Although you are free to start using Windows 11 without entering a product key during the installation process, this will not save you from receiving messages from Microsoft or enduring a watermark in your daily life.
If for whatever reason you are using an unauthorized or unactivated copy of Windows 11 , you could start to encounter limitations on your system very soon. Microsoft is testing a new set of restrictions with the goal of getting these users to activate their license as soon as possible.
Specifically, users might start seeing a message in the operating system’s default browser, Microsoft Edge . As seen in the Edge Canary beta version of the program, a phrase appears at the top of the browser when entering the Settings section, indicating: “We see that your Windows is not activated, some customizations have been limited . “
This message appears on all tabs in the settings section. Although not many have been disabled, the “When Edge starts” options are blocked. This specific option is the one that allows us to choose which tab or group of tabs we want to open every time we open the explorer.
The presence of this new feature in the beta version of the browser may suggest that Microsoft is working to include more such restrictions on unactivated Windows. If not, this would be a decision without much impact, since the user is free to download another browser, such as Chrome or Firefox, and thereby get rid of this problem.
However, it is possible that many users have been encouraged to use the browser developed by Microsoft given its implementation with AI and the new functions it brings in Windows 11. In any case, it remains to be seen if this novelty reaches the versions Edge stables.
Negative points of not activating Windows
It is possible to install Windows 11 without entering a product code, but this will mean the presence of a watermark and continuous reminders requesting system activation, as well as some customization functions being inaccessible.
Keep in mind, therefore, that the watermark will always be present in the lower right corner of the screen, that you will see Windows messages prompting you to activate the system whenever you enter Windows Settings, and that you will not be able to customize such basic things such as wallpaper , theme, start menu color, transparency or others. Particularly annoying is also the inability to use night mode .
However, probably the most annoying thing are the pop-ups that will assault you from time to time asking you to activate Windows, which could bother you while you are watching a series or movie or while you are concentrating on working. Even so, if these things are not a problem for you, theoretically you could continue using Windows without an activation code for life, since it is still possible to install updates and use most of the applications you need.
