For the first time since Windows XP, Microsoft is forcing users to enter a product key before Windows can be installed. This can be very annoying for legitimate users that simply want to install Windows 8 for testing. I find myself installing Windows 8 frequently and this is one of my primary annoyances while writing my new book on Windows 8.

It is not clear if this change was an attempt to cut down on piracy or rather a simplification of the installation process. I would bet the latter since the same installation media is actually used for both the standard and pro editions of Windows 8. Depending on the product key entered the correct edition is installed. I can imagine there were users of Windows 7 that complained when they installed the wrong edition by mistake which they could not activate with their key and had to re-install windows and all their apps.

The enterprise edition already lets users install without a product key since that version is configured for KMS activation servers. However, the standard and pro editions prompt for a product key as soon as you try to install. This guide will help you create a custom boot CD or USB device that will display a edition selection menu similar to Windows 7 and also allow you to skip entering a product key during installation. Once Windows is installed, you will need to enter a valid product key within 90 days.

Download Windows 8.1 Disc Image (ISO File) If you need to install or reinstall Windows 8.1, you can use the tools on this page to create your own installation media using either a USB flash drive or a DVD. Note: PCs running Windows RT 8.1 always automatically download and install drivers, apps, and info for your devices. To check that automatic updating is on Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings. May 05, 2021 Open Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool in the Start menu. Click Browse and double-click the Windows 8.1 ISO file (it's probably in your Downloads folder). Select USB or DVD. If you're burning a DVD, click BEGIN BURNING. If you're making a USB drive, select your drive and click BEGIN COPYING. The other advantage of upgrading to Windows 8.1 Pro is Windows Media Center. While Windows 8.1 Pro doesn’t include Media Center by default, one can purchase and install Media Center add-on on Pro edition. Windows 8.1 edition users have no options but install third-party media center programs such as the XBMC.

Behind the scenes Microsoft used to rely on a file called EI.CFG to tell the installer what edition to install or to show a menu to allow users selection. The file was removed from the Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro editions but it can still be used to alter the installer behavior.

To get started let’s review the tools that are needed

Windows 8.1 Downloads

Stock Windows 8 32-bit or 64-bit ISO image. Typically called en_windows_8_x86_dvd_915417.iso or en_windows_8_x64_dvd_915440.iso.
WinRAR or other utility that can extract the contents of an ISO image to a directory.
Install the Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit for Windows 8. Free download from Microsoft. More details available here. Upon install you only need the Deployment Tools option checked.

Once all the prerequisites are completed, follow these steps:

Use WinRAR or another tool to extract the contents of your ISO file to a folder. For this article I suggest using C:Win8ISO. I will assume that is where the files are for the remainder of this article. Using WinRAR, you can extract the files in the ISO by just right clicking on the ISO file and selecting Extract Files.
Next we need to add a special EI.CFG file to the c:Win8ISOSources directory. You can download a pre-modified file here or simply create a file called EI.CFG with the contents of:
[Channel]
Volume
[VL]
1
Once you have the file make sure you copy it to C:Win8ISOSources.
Now it is time to regenerate the ISO file but first we need to create a new folder called Win8Temp at the root of C: to hold the new ISO file.
Open the Start Screen and search for “Deployment and Imaging Tools” and run the special command prompt environment.
Run the following command:
oscdimg.exe -lCustomWin8 -m -u2 -bC:Win8ISObootetfsboot.com C:Win8ISO C:Win8Tempwin8.iso
Burn or mount the ISO file in a virtual machine and you will be able to install Windows 8 without a product key and also select the standard or pro edition.
When asked for a key at the end of the install you will have the option to skip.

In this article you will find the download of the latest Microsoft Windows operating system, Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit in english.

The version that you link to download is original and completely legal. You have test a few days after the Windows 8.1 Pro package installed.

How To Install Windows 8.1 Pro For Free On Windows 10

The Windows 8.1 package for 64-bit is ISO image.

To burn an ISO image to a DVD you can proceed as follows:

The file you will download is in ISO format

Requirements

How To Install Windows 8.1 Pro For Free On Windows 7

Windows 8.1 Pro 64 bit System Requirements
Processor	1 Gigahertz or faster 64-bit (x64) with support for PAE, NX, and SSE2
Memory	2 Gigabyte (GB) RAM
Hard Disk	20 GB available space
Graphics card	Diretx 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher

Additional requirements to use certain features:

To use touch, you need a tablet or a monitor that supports multitouch
Microsoft account required for some features
Some games and programs might require a graphics card compatible with DirectX 10 or higher for optimal performance
Watching DVDs requires separate playback software
Windows Media Center license sold separately
BitLocker To Go requires a USB flash drive
BitLocker requires either Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 1.2 or a USB flash drive (Windows 8.1 Pro only)
Client Hyper-V requires a 64-bit system with second level address translation (SLAT) capabilities and additional 2 GB of RAM (Windows 8.1 Pro only)
Wi-Fi Direct Printing requires a Wi-Fi adapter that supports Wi-Fi Direct and a device that supports Wi-Fi Direct Printing
To install a 64-bit OS on a 64-bit PC, your processor needs to support CMPXCHG16b, PrefetchW, and LAHF/SAHF

Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit in EnglishFree Download

Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit EN