My windows 11 is no longer activated

Question

My windows 11 is no longer activated

Bert Young 0

My Activation of windows 11 is broken overnight.. IE my pc says windows is not activated it worked fine yesterday

EmilyS726 279.8K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-11-12T21:33:10.1766667+00:00
Hello,

How did you obtain your license initially?

Did it come with the device preinstalled, or did you purchase it?

If you purchased it, did you purchase from Microsoft, or from third party?

Is it originally a Win7/8 key?

Just to make sure, is motherboard changed?

Can you please type cmd in the search on the taskbar and hit enter to launch command prompt, then run the following command:

slmgr /dlv

Then share a screenshot please. Thanks!

1 answer

Your answer

EmilyS726 279.8K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-11-12T21:33:10.1766667+00:00

Hello,

How did you obtain your license initially?

Did it come with the device preinstalled, or did you purchase it?

If you purchased it, did you purchase from Microsoft, or from third party?

Is it originally a Win7/8 key?

Just to make sure, is motherboard changed?

Can you please type cmd in the search on the taskbar and hit enter to launch command prompt, then run the following command:

slmgr /dlv

Then share a screenshot please. Thanks!

Answer 1

Try this in order:

Check that the device is running Windows 11 and is fully up to date.
- Press Start, type winver, and confirm the version.
Run the Activation troubleshooter.
- Go to Start > Settings > System > Activation > Troubleshoot.
- This option appears only when Windows is not activated.
- An internet connection is required, and administrator access is required.
If the device recently had a major hardware change, use the reactivation flow.
- In Start > Settings > System > Activation > Troubleshoot, select I changed hardware on this device recently.
- Sign in with the Microsoft account linked to the digital license.
- Select the current device from the list, check This is the device I’m using right now, then select Activate.
If there was no digital license flow available, enter the product key.
- Go to Start > Settings > System > Activation > Change product key.
- Enter the 25-character key from the confirmation email, device packaging, or Certificate of Authenticity (COA).
Verify the installed edition matches the license.
- In Start > Settings > System > Activation, check whether the device is running Windows 11 Home or Windows 11 Pro.
- If the license is for a different edition, Windows will not activate.
If the error is related to connectivity, verify date/time and network.
- For error 0x80072F8F, check Start > Settings > Time & language > Date & time.
- Then run network troubleshooter from the taskbar search and fix any network issues.
If activation still fails, check the specific error code shown on the Activation page and follow the matching fix:
- 0x800704CF: Windows did not find a valid license. Enter a valid product key or run the troubleshooter after hardware changes.
- 0xC004C003: The product key is not valid for this device. If the PC came with Windows preinstalled, contact the device manufacturer; if bought from a reseller, contact the reseller.
- 0xC004F034: The key is invalid or for a different Windows edition.
- 0x80004005: Run the Activation troubleshooter. If that does not work, a device reset might be required. Reset can remove apps and settings.
- 0x87e10bc6: Wait a few minutes, run the troubleshooter, then select Go to Microsoft Store if prompted.

If the troubleshooter does not fix it, contact support.

References: