Upgrade Windows 10 Pro to Enterprise with E5

MD-102 By islever Editorial Last updated Sep 27, 2026

Deploy and upgrade Windows clients by using cloud-based tools

Short answer

B Use Subscription Activation to automatically upgrade the Windows 10 Pro devices to Enterprise.

Question

You have a Microsoft 365 Business Standard subscription and 100 Windows 10 Pro devices that are joined to Microsoft Entra. You purchase Microsoft 365 E5 licenses for all users. You need to upgrade the Windows 10 Pro devices to Windows 10 Enterprise. The solution must minimize administrative effort. Which upgrade method should you use?

a Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) lite-touch deployment
Subscription Activation Correct Answer
an in-place upgrade by using Windows installation media
Windows Autopilot

Key Takeaways

Subscription Activation allows a frictionless edition step-up for Entra-joined devices using existing cloud licenses, avoiding the common trap of choosing media-based in-place upgrades.

Upgrading Windows 10 Pro devices to Windows 10 Enterprise with Microsoft 365 E5 licenses is best achieved using Subscription Activation. This page explains why Subscription Activation minimizes administrative effort compared to traditional deployment methods.

Common mistake: Choosing an in-place upgrade (Option C) because it seems like the traditional way to change editions, ignoring the zero-touch capability of Subscription Activation.

Expert Analysis

Why the Answer Is Correct

Subscription Activation is the feature specifically designed to upgrade Windows 10 Pro devices that are Entra-joined to Windows 10 Enterprise when a user is assigned a qualifying license like Microsoft 365 E5. It requires no deployment tools, installation media, or reimaging, thus minimizing administrative effort. The license assignment triggers the edition upgrade automatically on the device.

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

MDT lite-touch deployment (Option A) and an in-place upgrade using installation media (Option C) both require significant administrative effort to configure task sequences, distribute media, and execute the upgrade process. Windows Autopilot (Option D) is primarily used for provisioning new devices or resetting existing ones to a known state, not for performing an in-place edition upgrade of already deployed and Entra-joined devices.

Community Comment Notes

Commenters unanimously agree that Subscription Activation is the correct choice, noting it works specifically "FROM WIN 10 PRO TO WIN 10 ENTERPRISE". One commenter provided the official Microsoft documentation link for Windows Subscription Activation to support their answer.

Official Reference

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/deployment/windows-subscription-activation

This link opens the official vendor documentation in a new tab.

Exam Strategy

When a question involves upgrading Windows Pro to Enterprise and mentions Microsoft 365 E3/E5 licenses with Entra-joined devices, always look for Subscription Activation. It is the only zero-touch, license-based edition step-up method.

Community Votes

100%

100% of anonymous learners picked answer B. Votes are pick records left by other test-takers — they are not the verified answer.

Discussion 4 contributions

Compiled from public community threads and reader submissions, lightly edited for clarity. Handles and vote tallies are shown as recorded, and comments reflect the views of individual contributors.

From public community threads 4

Alboo007_rs007 👍 2 Answered B

ITS CORRECT FROM WIN 10 PRO TO WIN 10 ENTERPRISE
Moot2 👍 1 Answered B

b correct https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/deployment/windows-subscription-activation?pivots=windows-11
HvD 👍 2 Answered B

Answer is correct.
sorinaccio 👍 1 Answered B

correct

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