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Hassle Free Upgrade to windows 8.1 from windows 8

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de.das.dude

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After spending two sleepless nights in a row not knowing what to do when my update procedure kept failing on me... and after finally achieving windows 8.1 with.. frankly, very silly solutions... i thought it would make a guide for the people who are yet o encounter this horrible experience.
This guide presumes you have decent english comprehension skills and patience.

1. Configuring your windows update.
First you need to disable manual checking of windows updates. You can do this from Control Panel -> Windows Update, and then look in the top left of the screen.

Set it to "Do not check for updates automatically"


2. You will need a specific update i.e. KB 2871389 for windows 8.1 upgrade to be available in your windows store.
Since you have disabled automatic updates, you will no longer need to look at the screen showing this update failed to install.

Instead click here to download the update manually from microsoft themselves. They did this because they know how horribly windows 8 updater is bugged.


After it finishes downloading, go to the download location, right click on the file and "Run as Administrator"

Still fails? Click the online trouble shooter to fix problems. On starting you will find two options, updater and a intelligent file transfer. clcik one and follow through then run the program again and do the other one.


4. Restart PC to install the update.

5. Go check in windows store. If it does not download, then disconnect internet and reconnect again.

6. As soon as it starts downloading there is a chance it can get stuck at a couple of key points.
i.e at 50%, at 62%

Just disconnect internet and reconnect.

7. You can pause the download when ever and shut down PC and resume again the next day from where you left off.


THis should do it.


Afterwards many people complain their activation has been lost. just open run (windows key + R) and type "wsreset.exe" and press enter. That should do it.

More tricks-

For anyone who wants to find their serial number and other useful (lol or maybe useless) information just open command line and type


>wmic
hit enter and type
>os
hit enter and scroll to the right. enjoy
trick brought to you by @Drone
 
Last edited:

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Very good guide. I however had no trouble a few months back. I did a fresh install of 8, and manually checked for all updates that went as far as W8 can get. Then went to windows store and installed 8.1.

the key was it was a fresh install and i did nothing else and installed nothing else through this process.

Hopefully it's an alternate method that can help somebody if yours doesn't.
 

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Very good guide. I however had no trouble a few months back. I did a fresh install of 8, and manually checked for all updates that went as far as W8 can get. Then went to windows store and installed 8.1.

the key was it was a fresh install and i did nothing else and installed nothing else through this process.

Hopefully it's an alternate method that can help somebody if yours doesn't.

sometimes a fresh install doesnt work as microsoft's update servers are crapped. that happened to me. they couldnt process the request for the updates that i wanted and hence they wouldnt even download.

first time i did the update though last year, it was pretty flawless. no problems.
 

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Nice work. Still pisses me off that Windows 8 keys won't activate a fresh 8.1 install. Not sure what they were thinking there. :toast:
 
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yeah, great guide, I hope I can try it sometimes (not, hehe). The tip to only install 1 update before upgrading is worth millions!!!! :)
But it would be nice if there were some tricks for when you activate. I share with others that that part is the worst.
 

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since i use a laptop it comes pre activated. Sometimes the activation poops after reseting and or upgrading, at which point just need to run wsreset to fix it.
 

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Nice work. Still pisses me off that Windows 8 keys won't activate a fresh 8.1 install. Not sure what they were thinking there. :toast:
this is the exact as that proverb "too many cooks spoil the broth".

this is what happens when you have too many people working on one thing.
 
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Interesting thread.
 
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You're a lifesaver man. I had 8.1 upgrade problems with my Taichi31. More precisely being stuck at 82% and then when I would try reconnecting to the internet or restarting it would just start again and get stuck at the same old 82%.

Your process fixed this for me! It must have been something to do with windows update... :D :lovetpu:
 

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no probs. There are some weird problems with weird solutions :D no clue how it worked but this fixes them all lol.
 
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Great post! I found a similar one. I would like to point out that you may want to edit your OP...

1. Step 1 should read to disable AUTOMATIC updates, not disable manual updates.

2. KB2871398 should really read KB2871389

I would like to say that KB2917499 may also be needed as it was in my case. I also had to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter after installing those 2 updates. After these steps I was able to begin my 8.1 download from the Microsoft store. I don't know if it made a difference or not, but I also went into the Bios and disabled "Secure Boot."
 

