Question
Want to install full retail Windows 8 Pro on a Lenovo system supplied with Windows 8 Standard/ Core?
Here's how.
Answer
If you are attempting to install a full retail (or similar) copy of Win 8 Pro on Lenovo system that came with standard Win 8 (also referred to as Win 8 Core) installed from the factory, you will run into an issue at install time.
By MS design default , full Win 8 Pro retail (etc) versions look for a key embedded in the BIOS (often referred to as an OA3 or OA3.0 key). If that key does not match the version of Win 8 you are trying to install, the install will fail without offering the option of entering the retail key that was supplied with your full retail (etc) Win 8 Pro.
Microsoft has issued a "FAST PUBLISH" support article on how to work around this design approach. See
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2796988
Note that this workaround requires the creating and placing of a PID.txt file by methods which are not entirely described in the support article, so be prepared to do some more digging for all the relevant information.
