Can you upgrade to Windows 11 using a Windows 7 product key?

Anonymous
2023-10-25T13:00:49+00:00

About a month ago I upgraded to Windows 11 from Windows 10, which was an upgrade from Windows 7. This is not an OEM version of Windows. A week ago I upgraded my CPU, motherboard, and RAM, something I've done before with the same boot drive, however Windows is now saying that it hasn't been activated. The following message appears next to the troubleshoot button, "Windows reported that the hardware of your device has changed. Error code: 0xC004F211." When following the steps using the troubleshoot option, I eventually get an error message saying I can't activate windows at this time and to try again later. I tried the "Change product key" option and reentered my original product key, but that doesn't work either. I contacted Microsoft customer support and was told to buy a new product key because my product key is no longer valid; I can't upgrade to Win 11 using a Win 7 product key. I had no issues with Win 11 for about a month before I made the hardware change. Are Windows 7 product keys no longer work with Windows 11 or is there another issue here?

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Licensing and activation

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  1. Van S 24,475 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2023-10-25T14:56:00+00:00

    It used to be feasible before the announcement. Though there are some cases where using the Windows 7/8 key still activates Windows 10/11, it is not guaranteed that it will work again.

    On the other hand, since you have already upgraded to Windows 11 before changing the hardware, you can only use the activation troubleshooter to reactivate the system. Kindly follow the guide provided at the link below.

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/rea...

    In the link, please proceed to the "Reactivate Windows 11 after a hardware change" section.

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