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Automatically apply product keys when deploying Visual Studio

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Applies to: yesVisual Studio noVisual Studio for Mac

Note

This article applies to Visual Studio 2017. If you're looking for the latest Visual Studio documentation, see Visual Studio documentation. We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Visual Studio. Download it here

You can apply your product key programmatically as part of a script that is used to automate the deployment of Visual Studio. You can set a product key on a device programmatically either during an installation of Visual Studio or after an installation completes.

Apply the license after installation

You can activate an installed version of Visual Studio with a product key by using the StorePID.exe utility on the target machines, in silent mode. StorePID.exe is a utility program that installs with Visual Studio 2017 at the following default location:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2017\Enterprise\Common7\IDE

Run StorePID.exe with elevated privileges, either by using a System Center agent or an elevated command prompt. Follow it with the product key and the Microsoft Product Code (MPC).

Important

Make sure to include the dashes in the product key.

StorePID.exe [product key including the dashes] [MPC]

The following example shows a command line for applying the license for Visual Studio 2017 Enterprise, which has an MPC of 08860, a product key of AAAAA-BBBBB-CCCCC-DDDDDD-EEEEEE, and assumes a default installation location:

"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2017\Enterprise\Common7\IDE\StorePID.exe" AAAAA-BBBBB-CCCCC-DDDDDD-EEEEEE 08860

The following table lists the MPC codes for each edition of Visual Studio:

Visual Studio Edition MPC
Visual Studio Enterprise 2017 08860
Visual Studio Professional 2017 08862
Visual Studio Test Professional 2017 08866

If StorePID.exe successfully applies the product key, it returns an %ERRORLEVEL% of 0. If it encounters errors, it returns one of the following codes, depending on the error condition:

Error Code
PID_ACTION_SUCCESS 0
PID_ACTION_NOTINSTALLED 1
PID_ACTION_INVALID 2
PID_ACTION_EXPIRED 3
PID_ACTION_INUSE 4
PID_ACTION_FAILURE 5
PID_ACTION_NOUPGRADE 6

Note

When you run a virtual instance of Visual Studio, make sure that you also virtualize the local AppData folder and the registry. To troubleshoot virtual instances, run <Visual Studio installation directory>\Common7\IDE\DDConfigCA.exe.

Support or troubleshooting

Sometimes, things can go wrong. If your Visual Studio installation fails, see Troubleshoot Visual Studio installation and upgrade issues for step-by-step guidance.

Here are a few more support options:

  • We also offer an installation chat (English only) support option for installation-related issues.
  • Report product issues to us via the Report a Problem tool that appears both in the Visual Studio Installer and in the Visual Studio IDE. If you're an IT Administrator and don't have Visual Studio installed, you can submit IT Admin feedback here.
  • Suggest a feature, track product issues, and find answers in the Visual Studio Developer Community.

See also