Im a bit confused after reading into "IoT Ent LTSB/C" versions and licensing models. I hope I can ask the correct questions to make others enlighten me. I learend that there are ENTRY, VALUE and HIGH-END Licenses of Windows 10/11 IoT Ent LTSC. (pricing based on CPU support. If you have a newer CPU you must buy/license HIGH-END.) 1.) HIGH-END labeled as "HE for NON-QOS", meaning its only for Virtual Machines? 2.) As far as I understood I can not inplace-upgrade 10 IoT Ent LTSB to 11 IoT Ent LTSC, but only do a fresh, new installation? I learned that there is PKEA (manual entering the license key) = COA label with 5x mutli activation(?) and EPKEA (license key already "hidden" inside the installation media) + additional COA label still required. I have a POS System and a Ultrasound device here, that both have a yellow "Windows 10 IoT Ent2016 LTSB Value" sticker on the back. So there must be an additional COA label attached to the device somewhere (which it is not)? 3.) If I would purchase a Windows 11 IoT Ent LTSC COA sticker from the internet, would I still need that yellow sticker as well? Or could I go for the official installation media, by contacting the manufacturer? And would the manufacturer maybe send me the 11 IoT or the older 10 IoT installation media? (beeing aware that I cant (legally) purchase "IoT Ent LTSC" licenses as a lousy end user anyway, even if these stickers are circulating on the internet) 4.) Would each official installation media come with a different license key then? Or would these be Volume Licenses? (however that would allign with 5x PKEA multi acivations stickers) This I havent fully understood. 5.) Because if the real license key would be embedded inside of the original installation media, there must be a lot of these out there? ;D There is no chance then that the IoT Ent LTSC key might be embedded inside of the UEFI on such systems? 6.) If do a fresh installation of "Windows 11 IoT" on these 2 systems, would it even make sense to recover the original license key first? Will it automatically set the VALUE variant, after Windows is checking online for the 1st time (HW-ID style and looking for the installed CPU)? Or are these indeed "just" volume licenses, orchestrated by the company admin? Im aware going with the Win11 Home/Pro versions on these systems might be the better deal here, but I am trying to figure out if there might still be a (legal) chance to install Windows 11 IoT Ent LTSC onto these devices. (as a simple end user) so the bloaty stuff can be avoided. Thank you for reading through this..
If the manufacturer supports it, they will naturally provide you with recovery media.（Of course, there are some issues here, such as identity verification, recovery media mailing, etc. Not all manufacturers are willing to give you a link to download） No built-in key exists on the installation/recovery media Code: What are the main differences between Windows 10 IoT Enterprise and Windows 11 IoT Enterprise? Windows 11 IoT Enterprise builds on the features of Windows 10 IoT Enterprise with enhanced security, performance improvements, and updated features. Both versions offer features such as advanced security, device lockdown, and customizability. Windows 11 IoT Enterprise includes additional features like improved performance, enhanced support for modern hardware, and updated security capabilities. What security features are available in Windows 11/10 IoT Enterprise? Both versions offer robust security features, including device lockdown, secure boot, BitLocker encryption, and Windows Defender. Windows 11 IoT Enterprise includes enhanced security protocols and features as part of its updated architecture. Is it necessary to upgrade from Windows 10 IoT Enterprise to the latest Windows 11 IoT Enterprise? Whether to upgrade from Windows 10 IoT Enterprise to Windows 11 IoT Enterprise depends on your specific needs, including the requirement for new features, enhanced security, and compatibility with modern hardware. If these factors align with your goals, upgrading could provide significant benefits. However, if your device specifications have not changed and there are no updates needed for related applications, continuing to use Windows 10 IoT Enterprise may be sufficient. What are the differences between Windows 11/10 Enterprise LTSC and Windows 11/10 IoT Enterprise LTSC? Windows 11/10 Enterprise LTSC is a volume licensing product and an upgraded version of the OS, which can only be installed on older machines that already have a previous version of the operating system. These products are for internal use within enterprises and cannot be resold. Windows 11/10 IoT Enterprise LTSC is a full version of the OS that can be installed on new machines, suitable for OEM customers who can resell the OS after integrating it with their hardware.
PKEA = sticker with key printed on that you can enter when using IoT LTSC ISO. These are usually used by low volume IoT manufacturers. EPKEA = sticker without a key. The IoT OEM will have installed IoT LTSC using a default key and then activated using their MAK key (good for 50,000 activations). The OEM then removes this key from the image (this still keeps the activation but prevents their valuable MAK key being extracted using key extracting utilities) before shipping device to end user. This option is used for companies making a large quantity of devices. Officially the IoT OEM is responsible for providing recovery media to end users of their devices. They can ship this as physical media or make it downloadable from a secure (non-public) portal online. This is why it is hard to find recovery images online. If you are wanting to reinstall the OS on a device then this is easy if you have a PKEA key on the device as you can just enter it during Windows setup and it should activate. Note that PKEA LTSC keys are tied to a particular version of LTSC so a LTSC 2016 PKEA key wont work for going to LTSC 2021. If you have an EPKEA sticker on your device then you need a key either from the manufacturer, bought off the internet, or use MAS. Obviously none of this is supported by the device manufacturer and should not be done in a business environment of course. Source: I work for an Embedded OEM and we ship devices with EPKEA labels and have a MAK key assigned to our organisation.
There's actually a very official and supported api that can extract help decode the product key after being cleared from registry it exist for Windows 8.1 and later
Thank you everybody for the additional informations! Time to find some key (stickers) now and contact the manufacturer of the ultrasound device.