Installing Visual Studio 2012 and enabling developer licenses for Windows 8 apps

 

The  RTM versions of Visual Studio 2012 require developer activation to enable the developer to develop a Windows Store application.

This activation is via a registered LiveID/Microsoft Account, and simply enrols VS2012 for a 90 day development license.

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I have a had a number of question how do we do this?

The process you must be undertaken by a local admin on the desktop, you must also have access to Visual Studio and register your LiveID/MicrosoftID against the machines copy of Visual Studio 2012..

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To enable you to undertake the activation on a large scale deployment such as University or college lab environment here are some tips

We are in the process of producing necessary documentation and white papers but In the meantime the following FAQ is helpful:

· Does the developer license only have to be acquired/renewed in relation to Windows Store app development?
Yes. To be precise: You need the developer license to install, develop, test and evaluate new style apps BEFORE you submit them to the Window Store. To be able to submit an app to the Windows Store, you'll need to open a separate Windows Store developer account through the developer website.

· Is the license per user or per machine?
Per User and machine, see https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/apps/hh974578.aspx

· It seems that you have to have local administrator privileges to renew the license, is that correct?
YES

· Is the renewal of the license something that could be automated by an administrator via remotely deployed PowerShell scripts?
YES, see section "Getting a developer license at a command prompt" at https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/apps/hh974578.aspx

· How can I use a DreamSpark account?
Here is how to associate your DreamSpark account to a Microsoft account and also get a developer license for Windows Phone/Xbox development
https://blogs.msdn.com/b/uk_faculty_connection/archive/2012/02/29/dreamspark-and-apphub-account-creation-simplified.aspx