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This seems to be a really long, ridiculous way of doing it.


install 8.1 with dummy serial from microsoft here

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj612867.aspx



Windows 8.1 Professional
GCRJD-8NW9H-F2CDX-CCM8D-9D6T9
Windows 8.1 Professional N
HMCNV-VVBFX-7HMBH-CTY9B-B4FXY
Windows 8.1 Enterprise
MHF9N-XY6XB-WVXMC-BTDCT-MKKG7
Windows 8.1 Enterprise N
TT4HM-HN7YT-62K67-RGRQJ-JFFXW
Windows Server 2012 R2 Server Standard
D2N9P-3P6X9-2R39C-7RTCD-MDVJX
Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
W3GGN-FT8W3-Y4M27-J84CP-Q3VJ9
Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials
KNC87-3J2TX-XB4WP-VCPJV-M4FWM


then activate online with your 8.0 legit key later :D perfect!


Yeah, its that simple and MS have temporary keys on their own website.
 

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dont have a windows 8 key. its not visible anywhere. not even at the back of the laptop on the sticker, which is where it usually should be.

that is the problem.

also what if you want to keep all the settings and stuff.
 
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Yeah, it is annoying the way MS have done the keys, but I guess they had no other choice. Luckily I have one legit Windows 8.1 key I can enter during setup, then I just do the old "Change Product Key" in the Control Panel>System and activate one of my two legit 8.0 keys.

If Windows 8 came installed, you may have wanted to follow this guide. I'm pretty sure it is still legit if you use the key on the same computer. The key should be in the SLIC/MSDM table within the BIOS.
 

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dont have a windows 8 key. its not visible anywhere. not even at the back of the laptop on the sticker, which is where it usually should be.

that is the problem.

also what if you want to keep all the settings and stuff.


If you have a legit key, you just update via windows update/store.
If you fresh install, you use that method above.

Both work perfectly for me in every situation i've used windows 8.1 on over a dozen machines now - retail keys and from that $15 sale they had on.

issues with your licence and lacking a key are due to the laptop manufacturer and its licence being weird, and probably not applicable to many others.
 
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dont have a windows 8 key. its not visible anywhere. not even at the back of the laptop on the sticker, which is where it usually should be.

that is the problem.

also what if you want to keep all the settings and stuff.


Maybe I am missing something, but there are programs that allow you to find your keys... Magic Jelly Bean and Belarc advisor are two such programs.
 

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If you have a legit key, you just update via windows update/store.
If you fresh install, you use that method above.

Both work perfectly for me in every situation i've used windows 8.1 on over a dozen machines now - retail keys and from that $15 sale they had on.

issues with your licence and lacking a key are due to the laptop manufacturer and its licence being weird, and probably not applicable to many others.
yeah manufacturer is samsung. so ofcourse its going to be crappy *smirk*
 

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For anyone who wants to find their serial number and other useful (lol or maybe useless) information just open command line and type

wmic

hit enter and type

os

hit enter and enjoy

thats handy
 

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Video Card(s) Sapphire Pulse RX6700XT 12GB | Vega 8 | Sapphire Pulse RX580 8GB
Storage Samsung 980 nvme (Primary) | some samsung SSD
Display(s) Dell 2723DS | Some 14" 1080p 98%sRGB IPS | Dell 2240L
Case Ant Esports Tempered case | Thinkpad | Antec
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z333 | Jabra corpo stuff
Power Supply Corsair RM750e | not needed | Corsair GS 600
Mouse Logitech G400 | nipple
Keyboard Logitech G213 | stock kb is awesome | Logitech K230
VR HMD ;_;
Software Windows 10 Professional x3
Benchmark Scores There are no marks on my bench
For anyone who wants to find their serial number and other useful (lol or maybe useless) information just open command line and type

wmic

hit enter and type

os

hit enter and enjoy
added to OP
 
Joined
Jan 17, 2010
Messages
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Location
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System Name Juliette // HTPC
Processor Intel i7 9700K // AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard ASUS Prime Z390X-A // ASRock B550 ITX-AC
Cooling Noctua NH-U12 Black // Stock
Memory Corsair DDR4 3600 32gb //G.SKILL Trident Z Royal Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 3600
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX4070 OC// GTX 1650
Storage Samsung 970 EVO NVMe 1Tb, Intel 665p Series M.2 2280 1TB // Samsung 1Tb SSD
Display(s) ASUS VP348QGL 34" Quad HD 3440 x 1440 // 55" LG 4K SK8000 Series
Case Seasonic SYNCRO Q7// Silverstone Granada GD05
Audio Device(s) Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 // HDMI to Samsung HW-R650 sound bar
Power Supply Seasonic SYNCRO 750 W // CORSAIR Vengeance 650M
Mouse Cooler Master MM710 53G
Keyboard Logitech 920-009300 G512 SE
Software Windows 10 Pro // Windows 10 Pro
The serial number is on the system page. The product key would be useful
 

