When the desktop loaded, he checked . It said: Windows 10 Pro Version 22H2 Not activated Step 6: Activation He clicked "Activation" in Settings, then "Change product key." He entered his company’s Volume License key for Windows 10 Pro (obtained from the IT portal). The system contacted Microsoft’s activation servers and—green checkmark.
His boss had handed him a second-hand laptop. "Make it work with our design software," she said. The laptop was powerful—an Intel i7, 32GB of RAM, a decent GPU. But there was a catch. It ran (Long-Term Servicing Channel).
LTSC was built for ATMs, MRI machines, and warehouse terminals—not for creative work. It had no Microsoft Store, no Xbox apps, no modern framework support. When Alex tried to install Adobe Creative Cloud, the installer failed. "Missing dependencies," it said. He tried to install the Microsoft Store manually using PowerShell. It crashed.
He also downloaded the drivers for his laptop’s Wi-Fi and Ethernet chips onto another USB, just in case. He restarted the laptop, pressed F12 (for boot menu), and selected the USB drive. The Windows setup screen appeared. how to change windows 10 enterprise ltsc to windows 10 pro
He clicked , then "Custom: Install Windows only (advanced)."
slmgr /ipk VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T That was the generic Windows 10 Pro key. The command failed: "The product key you entered is for a different edition. This edition cannot be upgraded to that one." So much for the easy way. Alex accepted the inevitable. He connected an external SSD and manually copied his project folders, bookmarks, and drivers. Then he downloaded the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool from Microsoft’s website using a colleague’s PC.
It was a gray Tuesday afternoon when Alex, a junior IT assistant at a medium-sized logistics firm, found himself staring at a problem. When the desktop loaded, he checked
He installed the missing drivers from his backup USB, then ran Windows Update. After three restarts, everything was smooth. Alex installed Adobe Creative Cloud, then Photoshop and Premiere Pro. No errors. He opened the Microsoft Store, downloaded "Windows Terminal," "Spotify," and "Netflix"—all worked.
He typed:
The installation began. After 20 minutes, the laptop rebooted into the Windows 10 Pro setup experience—Cortana’s voice, the blue theme, asking for a Microsoft account. His boss had handed him a second-hand laptop
"Windows is activated."
Alex chose "Domain join instead" at the bottom, created a local admin account called "AlexPro," and skipped everything optional.
He ran the tool, selected "Create installation media for another PC," chose (x64), and wrote it to a 16GB USB drive .
Now he had unallocated space. He selected it, clicked , accepted the default size, and Windows created fresh partitions. He selected the new primary partition and clicked Next .
© 2026 New Southern Realm. All rights reserved.
