Upgrade Windows 11 Home to Pro using Command Prompt

You can upgrade Windows 11 Home to Pro with a few commands in Command Prompt. For this method you need a valid product key for Windows 11 Pro or Windows 10 Pro.

Update (October 2026): The first version of this guide also mentioned Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 Pro keys. Microsoft blocked those old keys from activating Windows 11 in 2023, so use a Windows 10 or Windows 11 Pro key. Also, Microsoft’s documentation lists only one supported way to go from Home to Pro: entering the Pro key in Settings > System > Activation > Change product key (or press Win + R and type ms-settings:activation). Try that first, and use the Command Prompt method below if it doesn’t work for you.

In this article

1. Step 1: Open Command Prompt as administrator
2. Step 2: Find and save your current product key
3. Step 3: Remove the current product key
4. Step 4: Check which editions you can upgrade to
5. Step 5: Upgrade to Windows 11 Pro
   1. Example: the generic KMS key for Windows 11 Pro
6. Can you go back to Windows 11 Home?

Step 1: Open Command Prompt as administrator

Search for Command Prompt or cmd in Windows search, then select Run as administrator on the right.

Step 2: Find and save your current product key

First, find your current Windows product key and save it somewhere safe, for example on paper or in a notebook. You can skip this step if you already know your key. If Windows came preinstalled on your computer, it probably has a digital license.

It’s always a good idea to have a backup of your product key before you change it. On many laptops and brand-name PCs that came with Windows, the manufacturer stores the key in the firmware (UEFI). Another place to find the key is the box of a physical copy of Windows, but many people have lost or thrown away that box.

No need to panic if you don’t have the key on paper. Type the following command in the elevated Command Prompt and press Enter:

wmic path softwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey

Note: Microsoft has removed WMIC from current versions of Windows 11. If Windows says that wmic is not recognized, open Windows PowerShell (or Terminal) as administrator and run this command instead:

(Get-CimInstance -ClassName SoftwareLicensingService).OA3xOriginalProductKey

Both commands show the key that is stored in your PC’s firmware. If the result is empty, there is no key stored there, for example because you use a retail key or a digital license.

Step 3: Remove the current product key

After you have saved your existing key, type the following commands in the same order. Press Enter after each one.

slmgr.vbs /upk

This command uninstalls the current product key. Click OK on the message.

slmgr.vbs /cpky

This command clears the product key from the registry. Click OK on the message.

slmgr.vbs /ckms

This command clears the Key Management Service (KMS) machine name. Now the product key is removed from Windows.

Step 4: Check which editions you can upgrade to

Type or paste the following command and press Enter:

DISM /online /Get-TargetEditions

Windows lists the editions you can upgrade to. You can only upgrade to Windows 11 Pro if you see Target Edition : Professional in the list.

Step 5: Upgrade to Windows 11 Pro

Run the following commands to upgrade the edition. Replace XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX with your own Pro product key.

sc config LicenseManager start= auto & net start LicenseManager
sc config wuauserv start= auto & net start wuauserv
changepk.exe /productkey XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX
exit

The first two lines set the License Manager and Windows Update services to start automatically and start them. The third line starts the upgrade with your Pro key. Windows prepares the upgrade and restarts your PC to finish it.

Note: These commands are for Command Prompt. They don’t work in PowerShell.

Example: the generic KMS key for Windows 11 Pro

This is Microsoft’s published generic KMS client setup key for Windows 11 Pro and Windows 10 Pro. Companies use it to activate PCs with their own KMS server on their network. It is not a free Pro license: without a KMS server, Windows stays unactivated.

Can you go back to Windows 11 Home?

Microsoft doesn’t officially support downgrading from Pro to Home by changing the product key. You can try it: remove the Pro key with the commands from Step 3, then enter your Home product key. Windows can activate Home again automatically after you remove the Pro key only if your PC has an OEM (digital) license for Home. If it doesn’t work, the supported way back is a clean install of Windows 11 Home, so back up your files first.

Source: allthings.how