Solved Microsoft refuses to let me reactivate with new MB and processor.


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macnab

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OS
Windows 11
New motherboard and processor.
I originally had Windows 7 and upgraded to 10 and then 11.
If I select Change Product Key and enter my Windows 7 product key it tells me it is not valid.

So I go to Troubleshooting and click on Recently changed hardware.
It asks me for my password, I enter it.
It says it needs my password just one more time, I enter it.
It says it cant help me because I am already there.

After a few similar attempts I opened a ticket at Microsoft.
After 4 days still no word from Microsoft.

Signed out of my account.
Went through the whole rigmarole again and this time it said someone has entered the incorrect password too many times so for a period login will be blocked.
So I logged in. Successfully.
Under devices I can see my PC before the hardware change, and my PC with the new motherboard.

Is it wise to select old version and remove it? I suspect the answer is no, seeing as MS don't like my Windows 7 product key.
 
Windows Build/Version
23H2 22631.3593

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home built
    Sound Card
    USB Audio Device
Microsoft stopped allowing new activations for Win10/11 using older Win7 license keys. New hardware equals no go.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7/10/11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    I'm a computer enthusiast so have quite a few systems that I run. More like an advanced hobby.
So because my motherboard blew I have to pay MS again?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home built
    Sound Card
    USB Audio Device
Yes. You'll have to buy a new Windows 11 Pro licence key and activate it.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP ZBook G2
    CPU
    Intel® Core i7 5500u
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Family Graphics AMD Firepro 4150M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Audio
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Mouse
    HP USB Mouse
    Antivirus
    Zone Alarm Free Antivirus/Zone Alarm Free Firewall NEXT GEN
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Zbook G4
    CPU
    Xeon 1535m v6
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    32 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Quadro Pro 4100
    Sound Card
    Bang and Olufson Audio
    Hard Drives
    1TB SSD
    Mouse
    HP USB Mouse
    Antivirus
    Zone Alarm Free Antivirus/Zone Alarm Free Firewall NEXT GEN
I think you may be in one of those "grey" areas when it comes to your issue. Also not sure of what is happening with the MS Recovery procedure.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7/10/11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Other Info
    I'm a computer enthusiast so have quite a few systems that I run. More like an advanced hobby.
I had a similar problem because of imagined hardware change. One machine still deactivated.

Is it allowing you to use the old machine activation activation on the new one?

Otherwise win10 pro keys can be had for a few bucks. win10 and win11 keys are interchangeable unless something has changed recently.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win7,Win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5-8400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x8gb 3200mhz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    benq gw2480
    PSU
    bequiet pure power 11 400CM
    Cooling
    cryorig m9i
  • Operating System
    win7,win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    pentium g5400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    1x8gb 2400
    PSU
    xfx pro 450
Microsoft usually allows you to transfer your Windows 10 licence to a new motherboard. But not previous Windows versions.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP ZBook G2
    CPU
    Intel® Core i7 5500u
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Family Graphics AMD Firepro 4150M
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Audio
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Mouse
    HP USB Mouse
    Antivirus
    Zone Alarm Free Antivirus/Zone Alarm Free Firewall NEXT GEN
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Zbook G4
    CPU
    Xeon 1535m v6
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    32 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    AMD Quadro Pro 4100
    Sound Card
    Bang and Olufson Audio
    Hard Drives
    1TB SSD
    Mouse
    HP USB Mouse
    Antivirus
    Zone Alarm Free Antivirus/Zone Alarm Free Firewall NEXT GEN
No idea what MS are doing.

I regularly swapped a disk with a win11 installation between 2 different machines without any problem. The same installation would automatically pick up the activation for whichever machine it was on.

Then one day it declared both machines unactivated.

After a lot of faffing around I managed to get one of them activated. The other activation has gorn.

Other people have reported similar problem following hardware change.

It only seems to affect licenses obtained from win7 > win10 "free upgrade"
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win7,Win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5-8400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x8gb 3200mhz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    benq gw2480
    PSU
    bequiet pure power 11 400CM
    Cooling
    cryorig m9i
  • Operating System
    win7,win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    pentium g5400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    1x8gb 2400
    PSU
    xfx pro 450
I had a similar situation with my older MS Office suite validations that were activated under older windows versions - when I upgrade to a new PC (Win11 64, i9, etc..). They would not activate under Win11.. MS (via phone) refused to do anything about it.. they were paid for yrs ago and I wasn't upgrading to O365 pricing, so I dropped the outlook (and other office) client(s) which I'd used for years and moved to thunderbird.. which works fine. I also went to LibreOffice..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win11 Pro 24H2 Build 26100.2894
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Powerspec
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-14900KF 3.20 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI PRO Z690-A WIFI (MS-7D25)
    Memory
    G.Skill DDR5-5600 / PC5-44800 DDR5 SDRAM UDIMM
    Graphics Card(s)
    GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 4070 Ti WINDFORCE OC 12G (GV-N407TWF3OC-12GD)
    Sound Card
    OnBoard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell - various (3)
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    SSD/HDD/NVME
    PSU
    850 Watt 80+ Gold Modular
    Case
    PowerSpec/Lian Li ATX 205 Mesh
    Cooling
    Coolermaster MASTERLIQUID ML240L V2 RGB
    Keyboard
    Logi MX Keys S
    Mouse
    MX Master 3S
    Internet Speed
    600 mbps
    Browser
    various (Opera, Vivaldi, Edge, Brave, Chrome)
    Antivirus
    anitmalwarebytes; superantispyware; defender
    Other Info
    Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.26100.36.0
I suspect that MS just dont tell me properly that I cant transfer the activation key. Already bought a new licence, not much more than the price of a beer.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home built
    Sound Card
    USB Audio Device
S0C9 said:
I had a similar situation with my older MS Office suite validations that were activated under older windows versions - when I upgrade to a new PC (Win11 64, i9, etc..). They would not activate under Win11.. MS (via phone) refused to do anything about it.. they were paid for yrs ago and I wasn't upgrading to O365 pricing, so I dropped the outlook (and other office) client(s) which I'd used for years and moved to thunderbird.. which works fine. I also went to LibreOffice..
Click to expand...

