Activate windows

[IreHog]

Received prebuilt PC yesterday with Win 11 installed however I'm unable to activate windows. 'it looks like the hardware of this device has changed' On troubleshooting it's telling me to purchase a genuine copy of windows, not quite sure what I'm supposed to do as I've had windows operating disks in the past which are somewhat easy to use, can anyone help?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Received prebuilt PC yesterday with Win 11 installed however I'm unable to activate windows. 'it looks like the hardware of this device has changed' On troubleshooting it's telling me to purchase a genuine copy of windows, not quite sure what I'm supposed to do as I've had windows operating disks in the past which are somewhat easy to use, can anyone help?

Did you buy it direct from PCS? If so, then your windows key should be in your order section of your account.

If you bought it elsewhere, then you'd need to register it with PCS by phoning them (just need proof of purchase) and they'll be able to sort that out for you.

But yes, it should be licensed, it's not unusual for windows to have licensing complications on setup.

 

[IreHog]

Yes I bought it from PCS, I can see a key under the windows licence, am I having a blonde moment, have I to activate it myself using the key?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Yes I bought it from PCS, I can see a key under the windows licence, am I having a blonde moment, have I to activate it myself using the key?

Search for "Activation", open Activation Settings, then change product key.

 

[IreHog]

Thanks for the reply, so keyed in the code and it's still telling me there's a hardware change and cant activate, I might restart and try again, if not i'll probably contact PCS on Monday after work.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Thanks for the reply, so keyed in the code and it's still telling me there's a hardware change and cant activate, I might restart and try again, if not i'll probably contact PCS on Monday after work.

You can try the Microsoft activation line, just explain to them this is a brand new OEM PC supplied with windows.

This kind of thing is not uncommon with windows activation.

Microsoft can reset the activation over the phone. The contact details should be in the activation troubleshooter when it fails

But you can use it as normal while it’s not activated as well, it won’t impede anything if you wanted to wait to call PCS

 

[IreHog]

So weird thing is when I went in to the troubleshooter and chose the ' I recently changed hardware option' it came back with this
We can’t find any devices linked to your Microsoft account that can be used to reactivate the device that you’re using at the moment. Make sure that you’re signed in with the same Microsoft account that you linked to the Windows 10 digital licence on this device, or try again later.
I have a Windows 10 build currently but chose to buy a new build as it was around 6 years old, any insight?

 

[SpyderTracks]

So weird thing is when I went in to the troubleshooter and chose the ' I recently changed hardware option' it came back with this
We can’t find any devices linked to your Microsoft account that can be used to reactivate the device that you’re using at the moment. Make sure that you’re signed in with the same Microsoft account that you linked to the Windows 10 digital licence on this device, or try again later.
I have a Windows 10 build currently but chose to buy a new build as it was around 6 years old, any insight?

Can you post your full specs from the order page? Leave out the windows key

 

[IreHog]

Case
CORSAIR 4000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Promotional Item
Get a discount code for 20% off select peripherals at Corsair.com
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 14-Core Processor i5-14600K (Up to 5.3GHz) 24MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME B760-PLUS D4 (LGA1700, DDR4, PCIe 5.0)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4060 - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 2950MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 150 Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6E AX210 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
Norton 360 inc. Game Optimizer - Free 90 Day License
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (6 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standa
Miscellaneous
PCSpecialist Game Pass Sheet
Welcome Book
PCSpecialist Welcome Book
Logo Branding
PCSpecialist Logo
Packaging
PCS Corsair Carton Upright
Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/PFekM0hwNZ/

 

[SpyderTracks]

So weird thing is when I went in to the troubleshooter and chose the ' I recently changed hardware option' it came back with this
We can’t find any devices linked to your Microsoft account that can be used to reactivate the device that you’re using at the moment. Make sure that you’re signed in with the same Microsoft account that you linked to the Windows 10 digital licence on this device, or try again later.
I have a Windows 10 build currently but chose to buy a new build as it was around 6 years old, any insight?

So because there's no valid license on the system at the moment because windows is registering a hardware change and failing to activate, that key you've been given is invalid.

When you sign in to windows with a microsoft account, the license is then registered with the account, it's converted to a digital license. So windows is checking the microsoft account that's logged in for a valid license it can take, but not finding one.

That's all.

You either need to contact Microsoft to reset the activation (open 24/7) or wait until tomorrow to speak with PCS about it.

But there's nothing you can do with the current license, as it's registering a hardware change, it's no longer valid. Once a key is invalid, that's for good, you have to get another one.

Just for future reference, you could have carried the license over from your old build if you wanted to, it's not like the old days, so long as it's windows 10 or 11, you can carry that across to a new system.

 

[IreHog]

Thanks for your help, I appreciate it, i've logged a call with Microsoft

 

[SpyderTracks]

You could try the following to release the current license from the machine and then try readding it

Firstly, change your windows account to a local one instead of using microsoft login by going to settings / accounts / your info and change it to a local one

Then reboot

Open powershell as administrator and type the following

slmgr.vbs /upk

Then reboot again, while still using a local account, try the windows key on your PCS account again just to see if it registers.

If that works, then after that you can change your account back to a microsoft account and that should successfully convert it to a digital license.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Ah, on second thoughts, I wonder if that's what's happening, because you logged in with a microsoft account before it was licensed, it's trying to apply the windows 10 license on your account which of course isn't valid as would need to be applied to windows 10 first and then upgraded.

So when you're trying to input your PCS license key it's saying it's already applied one but it's not valid because the hardware doesn't match what's on your previous PC.

The above steps should resolve that if that's the case, but microsoft will be able to talk you through it if any issues.

 

[IreHog]

Yes I think that's what happened, im all up and running now they called and got me through with no trouble, thanks for the guidance and telling me to log the call or i'd still be pressing the same buttons with the same outcome lol

 

[SpyderTracks]

Yes I think that's what happened, im all up and running now they called and got me through with no trouble, thanks for the guidance and telling me to log the call or i'd still be pressing the same buttons with the same outcome lol

Ah, brilliant, glad it’s sorted. Microsoft support are very good like that.

pleased it’s working

Make sure you apply all windows updates and go to advanced option and apply all optional updates also to get the system current