a nice day!
HL.