Hi, and thanks for all the info/projects on this site... I tried searching but couldn't find anything, and probably this has been answered many times before... I have my Win10 Pro activated with a digital license and no microsoft account. And I'm just tired of seeing all apps that I've tried (nothing bought) from microsoft store reappearing every install, even sideloaded apps went to bought list. I've tried GParted to change disk unique id on a windows reinstall which seemed to work because i had to rerun the activator and for some time the apps in the store were not there. But they came back. GParted only rewrites de disk id partially, would diskpart or other partition manager rewriting it fully make a diference? I've also tried backing up the credentials from the control panel credential manger on a VM and importing them to my installation and it doesn't work. When i did the GParted thing i was also trying to do a secure erase on the install ssd, but got some error of the drive being locked/password. Although I have new instructions to follow with Parted Magic from the manufacturer site which i haven't had the time to do yet. Is it worth it? And i read on google searches to edit the motherboard bios, change network card mac, and mess with drives serial number..Things i don't really want to do. But will it work? I'm sorry if this has been asked before, and thanks in advance Update: After a month on a new install activated with KMS the store is clean. Installed windows with no internet and changed the partition id with gparted. I'm using a firewall so the store only connects when i'm updating the integrated windows apps that i do not uninstall. That was also the case before with HWID activation, but it always retrieved every app i ever installed. It's working for now. Hope it remains that way. Thanks.
Google for MASSGRAVEL on Github and you can generate as many HWID's as you like. Changing the LAN card or entire mainboard will result in loosing the HWID. Dunno why you would want to change it, the original HWID will be valid for the lifetime of the hardware and it won't make apps not showing up.
Guy is after a different thing. He wants to fake the HWID signature. There are tools in cheating communities to achieve that, but tough luck when it comes to your IP address and not only that, your whole subnet. Unless you go full time VPN, or full time virtualization, s**t microsoft has gathered will continue to follow you around.
I've tried it today, and now again.. And after reading the readme tells me that the activation can't be removed because its stored in microsoft servers. It's only renewed when major hardware changes happen. Maybe i'm also in the wrong here, but i believe since i have no microsoft account linked to my instalation, meaning the license its not stored on a microsoft account, the store is creating credentials to use free apps based on the hwid/license stored elsewhere by microsoft/windows. Is this how it works? I don't have any reason to invalidate my current license apart from not wanting apps i will never use again listed on the store.
I never noticed any apps linked to my hwid, probably the store sign in is the cause for that? The HWID and store are not connected, afaik.
@BAU The reason it's not to fake it for games or anything like that... and my IP is the same on a VM, and the VM installs every time with no license assigned. I've seen some tools from cheating communities, at least one that says it changes the hard drive serial number, and another that changes some hwid registry keys. Changing the drive serial number its not something i really want to do (and I've read somewhere that the drive firmware storing that serial number can't be changed). And i don't believe a registry key will resolve my issue.
@Enthousiast That's the thing, i have no store sign in, i'm using it without any account, no microsoft account to login into windows, or the store. What i do see are some credentials being created on the control panel credentials manager. So whats linking my apps list to my various windows installations...
Again, Unless you go full time VPN, or full time virtualization, s**t microsoft has gathered will continue to follow you around. There is zero value in tracking devices alone. Every agent worth it's salt tracks households, with devices just being domino pieces. Even if most ISPs don't offer a static IP address, so one can refresh it with a reboot of the modem/router, agents always know it's your devices, because new IPs are not allocated that randomly but from a finite pool, and most ISPs actually attach a hefty meta-data baggage pinpointing even your house number. That's why resisting fingerprinting without a VPN is a deceiving buzzword - Brave is literally the biggest lie/scam/call-it-whatever on the web right now. At least Mozilla are realistic about it doing very little, and promote the use of VPN / TOR as the more effective way.
Well... i know my IP, mac from router or network card will always lead to me being identified. I don't use brave and i don't have unlimited vpn traffic to have it always on, just to trick the microsoft store. My question was: whats linking the apps from the store to my windows installations, its not the IP or the macs from the router or network card, if it was, then the VM would also auto-activate using the same license, and would retrieve the same apps list to the store. I know a major change in hardware would trigger a license renewal, and maybe reset the store, I have no way of confirming it would other than VMs. So I was asking if there was another option, or if the options i was trying would do it, while believing the store is using the digital license as some type of login/credential to identify my system and my apps list. If the concern was fingerprinting or something like that, its maybe better to be using linux and tor/vpn. And not having to deal with the tracking/spying/whatever mechanisms windows implements. The main idea was a clean start to the store as i see in a VM install. If its not possible to defeat what links my system to the store I will just ignore it then. (After trying a new full disk/partitions unique ID next time I install windows just for the hell of it) Anyway, thanks for the reply's and your input on this.
I've never tried it. But it crossed my mind. i just don't wanna do it in my existing installation so i rule out some thing linking the KMS and everything else together. I only switched from Windows 7 to Windows 10 when the Digital License Activators became a thing. Because i didn't like the KMS server always running in the background or getting a renewal on some random server. Now there are more modern KMS solutions that i need to pick from. Its another thing to try which i forgot to mention. Mostly because i see my VMs doing fine even after activating, so i was going for the same thing but without the virtualization. I will reinstall windows soon and try this two methods. And will update the first post if any of them works. I just hope that it doesn't take weeks of everything working and then for some reason the store identifies my system again.
View attachment 53558 View attachment 53559 This store list actually spans across 2 similar devices. The current windows Home installation was done in the cleanest way possible nov 5th. Machine never logged on with a microsoft account. Came with Home edition, the HDD is not even the original one. So far microsoft does not care much about virtual machines. But does track those as well, it just isn't exposed as shown above. In rare cases of network congestion appx wu handler will spazz out and list stuff I only installed in a VM as well. Notice Education is listed there, but it was never logged with a school account. Logging with a school account on another laptop with multiple installs - all this disappears. Haven't checked corporate but should be similar. So this is another thing to keep in mind about windows - you don't get the full benefits of edu/enterprise unless you login to a school or enterprise domain. Then microsoft has to dial-down the tracking..
Since i switched from windows 7 I've always been with windows 10 pro retail. So i never tested this far. I don't care if they track everything, at least give the option to remove what i don't want to see. Like android does. I know it doesn't forget what/when/where i use the app but at least it really hides it. I've tried the hide thing in microsoft store and in the next install i got to hide everything again. Even logged in a domain i believe they track everything and just don't show it. This means if i don't care about the tracking and don't want to see the store i would have to go for LTSC and not have anything store related. Or just don't care about the apps list and ignore it on every other type of windows released. Since I don't use domains, or forcefully remove the store. I'm still going to try again a ID change on the disk when i reinstall windows... it's not a step that takes that much effort. Thank you guys very much for the help.
to remove all provisioned apps, you can use this command: and prevent re-install Get-AppXProvisionedPackage -Online | Remove-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online Command to uninstall all built-in apps for all user accounts: Get-AppxPackage -allusers | Remove-AppxPackage