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How to Change the Volume Serial Number of a Disk or Volume

A volume serial number (VSN) is a unique hexadecimal number assigned to a disk or volume during the format process. It is stored in the disk parameter block part of the volume boot record[^1^]. The VSN can be used by some software licensing schemes to verify that an installed copy of the software is being used on the correct computer[^1^]. However, sometimes you may want to change the VSN of a disk or volume for various reasons, such as cloning, backup, or privacy.

In this article, we will show you how to change the VSN of a disk or volume using some free tools and commands. We will also explain how the VSN is generated and how to find it using different methods.

How is the VSN Generated

The VSN is created based on a fairly complex combination of the year, hour, month, second, and hundredth of a second that the drive was formatted[^1^]. This means it will change each time the drive is formatted. The VSN is not the same as the serial number of the hard drive assigned by the manufacturer[^1^]. It is also different from the disk signature, which is a truly unique identifier for a hard drive in a computer system[^1^].

How to Find the VSN of a Disk or Volume

There are several ways to find the VSN of a disk or volume. One of the easiest ways is to use the Command Prompt and execute the vol command[^2^]. For example, if you want to find the VSN of the C drive, you can type vol c: and press Enter. You will see something like this:

Volume in drive C is Windows

Serial Number is C1F3-A79E

The first line shows the volume label, which is a user-assigned name for the disk or volume. The second line shows the VSN in hexadecimal format. If the disk or volume has no label, you will see Volume in drive C has no label instead[^2^].

Another way to find the VSN is to use a free system information tool such as Speccy. This tool can show you various details about your hard drives, including their serial numbers and VSNs[^2^]. You can download Speccy from here.

How to Change the VSN of a Disk or Volume

While there is no built-in ability in Windows to change the VSN of a disk or volume, some free vendor tools will do the trick. One of them is Volume Serial Number Changer, which is an open-source program that shows you some basic information about your hard drive, plus a small field to enter the new number you want to set[^1^]. You can download Volume Serial Number Changer from here.

To use Volume Serial Number Changer, follow these steps:

Run the program as administrator.

Select the drive letter of the disk or volume you want to change.

Type in a new VSN in hexadecimal format (8 digits) or click on Randomize to generate one randomly.

Click on Change.

Restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

Note that changing the VSN may affect some software that relies on it for licensing or verification purposes. You may need to re-activate or re-install some programs after changing the VSN.

Conclusion

In this article, we have shown you what a volume serial number (VSN) is, how it is generated, how to find it, and how to change it using some free tools and commands. We hope this article has been helpful and informative for you. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them below. aa16f39245