Activate Windows 7 Kms Server 2008 R2

• Activate Windows 7 Kms Server 2008 R2 Edition
• Windows 7 Mak

My very first useful blog post had to do with setting up Microsoft KMS. That was last November. Surprisingly, it's still one of the most viewed blog posts I have. I figured it's time to update/upgrade KMS since Windows 2008 R2 & Windows 7 are now RTM. Oct 27, 2009  Install this update to extend support for Key Management Service (KMS) to provide activation for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer.

I cannot successfully activate Server 2008 using KMS on my network. When I attempt to activate KMS clients I receive an error (0xC004F038) which seems to indicate that there are not enough KMS clients for the KMS server to register with Microsoft.
The details of the error are:
'Activating Windows Server (R), ServerStandard edition (some hash value)...Error: 0xC004F038 The computer could not be activated. The returned count from your Key Management Service is insufficient.'
Here's what I've done so far:
- Built the 1st of 5 2008 Standard Servers and instaled the KMS host.
- Verified firewall and DNS settings for KMS host
- Installed the product key using 'slmgr -ipk <my product key>

Activate Windows 7 Kms Server 2008 R2 Edition

- Built 4 other 2008 Standard servers to increase the total count to 5, which I believe is the minimum for the KMS server to activate.
- Ran 'slmgr -ato' on the KMS host - activation was successful!
- Tried to run 'slmgr -ato' on the 4 KMS clients but received the error noted above.

Active1 year, 7 months ago

How can I activate Windows 10 clients via an existing KMS Server running on Windows 2008 R2?

EXISTING ENVIRONMENT

• Windows 2008 R2 Server running the KMS Host role
• Existing KMS key is Windows 2012 R2 (or lower) installed on the KMS host from a previous setup.
• Current activations are fine for Windows 2012 R2 and lower on servers, and Windows 8.1 and lower for clients.

DESIRED OUTCOME

• Activation of Windows 10 clients via the KMS host

TheCleanerTheCleaner

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2 Answers

In order to activate Windows 10 clients on a KMS host running Windows Server 2008 R2 you can follow the steps below.

Please be aware these aren't steps to get a KMS host running from scratch, some of those steps are outlined in the TechNet article here: Activate using Key Management Service but be aware that deploying a KMS host server shouldn't be something just thrown into an environment without proper planning.

NOTE: if you are using a 2012 R2 KMS host, you can skip to step #2. The rest of the steps should apply to you at that point.

STEPS FOLLOWED

1. On the 2008 R2 KMS host, a hotfix is required: KB 3079821
2. Retrieve the correct KMS key from the Microsoft VLSC site. The correct key is labeled 'Windows Srv 2012R2 DataCtr/Std KMS for Windows 10' in your 'Product Keys' tab of your Relationship Summary page.
3. On the existing KMS host, run slcmgr.vbs /dlv to get the current detailed KMS license summary. I would recommend taking a screenshot for historical reference.

4. Activate the new license on the KMS server by typing slcmgr.vbs /ipk <key you retrieved in step #2>(be patient, it will return a command prompt immediately and then about 10 seconds later show a window pop-up stating the license was installed successfully)

   NOTE: If you use the Windows 10 KMS key instead of the one above you will get an error 0xC004F015 during activation. See here for more details: KB 3086418 Servers can ONLY have a Server license key installed, so you have to use the proper 'Windows Srv 2012R2 DataCtr/Std KMS for Windows 10' license key from the MVLS site.

5. The KMS server will then show as 'This copy of Windows is not Genuine' in the desktop and the activation section of the System properties. Don't freak out...you now need to re-activate just the KMS host by typing slcmgr.vbs /ato . The server should then show as activated again.

6. That's it, you can go to the 'TESTING COMPLETED' section for next steps.

References:

TESTING COMPLETED

The following tests will help validate all is well.

1. On the KMS host, run slcmgr.vbs /dlv again. Note the new product key which should look like this:

2. Everything else on that screen pop-up should be very similar to what you saw before you activated the new license (refer to step #3 above in 'Steps Followed')

3. On a Windows 10 client that has been deployed with the CVLK (the generic KMS key used in an SCCM or MDT image), try to activate the Windows 10 client now (you can use slcmgr.vbs /ato for instance)

TheCleanerTheCleaner

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If you are using OPEN licensing, you'll have to contact MS to request a CSVLK

JeffJeff

Windows 7 Mak

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