OS activation problem after alleged hardware change is because of the win7>win10 free upgrade. Strangely it doesn't seem to affect everybody.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win7,Win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5-8400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x8gb 3200mhz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    benq gw2480
    PSU
    bequiet pure power 11 400CM
    Cooling
    cryorig m9i
  • Operating System
    win7,win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    pentium g5400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    1x8gb 2400
    PSU
    xfx pro 450

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro Ver. 24H2 Bld. 26100.2605
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Bosgame P1 EffiZen Series
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5700U with Radeon Graphics 1.80 Ghz.
    Motherboard
    Bosgame ACB 20 Version 1.0
    Memory
    64GB DDR4 3200 Hz
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon Graphics 8Cores 1900MHZ
    Sound Card
    AMD High Definition
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sceptre F27 LED 27" Monitor
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 @ 100Hz
    Hard Drives
    C: Samsung 990 EVO NVME 2280 SSD 1TB Internal System
    D: Samsung MU-PC1TOH T7 1TB External NVME USB-C Archives
    PSU
    19V 3420mA
    Case
    Mini Computer
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    MK-Star 75 Mechanical Backlighted Gaming Keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech M575 Track Ball Mouse
    Internet Speed
    479.0 Mbps Down 11 Mbps Up @ Spectrum
    Browser
    Brave Version 1.73.101 Chromium: 131.0.6778.139
    Antivirus
    Windows Security
    Other Info
    E: Sharp BD,BRD50_AQ External CD/DVD-RW/Blu-Ray USB Drive
    Bluetooth 5.2 W/Phonak Hearing aids
  • Operating System
    Linux Mint Ver. 22.1 Beta XFCE
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    BMAX B3 Plus
    CPU
    Intel Jasper Lake N5095 Celeron
    Motherboard
    AMI
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4 2666MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel UHD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Sceptre 27"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 @ 100Hz
    Hard Drives
    Kingspec 1TB M.2 2242 SATA SSD System
    Samsung 1TB 870 EVO Internal SATA SSD Backup
    PSU
    Saw36-120-300U 12V 3000mA
    Case
    Mini Computer
    Cooling
    Fan
    Mouse
    Logi Track Ball Mouse M575
    Keyboard
    MK-STAR75 Mechanical keyboard
    Internet Speed
    479.0 Mbps Down 11 Mbps Up @ Spectrum
    Browser
    Brave Version 1.73.101 Chromium: 131.0.6778.139
    Antivirus
    Mint
Most of the above posts are not accurate at all.

To diagnose the problem, you would need to reinstate the old mobo and run following

Code: 
slmgr /dlv

and tell us what it says after product key status.

I have a suspicion you had a volume licence key. It is suspicious that you had a limit to number of logins. This is very unusual on normal home/pro installations unless you deliberately set limits with gpedit or regedit. Such limits usually come from company based installations (legit or otherwise).

If you do not have old mobo, there is little you can do but accept need to but a new licence.

Onething you could try is install and run showkeyplus (in MS Store) and enter w7 key in check key option and post image (with keys blanked out).

edit: I missed post where you said you have bought a key.

Subject closed.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro + Win11 Canary VM.
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Zenbook 14
    CPU
    I9 13th gen i9-13900H 2.60 GHZ
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB soldered
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop OLED screen
    Screen Resolution
    2880x1800 touchscreen
    Hard Drives
    1 TB NVME SSD (only weakness is only one slot)
    PSU
    Internal + 65W thunderbolt USB4 charger
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois (UK pint cans - 568 ml) - extra cost.
    Keyboard
    Built in UK keybd
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wireless dongled, wired
    Internet Speed
    900 mbs (ethernet), wifi 6 typical 350-450 mb/s both up and down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0, 2xUSB4 thunderbolt, 1xUsb3 (usb a), 1xUsb-c, hdmi out, 3.5 mm audio out/in combo, ASUS backlit trackpad (inc. switchable number pad)

    Macrium Reflect Home V8
    Office 365 Family (6 users each 1TB onedrive space)
    Hyper-V (a vm runs almost as fast as my older laptop)
macnab said:
So because my motherboard blew I have to pay MS again?
Click to expand...
Same with any product - unless you had insurance. If your car blows up - without insurance you'd have to buy another one.

The only exception with computers and Windows is that if you have a full retail (not a manufacturer's version) you can transfer the license to the new machine (might require phone activation though).

Cheers
jimbo
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows XP,7,10,11 Linux Arch Linux
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    2 X Intel i7
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