What it is
When you activate, w0a computes a hardware id — a single value derived from a few stable properties of the machine — and the key is locked to it. That is what stops one key being shared across a hundred computers.
What it is made of
Three things read from the hardware itself, not from Windows:
- the product UUID the manufacturer wrote into the board's firmware
- the motherboard's serial number
- the processor's identifier
None of them belong to the operating system, so formatting or reinstalling Windows does not change the id — the key re-activates on the same machine without anyone having to reset anything.
The one exception: on a machine whose firmware carries no usable identity (some virtual machines, boards shipped with placeholder values), w0a has to fall back to the machine GUID Windows generates at install — and only on such a machine does a reinstall change the id.
What actually leaves your computer
A hash. Not the serial numbers.
The values above are combined and put through a one-way function; only the result is sent. The result cannot be turned back into the parts it was made from, so we do not learn your processor's serial number, your board's serial number, or anything that identifies the hardware to anybody else.
We keep that hash beside your key so that a second machine asking to activate the same key can be told no. That is its only use — and the refusal lasts only until you release the binding yourself.
Releasing the binding yourself
You do not need us to move the key. On the machine it is bound to, open Settings, find the License section and press Unbind This Device. The key stops working there and can immediately be activated on another machine. A second machine is refused until you do this — the release has to come from the bound device.
There is a limit: at most 2 unbinds in any 30 days. If you reach it, the application tells you the earliest time you can try again. If the old machine is dead and cannot release the binding, see I changed my PC.
The one exception is the Discord trial: a trial key cannot be released — not by you and not by us. The trial is one device only and lasts a single day, so there is nothing to move, and your unbind allowance stays where it belongs: with the licence you buy. When you move to Pro you activate the new key on the same device directly.
What changes it
- Replacing the motherboard — almost always
- Replacing the processor — usually
Not changed by: formatting or reinstalling Windows, adding RAM, changing the graphics card, changing disks, a Windows update, or a feature upgrade.
If it changed and you are locked out, see I changed my PC.
Related
Did this page help?
What was missing, or what did not work? We read every one of these.
If this page did not solve it, write to us — say which article you read, and we will fix the article.