Kursah

Super Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Oct 15, 2006
Messages
14,666 (2.30/day)
Location
Missoula, MT, USA
System Name Kursah's Gaming Rig 2018 (2022 Upgrade) - Ryzen+ Edition | Gaming Laptop (Lenovo Legion 5i Pro 2022)
Processor R7 5800X @ Stock | i7 12700H @ Stock
Motherboard Asus ROG Strix X370-F Gaming BIOS 6203| Legion 5i Pro NM-E231
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S Push-Pull + NT-H1 | Stock Cooling
Memory TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan Z 32GB (2x16) DDR4 4000 @ 3600 18-20-20-42 1.35v | 32GB DDR5 4800 (2x16)
Video Card(s) Palit GeForce RTX 4070 JetStream 12GB | CPU-based Intel Iris XE + RTX 3070 8GB 150W
Storage 4TB SP UD90 NVME, 960GB SATA SSD, 2TB HDD | 1TB Samsung OEM NVME SSD + 4TB Crucial P3 Plus NVME SSD
Display(s) Acer 28" 4K VG280K x2 | 16" 2560x1600 built-in
Case Corsair 600C - Stock Fans on Low | Stock Metal/Plastic
Audio Device(s) Aune T1 mk1 > AKG K553 Pro + JVC HA-RX 700 (Equalizer APO + PeaceUI) | Bluetooth Earbuds (BX29)
Power Supply EVGA 750G2 Modular + APC Back-UPS Pro 1500 | 300W OEM (heavy use) or Lenovo Legion C135W GAN (light)
Mouse Logitech G502 | Logitech M330
Keyboard HyperX Alloy Core RGB | Built in Keyboard (Lenovo laptop KB FTW)
Software Windows 11 Pro x64 | Windows 11 Home x64
Great thread, needs stickied in a new section dedicated to Windows IMHO. I have referred quite a few folks to this thread...would be nice to find it faster. :toast:
 
Joined
Jan 17, 2010
Messages
12,280 (2.37/day)
Location
Oregon
System Name Juliette // HTPC
Processor Intel i7 9700K // AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard ASUS Prime Z390X-A // ASRock B550 ITX-AC
Cooling Noctua NH-U12 Black // Stock
Memory Corsair DDR4 3600 32gb //G.SKILL Trident Z Royal Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 3600
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX4070 OC// GTX 1650
Storage Samsung 970 EVO NVMe 1Tb, Intel 665p Series M.2 2280 1TB // Samsung 1Tb SSD
Display(s) ASUS VP348QGL 34" Quad HD 3440 x 1440 // 55" LG 4K SK8000 Series
Case Seasonic SYNCRO Q7// Silverstone Granada GD05
Audio Device(s) Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 // HDMI to Samsung HW-R650 sound bar
Power Supply Seasonic SYNCRO 750 W // CORSAIR Vengeance 650M
Mouse Cooler Master MM710 53G
Keyboard Logitech 920-009300 G512 SE
Software Windows 10 Pro // Windows 10 Pro
Joined
Jan 17, 2010
Messages
12,280 (2.37/day)
Location
Oregon
System Name Juliette // HTPC
Processor Intel i7 9700K // AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard ASUS Prime Z390X-A // ASRock B550 ITX-AC
Cooling Noctua NH-U12 Black // Stock
Memory Corsair DDR4 3600 32gb //G.SKILL Trident Z Royal Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 3600
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX4070 OC// GTX 1650
Storage Samsung 970 EVO NVMe 1Tb, Intel 665p Series M.2 2280 1TB // Samsung 1Tb SSD
Display(s) ASUS VP348QGL 34" Quad HD 3440 x 1440 // 55" LG 4K SK8000 Series
Case Seasonic SYNCRO Q7// Silverstone Granada GD05
Audio Device(s) Focusrite Scarlett 4i4 // HDMI to Samsung HW-R650 sound bar
Power Supply Seasonic SYNCRO 750 W // CORSAIR Vengeance 650M
Mouse Cooler Master MM710 53G
Keyboard Logitech 920-009300 G512 SE
Software Windows 10 Pro // Windows 10 Pro
Almost a three year old thread
 
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