Surface 3 to Windows 8.1 Enterprise

[Ringo]

Hi All,

Just got my awesome Surface 3 today in the mail...love it! Perfect size, speed, portability, and the screen resolution is just gorgeous. Now I need to upgrade the existing Windows 8.1 os to Windows 8.1 Enterprise, so I can use DirectAccess that is setup on my Windows 2012 R2 server.

Is the Surface Pro 3 driver pack the same for Surface 3? Or does anyone know if a separate driver pack for the Surface 3 is or will be available.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

[netuser]

It would be surprising if many drivers from the SP3 worked for the S3.
Microsoft took several months before releasing drivers for the original Surface Pro. Hopefully, they don't have a long delay this time.
Did you order the Business version? If you got the consumer version with 8.1 Core, you need to buy 8.1 Professional licenses before you can apply Enterprise licenses. It's cheaper to just buy the Business version from the start if your intent is to use 8.1 Professional or Enterprise since it is only $50 more.

 

[jrioux]

Did you order the Business version? ... It's cheaper to just buy the Business version from the start if your intent is to use 8.1 Professional or Enterprise since it is only $50 more.

Were and how do you order the "business" version???

 

[netuser]

Were and how do you order the "business" version???

CDW and some other commercial resellers.
https://www.microsoft.com/surface/en-us/business/order-now

 

[Ringo]

Agreed...I double checked my Surface, and it is 8.1 Core...but when I placed my order, there was no way to get the Pro license frome MicrosoftStore.com. But anyways, I don't need Pro, I plan on upgrading to Enterprise 8.1 via clean installation:

http://nickwhittome.com/2015/03/21/bring-your-surface-pro-3-to-windows-8-1-enterprise/

Just need to find out if and when the Surface 3 Driver Pack will be released. If anyone knows, please let everyone know!

 

[netuser]

http://www.cdw.com/shop/search/resu...sscat=&b=&p=&ctlgfilter=&searchscope=all&sr=1

 

[netuser]

Agreed...I double checked my Surface, and it is 8.1 Core...but when I placed my order, there was no way to get the Pro license frome MicrosoftStore.com. But anyways, I don't need Pro, I plan on upgrading to Enterprise 8.1 via clean installation:


http://nickwhittome.com/2015/03/21/bring-your-surface-pro-3-to-windows-8-1-enterprise/

Just need to find out if and when the Surface 3 Driver Pack will be released. If anyone knows, please let everyone know!

You don't need Pro physically installed, but you need to be licensed to have Pro to apply the Enterprise license. The Enterprise license is not valid to upgrade Core.
So, you can physically install Enterprise without Pro (assuming you have drivers), but you are violating your license agreement.

You also cannot apply a Pro volume license to a system if it didn't come with OEM Pro from the reseller unless you bought upgrades for each Core system to upgrade to Pro.

 

[Ringo]

You don't need Pro physically installed, but you need to be licensed to have Pro to apply the Enterprise license. The Enterprise license is not valid to upgrade Core.
So, you can physically install Enterprise without Pro (assuming you have drivers), but you are violating your license agreement.

You also cannot apply a Pro volume license to a system if it didn't come with OEM Pro from the reseller unless you bought upgrades for each Core system to upgrade to Pro.

Really? My company is covered under a Microsoft Open License agreement for Windows and Office. Do I really need to return my Surface 3 and reorder from a Authorized Reseller with Pro installed?

Is there a wiki link you could provide outlining requirements and terms?

 

[netuser]

Really? My company is covered under a Microsoft Open License agreement for Windows and Office. Do I really need to return my Surface 3 and reorder from a Authorized Reseller with Pro installed?

Is there a wiki link you could provide outlining requirements and terms?

Your company shouldn't have ordered from consumer type retailers like the Microsoft Store or Best Buy, but you don't have to return them.
You can buy 8.1 Pro Packs for every system for $99 per tablet and just keep what your ordered.
It's cheaper to just buy from a business reseller since it is only a $50 extra charge vs the consumer version with Core and it will save licensing headaches and keeping track of the Pro Packs if there is a license audit.

 

[netuser]

Really? My company is covered under a Microsoft Open License agreement for Windows and Office. Do I really need to return my Surface 3 and reorder from a Authorized Reseller with Pro installed?

Is there a wiki link you could provide outlining requirements and terms?

The Volume license for Windows assumes you have purchased systems that came preloaded with a Pro version of Windows and allows you to reimage them using a single license key. It doesn't allow you to upgrade Home Premium or Core to Professional or Enterprise.

 

[netuser]

Only Academic and Charity can get by with upgrade from Core to Pro volume license:
http://download.microsoft.com/downl...-26A59AE0543B/Windows_8-1_Licensing_Guide.pdf

"Qualifying Operating Systems Windows licenses available through Volume Licensing are upgrade-only licenses. They do not replace purchasing the initial Windows licenses for software that comes preinstalled on new PCs. Each PC that runs the Windows 8.1 Pro or Enterprise upgrade must first be licensed to run one of the qualifying operating systems identified below—otherwise the PC will not have a valid, legal Windows license. If you don’t have a preexisting license for a genuine, qualifying operating system on your PC, see the Get Genuine Options section in this guide."