This article guides you:

• running SAS, Solidworks and Remote Desktop from a computer with Windows Home
• upgrading your Windows Home version to Windows Enterprise if necessary.

List of university licenses not compatible with Windows Home

We are aware that the following applications are not compatible with the Home edition of Microsoft Windows:

• SAS - Download link: https://software.soton.ac.uk/software/73
• Solidworks - Download link: https://software.soton.ac.uk/software/46
• Microsoft Remote Desktop

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How to bypass this issue

There are different ways to access SAS, Solidworks and Remote Desktop:

1. Use the Southampton Virtual Environment (SVE) and the Common Learning Space (CLS) workrooms.

Find more information about accessing SVE and CLS in the article “How to access Southampton Virtual Environment (SVE) and Common Learning Spaces (CLS) workrooms”

2. Use a Common Learning Space computer. Find the closest Common Learning Space computer to you.

3. Postgraduate Research Students (PGRs) and staff can use their university supplied computer to download and install software. These computers will already have the correct version of Windows installed.

4. You can purchase a Windows Pro licence following. That will allow you to download, install, and run SAS, Solidworks and Remote Desktop from your computer. Find full guidance in the web page “Upgrade Windows Home to Windows Pro - Microsoft Support”.

If none of these options are suitable for the University work you need to do, you can upgrade the installed Home edition of Windows to the university Windows Enterprise version. 

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Upgrading your license from Windows Home to Windows Enterprise

If necessary, you can upgrade your Windows Home edition to the university Windows Enterprise version.

Warning before upgrading your license

Before upgrading your license to Windows Enterprise, keep in mind 2 important aspects:

1. After leaving the university, your Windows 10 licence will expire approximately 180 days after you leave. After that:

• Your Windows 10 installation will have limited functionality
• You will be asked to buy a valid Windows licence for the version of Windows you now have installed

2. There is no method to revert or downgrade your Enterprise license to Windows Home. 

If you want to restore your old Home version, you must reset your computer to the manufacturing settings. This will involve:

• formatting the hard drive
• the loss therefore of any installed applications or data that is not backed up. 

You will need to ensure that you have the original Windows media to do this.

Staff using their own computers (not laptops or desktops managed by iSolutions) must follow the same procedure after leaving.

Upgrading your license to Windows Enterprise for staff and students

Step-by-step instructions:

1. Go to the Software Centre and download the Microsoft Windows 10 for Staff and Students

2. Download the ISO file to your machine.

3. Create a DVD using this ISO file. The easiest way is to:

1. Right-click the ISO file
2. Select the burn disk image option.

4. When you have burnt the DVD, please:

1. Put the DVD in the machine you wish to upgrade
2. Reboot the machine. You must use the Bios settings on the machine so that it will boot from the DVD drive.

5. Follow the instructions you will see on the screen

6. Please note: you should not require additional protection from virus and malware. Windows 10 already has Windows defender installed. You can find further information in the web page Microsoft Security Essentials.

7. Licensing the Software:

1. To pick up a license, you must be connected to the University domain.
   If you are outside the university, you will need to setup a Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection to license this application. Further information in the knowledge base article “How to set up the Virtual Private Network (VPN) via GlobalProtect”
   
   
2. Once the installation process is complete, download the activation file WindowsOSkms.bat to your local machine.
   
   
3. Right- click this file and select the option "Run As Administrator". 
   A command window will open and you should the following message: REMAINING GRACE: 180 days. This indicates the licensing process has been successful.
   
   
4. Each time you connect to the university domain the license will be renewed for another 180 days in the background.

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