Microsoft has made a collection of materials related to Windows Vista activation available for download. Volume Activation 2.0 is a process designed to activate copies of Windows Vista and Windows Server Longhorn. "Using volume activation can speed and help simplify deployment, help provide strong antipiracy measures hand in hand with manageability, security and deployment benefits," opined Microsoft.

Volume Activation 2.0 brings to the table three new methods for activating Windows Vista: Multiple Activation Key Independent Activation, MAK Proxy Activation and Key Management Service Activation. While Volume Activation 2.0 impacts only superficially home-users of Vista, things are a tad different for volume customers. And this is where KMS comes in, hosted on Windows Vista, Windows Server codenamed "Longhorn," or KMS for Windows Server 2003.

"Key Management Service (KMS) enables organizations to perform local activations for computers in a managed environment without the need to connect to Microsoft. A KMS key is used to enable KMS on a host computer controlled by the system administrator in an organization. KMS activation is targeted at managed environments. The KMS counts the number of activation requests it receives, and responds to requests by returning the current count. KMS activation of Windows Vista requires a KMS count of 25 or more," revealed Microsoft.

KMS activated copies of Windows Vista have to connect to a KMS host within 180 days of the initial activation or they will be forced into Reduced Functionality Mode. By comparison, MAK product keys can activate only a specific number of computers, but the activation limit can be depleted if the process is abused.

The complete Technical Guidance for Windows Vista Volume Activation 2.0 comes with a Step by Step Guide, a FAQ, Technical Attributes, and StandardUserProductActivation.zip, allowing users to access planning, deployment, and operational guidance.