Converting your Windows Server 2022 Standard Evaluation to the full Standard version is a crucial step for anyone looking to utilize the complete range of features and capabilities offered by the Standard edition. The evaluation version is a great way to test out the software, but it comes with limitations, including a time-restricted license. By upgrading to the Standard edition, you ensure your server is fully licensed and ready for production use. This guide will walk you through the detailed steps to perform this conversion smoothly and efficiently. The process outlined here can be adapted to activate any version of Windows Server, ensuring that your system is up-to-date and fully functional with a valid license. Whether you’re an IT professional managing multiple servers or a business owner looking to optimize your server infrastructure, this guide will help you transition from an evaluation version to a fully licensed version with ease.

Prerequisites

• Ensure you have administrative privileges on the server.
• Have a valid product key for Windows Server 2022 Standard. (Don’t worry. I will provide you all for free. A Thank you would be enough)

Step-by-Step Guide of Activating Windows Server 2022 Standard Evaluation to Standard?

Step 1: Check the Current Edition

Open the Command Prompt as Administrator

Opening the Command Prompt with administrative privileges is crucial because the commands you’ll be running require elevated permissions to make system-level changes. Without admin rights, you won’t be able to execute the necessary DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management) commands.

• Click on the Start menu, type cmd in the search bar.
• Right-click on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.

Check the Current Edition

It’s important to confirm the current edition of Windows Server to ensure you’re running the Standard Evaluation version. This step verifies that you are starting from the correct edition before attempting to upgrade.

• In the Command Prompt, type the following command and press Enter:

dism /online /get-currentedition

• This will display the current edition, which should show ‘ServerStandardEval‘ or whatever is your server edition.

Step 2: Get the Target Editions

This command lists the available editions you can upgrade to from your current edition. Knowing the possible target editions helps you confirm that ServerStandard is a valid upgrade path.

• In the Command Prompt, type the following command and press Enter:

dism /online /get-targeteditions

• This will display the editions you can upgrade to, which should include ServerStandard.

Step 3: Set the Edition to Standard

This command initiates the actual upgrade process to convert your current evaluation version to a full Standard version. The product key is required to validate and activate the new edition.

• In the Command Prompt, type the following command and press Enter:

dism /online /set-edition:<ServerEdition> /productkey:<your_product_key> /accepteula

• Replace <ServerEdition> with any edition you got into Target Edition and <your_product_key> with your actual product key. The /accepteula switch automatically accepts the End User License Agreement.
• Follow the prompts to complete the process. You may need to restart the computer. Just type y.

Step 4: Verify the Conversion

After the conversion process, it’s essential to confirm that the server is now running the Standard edition. This step ensures the upgrade was successful and that the server is correctly licensed.

• After the server restarts, verify that the edition has been converted to Windows Server 2022 Standard.

• You can check this by opening Settings > System > About.

Convert via one-line Command

Open the Command Prompt as Administrator and just copy-paste the following one-line command according to your Windows Server Version and Edition. You don’t need to do anything but use the one line command below.

Convert Windows Server 2022 Evaluation to Standard or Datacenter

Windows Server 2022 Standard Evaluation to Standard

dism /online /set-edition:ServerStandard /productkey:VDYBN-27WPP-V4HQT-9VMD4-VMK7H /accepteula

Windows Server 2022 Datacenter Evaluation to Datacenter

dism /online /set-edition:ServerDatacenter /productkey:WX4NM-KYWYW-QJJR4-XV3QB-6VM33 /accepteula

Convert Windows Server 2019 Evaluation to Standard, Datacenter or Essentials

Windows Server 2019 Standard Evaluation to Standard

dism /online /set-edition:ServerStandard /productkey:N69G4-B89J2-4G8F4-WWYCC-J464C /accepteula

Windows Server 2019 Datacenter Evaluation to Datacenter

dism /online /set-edition:ServerDatacenter /productkey:WMDGN-G9PQG-XVVXX-R3X43-63DFG /accepteula

Windows Server 2019 Essentials Evaluation to Essentials

dism /online /set-edition:ServerEssentials /productkey:WVDHN-86M7X-466P6-VHXV7-YY726 /accepteula

Convert Windows Server 2016 Evaluation to Standard, Datacenter or Essentials

Windows Server 2016 Standard Evaluation to Standard

dism /online /set-edition:ServerStandard /productkey:N69G4-B89J2-4G8F4-WWYCC-J464C /accepteula

Windows Server 2019 Datacenter Evaluation to Datacenter

dism /online /set-edition:ServerDatacenter /productkey:WMDGN-G9PQG-XVVXX-R3X43-63DFG /accepteula

Windows Server 2019 Essentials Evaluation to Essentials

dism /online /set-edition:ServerEssentials /productkey:WVDHN-86M7X-466P6-VHXV7-YY726 /accepteula

Conclusion

You have successfully converted your Windows Server 2022 Standard Evaluation to Windows Server 2022 Standard. This process ensures your server is fully licensed and capable of utilizing all features available in the Standard edition. But, hey this is not enough. You need to activate the Windows Server. Don’t you? You will find here how to activate Windows Server for free without any crack.

roosho Senior Engineer (Technical Services)

I am Rakib Raihan RooSho, Jack of all IT Trades. You got it right. Good for nothing. I try a lot of things and fail more than that. That's how I learn. Whenever I succeed, I note that in my cookbook. Eventually, that became my blog. 

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IT Support Specialist Server and Storage Specialist Dell MidRange Storage Solutions Specialist