An atypical open source project allows you to permanently activate almost any version of Windows or Microsoft Office without spending a euro. Completely illegal, this solution seems to be sometimes used… by Microsoft’s support service!
Searching for license keys to activate Microsoft products, like Windows or Office, without paying full price for them is a sport almost as old as the company itself. Scouring the depths of the Internet to find key generators on peer-to-peer networks or newsgroups can be a solution, although it is completely illegal, provided you have the right addresses and the necessary knowledge. In recent years, many companies have offered to acquire valid licenses at low prices, sometimes even for a handful of cents, which mostly come from the computer parks of companies that have gone out of business. Although these offers are very attractive and seem a little safer, they are not completely legal and are thriving due to legal vagueness and Microsoft’s relative tolerance towards them. Be aware, however, that after the initial activation, there is a good chance that these licenses purchased at low prices will become invalid the next time you reinstall Windows or Office.
Alongside these somewhat random solutions, there is a much simpler, more effective and easily accessible method on the Internet, although it is also completely illegal: MAS, for Microsoft Activation Scripts, better known as MassGrave. Equipped with a official site all seriously and of a GitHub page, this open source project consists of a set of files and scripts allowing you to activate almost any version of Windows or Office for free, permanently and in a few moments. The activation method seems particularly simple to implement, since you just have to enter a command in PowerShell or Terminal then follow the few steps indicated on the screen. The project’s official website also offers a FAQ and clear and complete documentation as well as a (very) extensive directory to download the versions of Windows and Office in the language of your choice before activating them using the tool. MAS.
The ease of use and ease of access of such a tool is baffling. It is indeed difficult to imagine that Microsoft would allow such a project to flourish, which allows everyone to activate Windows and Office in their full version without spending a penny, and without requiring complex technical knowledge. Especially since the project is displayed in broad daylight, is easily accessible via any search engine and has the luxury of having a GitHub page, the source code sharing platform which is owned by. .. Microsoft itself! A strange situation to say the least and a somewhat intriguing mystery, part of the answer to which could be just as unusual.
Microsoft Technical Support (sometimes) uses MAS to troubleshoot users
It’s an anecdote told by South African videographer TroubleChute on X (formerly Twitter) that might raise a few eyebrows. In March 2023, he reported that his official license key for Windows 10 Pro did not work and that Microsoft technical support was unable to immediately resolve the problem. The next day, his incident was escalated (it was passed to a higher technical level) and a member of the technical team then connected to his computer to execute a command to activate Windows. Order that the videographer shares with screenshots.
As you can imagine at this stage, it is indeed the MAS tool that Microsoft assistance has just used to unblock the situation, a tool which we remind you is in theory perfectly illegal, as indicated moreover, he himself is the author of the message on Indeed, Microsoft’s methods for verifying and activating its products remotely are relatively reliable, and it frequently happens that users who have legally purchased their software are faced with blockages, like the videographer TruoubleChute or the author of these lines quite recently. Faced with this observation, it is not impossible that MAS has become an essential tool for Microsoft’s support teams to unblock certain situations and that fighting the project is then more damaging than beneficial for the Redmond firm.