Installing / Transfering OS to new HDD

[Easto]

I have an HP Laptop and it appears the HDD is bad. I'm not quite sure how to install the OS (Win 10) and make it legit. The current HDD has a recovery partition that I'm assuming contains the original OS. I'm not really clear on that, but how do I reinstall the current licensed OS onto a new SSD? I don't see any Windows stickers on the laptop that usually contain the OS serial number. If it did, I know how to install the OS and get things going? Can I find the serial number somewhere within windows?

[Philip]

I tried to somewhat answer in the other thread.. Basically, Windows 10 moved away from the traditional serial number into a digital one, activation is now locked either to the computer hardware, or to your Microsoft account.

With most laptops it is linked to the hardware. Either way, you should be able to install Windows from either a USB key, or by cloning the original HDD (if it is still readable).
You can make a Windows 10 installation USB flash drive from here: https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows10 You can then boot from the USB and install to the SSD. It would likely activate automatically after that.

[Easto]

Thanks for the info. I really haven't been on top of the whole PC thing for a long time. Many new procedures and hardware specs are all new to me.

I have noticed that memory and SSD / M.2 prices have really been dropping. I'm pretty sure I"m going to just install an ssd into her laptop, install clean windows and move on.