Since the development of the latest versions of Windows, it has been noticed that often a watermark comes at the right corner of the desktop that shows the message “Activate Windows – Go to Settings to activate Windows”. This watermark turns out to be troublesome for many windows users and obviously, they need it to be removed. In this article, we will take a look at why this watermark appears on the Windows screen, and how to remove and activate Windows watermark.
So let’s discuss these matters in detail below.
Table of Contents
Reasons Due to Which Activate Windows Watermark Appears:
Ahead of the discussion about how to get rid of Activate windows watermark, let us first ponder over other reasons why this watermark crops up on the screen.
There are numerous reasons behind the appearance of this watermark. The first and the most common reason could be the expiry of the windows that you are using. The other reasons are briefly described as under:
Windows Version Unmatched:
Sometimes the windows version can be the reason why the Activate Windows watermark may appear. For example, you have installed windows 10 ultimate edition on your PC and the product key that you have purchased is for windows 10 professional edition.
Now it is to be noticed that the product key is accurate but due to the different versions of Windows, the activated Windows watermark may appear.
Invalid License of Windows:
There may be an issue with the invalid license of the windows that you are using due to which the activated Windows watermark reveals on the desktop screen. But how can be your Windows license invalid?
This is because when an ordinary user inputs the required windows key from different online sources across the internet, there is a fair chance that the key may be duplicated.
Due to the use of this duplicate product key, Microsoft cancels the license Windows. As a result, we can see the activated Windows watermark on the screen.
So these were some of the reasons on account of which the Activate Windows watermark appears on the display screen. Now let’s go further towards the methods and procedures that aid us in how to get rid of the Windows 10 watermark.
Removing Activate Windows Watermark:
There are 7 different methods we need to know for removing this problem. We will discuss them one by one further.
Method#01: Through Regedit:
Regedit can be very effective for the removal of the Activate Windows watermark. Here is a procedure of how it works:
- Search “Run” on the search bar given on the Taskbar below. The Run screen will appear.
- Type “Regedit” on the Run screen and press enter.
- Now, Click on HKEY_CURRENT_USER, here you will see the “Control Panel” option. Click it and then click on the “Desktop” folder option.
- In the desktop folder, you will see an option “PaintDesktopVersion”. Simply double-click on it. A small window will appear.
- Set the value of “Value Data” to zero. Now, click the OK button.
- Now close all of the windows and restart your PC. You will see the “Activate Windows” watermark disappear.
Method#02: Through using Ease of Access:
The option available in the Control Panel namely “Ease of Access” can also help in removing the Activate Windows watermark. Here is the procedure to follow:
- Press the Start Menu. Now click on the “Control Panel” option.
- A window will appear to have a lot of options. Find the “Ease of Access” option and click on it.
- You will see another screen. Just tap on “Make the computer easier to see”.
- You will see a window display having two options to select. Just mark a tick on “Remove background images (where available)” and click the OK button.
- Restart your computer. You will probably see the changes now.
Method#03: Through Utilizing the Windows PowerShell:
Windows PowerShell can help remove the Activate Windows watermark from the display. However, this method works for 90 days only. After the completion of the period, you will have to apply the procedure again. Just apply the process below:
- On the start menu search “Windows PowerShell”.
- Right-click on the “Windows PowerShell” option and tap on “Run as administrator”.
- You will see the PowerShell window on the display screen. Here you have to type the “slmgr /renew” command and click the Enter button.
- Restart the PC to get relief from the Activate Windows watermark for 90 days.
Method#04: Through Deactivating Windows 10 Tips:
Windows 10 gives some tips for the user to experience updates. To remove the Activate Windows watermark, you should have deactivated the Windows 10 tips. For this purpose, the following are some easy steps:
- Tap on the start button below. Move your cursor to the setting option and click it.
- Now go to the system settings option and select Notification and Actions.
- Scroll down till the last. You will see the two options “Show me the Windows welcome experience…” and “Get tips, tricks, and suggestions…”. Turn off both.
- The Activate Windows watermark shall be successfully removed.
Method#05: Through Killing of Process:
Another Notepad trick for the removal of the Activate Windows watermark is the Killing of the process. This method is easy and effective to implement. Given below are its steps:
- In the first step, you have to open the notepad on your PC.
- Here, you have to type some commands i.e. @echo off [Enter] taskkill /F /IM explorer.exe [Enter] exe [Enter] exit.
- Now, click Save As to save the file to the location that you want. Make sure to keep the extension as .bat.
- Next, go to the location where you saved that file. Right-click on it and choose the “Run as Administrator” option.
- You will observe the Command Prompt window will open and close immediately.
- Finally, restart your PC and see the desired changes.
Method#06: Through the use of Command Prompt:
It has been noticed that sometimes Windows is activated in test mode. This can be a reason that the user sees an “Activate Windows” watermark on the display screen.
To get rid of this problem and disable the test mode of windows, the Command prompt can be very helpful. However, it requires a short procedure which is stated below:
- Search CMD in the start menu
- Right-click on the Command prompt option and select run as administrator.
- UAC screen will appear, click OK.
- Now on the CMD screen, you have to type this command “bcdedit -set TESTSIGNING OFF”.
- As soon as the command runs completely, you will see the message “The operation completed successfully”.
- Close all the tabs and go to the desktop.
- Restart your PC. The activated Windows watermark would be successfully diminished.
Method#07: Through using an external tool from the Internet:
If you still face the problem and you are worried about how to remove the Activate Windows watermark from your display screen, try using the external tools available on the internet.
These tools are free on the internet and can provide you with the optimal results that you are looking for.
However, using these tools, there is just a little issue that makes Windows behave as if it is activated but in a fact, it is not activated. So, have a look at one of such tools.
- Universal Watermark Disabler:
One of the popular tools to remove and activate Windows watermarks from your desktop screen is the universal watermark disabler. With just a single tap on a Button, you can make the watermark disappear from your screen.
Note that before utilizing this tool, you must have to close all the running applications on your PC. The following are the proper steps to comply with:
- Firstly you have to download a universal watermark disabler.
- After the download process, you have to unzip the files in your desired location inside the PC
- Now double-click on the file namely uwd.exe. An installation procedure shall start.
- After the installation process, you will observe that the application begins to run, and then automatically your PC would be logged off.
- Login again to your PC. The Watermark will be successfully removed.
Method#08: Through Activating Windows by Product Key
In this regard, you have to open the software and press the Windows icon. It is labeled behind the setting button in the software. You have to click on the product key tab and select the product and Addition. Then you have to tap Windows Key+I Keys. After that, you have to update and setting then you should choose the activation in the left menu.
If you don’t have any license keys, you should go to the store for the Windows 10 activation key and get the key. It will unlock all the premium features that you are looking for.
After that, you have to proceed to the setting again and go to the update and security. Click the product key after choosing activation in the left menu and enter the product key.
Your window is now activated and the watermark will be removed.
Conclusion:
You must have gone through the whole article on how to remove Activate Windows watermark and now it’s time to get relief from the annoyance of this watermark. Don’t worry, just follow one of our guidelines and get a smooth workflow on your PC without any disturbance.
I’m a writer, artist, and designer working in the gaming and tech industries. I have held staff and freelance positions at large publications including Digital Trends, Lifehacker, Popular Science Magazine, Electronic Gaming Monthly, IGN, The Xplore Tech, and others, primarily covering gaming criticism, A/V and mobile tech reviews, and data security advocacy.