K
KingR17
Hello, I'm having a bit of a rough time.
First, I'm going to have to give a bit of background...
My current Windows license was originally Windows 7 on a pre-built Lenovo computer (in 2011). It's a retail copy of Windows, so no OEM problems there...
However, I have since upgraded to Windows 8.1, then to Windows 10. I had no issues upgrading each time.
I upgraded my motherboard in late 2017, and my Windows deactivated due to the hardware change. I called up Microsoft support, and they talked me through re-activating it. During that, they gave me a new license key to use in place of my old key, and linked my license to my Microsoft account, telling me I would be able to reactivate my license in the future just by being logged into my Microsoft account. No problems there, everything was sorted.
Which brings us to the present...
I decided to move from my 2011 HDD to an SSD. I used Samsung's cloning software, and transferred my OS over to my new SSD, and my Windows was still activated. However I had also brought along with 7 years of old drivers, system settings, and other things I didn't want slowing down or cluttering up my computer. So, I decided to disconnect my HDD, and reset my Windows on the SSD, then just reinstall anything I needed and copy over my files.
I tried to use the reset option in settings, and it told me there was no recovery environment, and that I had to make an ISO on a USB or DVD. I set up an ISO on a DVD, reset Windows, went through the whole process, reinstalled all of the drivers for my peripherals. Then I went to change the background and it told me I couldn't because Windows wasn't activated. No watermark, just the notice.
I went to activation, told it to troubleshoot, it told me it couldn't activate windows on my computer. I clicked the option for recently changed hardware, and it asked me if the computer I was using was the one linked to my Microsoft account, and I checked the box for "this is the device I'm using right now", and said activate. It responded with "Unable to activate Windows. We can't reactivate Windows on this device. Try again later."
I went through all of the Learn More and troubleshooting on different activation troubleshooting methods, and none of them worked. I called tech support and they weren't helpful even a little. I had some time constraints, so I called multiple times, and was on the line with 3 or 4 people for anywhere from 20 minutes to 1.5 hours. One operator told me to call back during the day time to talk to a higher support level, another told me the license key Microsoft provided me was invalid, and another told me the license key had reached its limit for activations (which is ridiculous, as it was only re-applied once), and the last one told me to get in contact with "the place you bought the license from".
I didn't buy the license, I bought a pre-built. The pre-built was never registered, and I don't have the documentation from it. I looked into getting the key from Lenovo and all I can see on their website is a statement saying the key is embedded in the BIOS of the motherboard, which leads me to believe that my current license key is the one provided by Microsoft last year. However I got so many varied replies from tech support that I'm at a loss.
In short, my operating system was activated AFTER a hardware change to an SSD, but when I reset windows, it deactivated and won't reactivate.
Edit: To add an expectation to this... I want to have a clean OS on my SSD, and all of my old files on my HDD. I'm not opposed to re-cloning the drive, as long as I can reset the Windows on the SSD without deactivating it.
Continue reading...
First, I'm going to have to give a bit of background...
My current Windows license was originally Windows 7 on a pre-built Lenovo computer (in 2011). It's a retail copy of Windows, so no OEM problems there...
However, I have since upgraded to Windows 8.1, then to Windows 10. I had no issues upgrading each time.
I upgraded my motherboard in late 2017, and my Windows deactivated due to the hardware change. I called up Microsoft support, and they talked me through re-activating it. During that, they gave me a new license key to use in place of my old key, and linked my license to my Microsoft account, telling me I would be able to reactivate my license in the future just by being logged into my Microsoft account. No problems there, everything was sorted.
Which brings us to the present...
I decided to move from my 2011 HDD to an SSD. I used Samsung's cloning software, and transferred my OS over to my new SSD, and my Windows was still activated. However I had also brought along with 7 years of old drivers, system settings, and other things I didn't want slowing down or cluttering up my computer. So, I decided to disconnect my HDD, and reset my Windows on the SSD, then just reinstall anything I needed and copy over my files.
I tried to use the reset option in settings, and it told me there was no recovery environment, and that I had to make an ISO on a USB or DVD. I set up an ISO on a DVD, reset Windows, went through the whole process, reinstalled all of the drivers for my peripherals. Then I went to change the background and it told me I couldn't because Windows wasn't activated. No watermark, just the notice.
I went to activation, told it to troubleshoot, it told me it couldn't activate windows on my computer. I clicked the option for recently changed hardware, and it asked me if the computer I was using was the one linked to my Microsoft account, and I checked the box for "this is the device I'm using right now", and said activate. It responded with "Unable to activate Windows. We can't reactivate Windows on this device. Try again later."
I went through all of the Learn More and troubleshooting on different activation troubleshooting methods, and none of them worked. I called tech support and they weren't helpful even a little. I had some time constraints, so I called multiple times, and was on the line with 3 or 4 people for anywhere from 20 minutes to 1.5 hours. One operator told me to call back during the day time to talk to a higher support level, another told me the license key Microsoft provided me was invalid, and another told me the license key had reached its limit for activations (which is ridiculous, as it was only re-applied once), and the last one told me to get in contact with "the place you bought the license from".
I didn't buy the license, I bought a pre-built. The pre-built was never registered, and I don't have the documentation from it. I looked into getting the key from Lenovo and all I can see on their website is a statement saying the key is embedded in the BIOS of the motherboard, which leads me to believe that my current license key is the one provided by Microsoft last year. However I got so many varied replies from tech support that I'm at a loss.
In short, my operating system was activated AFTER a hardware change to an SSD, but when I reset windows, it deactivated and won't reactivate.
Edit: To add an expectation to this... I want to have a clean OS on my SSD, and all of my old files on my HDD. I'm not opposed to re-cloning the drive, as long as I can reset the Windows on the SSD without deactivating it.
Continue reading...