Before 1997, developers typically purchased standalone licenses for individual languages. Visual Studio 97 changed this by bundling:
Before we discuss a specific key, we must understand the technology of 1997. There was no online activation. There was no product key stored in a BIOS. The "CD key" (often called a "Product ID" or "Serial Number") was a simple string of alphanumeric characters, typically 20 digits split into 5 groups of 4 or 5 characters (e.g., 111-1111111 or 12345-678-9012345-67890 ).
Unlike modern product keys that activate via Microsoft’s servers, the Visual Studio 97 CD Key was purely a "gatekeeper" check. The installer ran a local algorithm to verify if the key was mathematically valid. Once verified, the software installed completely offline, with no phone-home activation.
Kevin slid the CD into the family's Pentium II. The drive whirred loudly. He typed the ones carefully, one by one. The installer accepted it without hesitation.