Windows Server 2016 KMS Setup
Note: There is an issue with using the Roles and Feature Wizard that will result in the wizard crashing before completion which is why I recommend activating the KMS Server via command prompt.
Install the Volume Activation Service Role via PowerShell
From PowerShell run the following command on the server you want to promote to a KMS Server:
Install-WindowsFeature -Name VolumeActivation -IncludeAllSubFeatureActivate the KMS Server via Command Prompt
Open an elevated command prompt and paste the following and then press Enter:
cscript.exe %windir%\system32\slmgr.vbs /ipk xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxxMake sure to replace the series of X’s with KMS host key you acquired from the Microsoft Volume Licensing Portal
After pressing Enter you should see a message that the product key was installed successfully.
As long as you have internet on your KMS server you can activate your product by typing the following into the open command prompt window:Cscript.exe %windir%\system32\slmgr.vbs /ato
KMS Firewall Configuration via Command Prompt
Generally I am going to turn off the firewall on the Windows server hosting the KMS server however if you want to keep your firewall on these are the commands to get KMS inbound/outbound traffic through the Windows Firewall:
- With elevated command prompt type the following and press enter:
netsh advfirewall firewall add rule name = "KMS Traffic" dir = in protocol = tcp action = allow localport = 1688 remoteip = localsubnet profile = DOMAIN - Now type the following and press enter:
netsh advfirewall set allprofiles state on