How to Get the BIOS Serial Number Using PowerShell

To get the BIOS serial number using PowerShell, read the SerialNumber property of the Win32_BIOS class. One line does it, with no admin rights needed:

(Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_BIOS).SerialNumber

Output:

ABC1234XYZ

That’s the same number printed on the sticker of most laptops and desktops. Below I compare the other places Windows stores serials, replace the old wmic command, and collect serials from many PCs. My real hardware details are masked in every output.

BIOS, enclosure and motherboard serial numbers

Windows reports serials from several classes. On most PCs, three of them match and the motherboard has its own:

$bios      = Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_BIOS
$enclosure = Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_SystemEnclosure
$product   = Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_ComputerSystemProduct
$board     = Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_BaseBoard

"BIOS serial:        $($bios.SerialNumber)"
"Enclosure serial:   $($enclosure.SerialNumber)"
"Product ID number:  $($product.IdentifyingNumber)"
"Motherboard serial: $($board.SerialNumber)"
"Model:              $($product.Name)"

Output:

BIOS serial:        ABC1234XYZ
Enclosure serial:   ABC1234XYZ
Product ID number:  ABC1234XYZ
Motherboard serial: PKCTSO0A1B2C3D
Model:              Contoso Laptop 14 G3

Use the BIOS serial for asset tags and warranty lookups. The motherboard serial matters mostly for repairs, since it changes when the board is replaced.

Replace wmic bios get serialnumber

Older guides use wmic bios get serialnumber. Microsoft removed WMIC from Windows 11 24H2 and later, so on current PCs it fails:

"WMIC installed: $([bool](Get-Command -Name wmic -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue))"
$result = cmd.exe /c "wmic bios get serialnumber" 2>&1 | ForEach-Object { $_.ToString().Trim() }
"wmic in cmd: Failed. $($result -join ' ')"

Output:

WMIC installed: False
wmic in cmd: Failed. 'wmic' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.

Get-CimInstance reads the same WMI data and works in PowerShell 7 and 5.1. Microsoft explains the change on its WMIC page.

Check if the serial number is real

Virtual machines and some custom-built PCs return placeholder text instead of a serial. This check catches the common ones:

$serial = (Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_BIOS).SerialNumber
$placeholders = 'To be filled by O.E.M.', 'Default string', 'System Serial Number', '0', 'None'

"Serial number: $serial"
"Looks real:    $(-not [string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($serial) -and $serial.Trim() -notin $placeholders)"

Output:

Serial number: ABC1234XYZ
Looks real:    True

If you get “To be filled by O.E.M.” or “Default string”, the maker didn’t program a serial into the firmware. Use the motherboard serial or the UUID from Win32_ComputerSystemProduct instead. The Win32_BIOS reference lists every property.

Get the serial number from remote computers

Add -ComputerName to query other PCs over WinRM. You need admin rights on each one:

$computers = 'PC-SALES-07', 'PC-SALES-08', 'PC-HR-02'
Get-CimInstance -ClassName Win32_BIOS -ComputerName $computers |
    Select-Object -Property PSComputerName, SerialNumber, SMBIOSBIOSVersion |
    Export-Csv -Path C:\Reports\serials.csv -NoTypeInformation

PSComputerName tells you which PC each row came from. Microsoft covers the options in the Get-CimInstance reference.

Keep serial numbers private

Serial numbers identify a specific device and can be used for warranty claims. Don’t post them in forums or public tickets.

Frequently Asked Questions

More hardware and system info:

• Get the BIOS version
• Retrieve the Windows product key
• Get the Windows version
• Collect Autopilot hardware hashes