Microsoft Activation Scripts

About this release

This is a set of plain scripts rather than a compiled application, and that is the whole point of it. Everything it does is readable in a text editor before it is run, which is why technicians who will not touch a packaged tool are usually happy to run this one. The download is a couple of megabytes and it installs nothing.

A console menu is the interface. Each entry runs one script, each script prints what it is doing as it goes, and the log stays on screen when it finishes so the run can be read back. There are no dialogs, no progress bars and no telemetry, and the whole thing exits cleanly when the window is closed.

The scripts cover system and suite state management for the desktop Windows generations and for the Office suites, along with a troubleshooting section that reports the current configuration of a machine in readable form. That reporting section is the part most people end up using more often than anything else, because it answers what state a machine is actually in without needing to dig through several system panels.

Because it is portable, the usual pattern is to keep the folder on a stick with the rest of a technician's tools. Nothing registers itself, no service is added, and deleting the folder removes the collection completely. The project is maintained continuously and the version number moves whenever the underlying systems change enough to need it.

What it does

Readable source

Everything is plain script text that can be reviewed before it is run.

Console menu

One numbered menu runs each script with its output printed live to the window.

Fully portable

No install, no service, no registration, and removal is deleting the folder.

Configuration reporting

Prints the current system and suite configuration of a machine in a readable summary.

Tiny download

The whole collection is a couple of megabytes, so it fits anywhere.

Actively maintained

Rebuilt whenever the underlying desktop systems change enough to need it.

Changed in this version

• Menu reordered so the reporting section is reachable in one keystroke.
• Improved detection on the current desktop system generation.
• Clearer console output with consistent status prefixes.
• Several scripts shortened and tidied for readability.

System requirements

Install order

1. Unpack the archive to a folder or straight onto a stick.
2. Right click the entry script and run it as administrator.
3. Choose an option from the numbered menu and read the console output.
4. Close the window when finished, nothing needs uninstalling.

Worth knowing before you start

File details