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Questions tagged [software-activation]

A DRM system used in many software products which uses a remote server to verify license validity, often limiting the number of computers on which the software may be installed. For questions about activating Windows, use [windows-activation].

Software activation is a DRM system used in many software products, where the software contacts a remote server to verify the validity of the license before allowing the software to run. Many implementations limit the number of computers to which the software may be installed, using information which identifies the computer or hardware configuration (such as hardware serial numbers). In most cases, licenses can be deactivated so that the software can be uninstalled and moved to another system.

For questions which involve activating Windows itself, rather than application software such as Microsoft Office, use .

54 questions
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How to transfer office activation to another account?

I have bought two licenses for Office 2016 Home & Student (the permanent licenses, not the 365 subscription). Due to some auto-signup, cookies and product-keys-encoded-in-a-url supplied by the vendor and also my ignorance regarding the…
sharpener
  • 433
6
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2 answers

How to change the saved Office 2013 Product Key

I installed Office 2013 and put in the product key when it asked me to. After typing in the product key, it allowed me to use MS Word once. After I closed MS Word and went to reopen it the next day, it said the product key I entered was incorrect…
user2719875
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Will it help to uninstall Microsoft Office before installing it on a different machine?

I'm fairly sure the answer is 'no' but that's just a guess. Is there any way to de-activate the software, and possibly save the hassle of calling Microsoft?
Kara Marfia
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4
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4 answers

Microsoft Office 2016 Error "We're sorry something went wrong ... 0x8004FC12"

When starting up Microsoft Office 365 or Office 2016 for first time, I'm getting an error "We're sorry something went wrong and we can't do this for you right now. Please try again later (0x8004FC12)". Later apparently means never. How can I fix…
BSalita
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3
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1 answer

How can I activate the Linux version of Microsoft SQL Server 2022 Enterprise?

I followed the steps on the Microsoft website to install SQL Server 2022 on Ubuntu Server. After I entered the command on step 4 of the instructions to enter the setup wizard, I selected the Enterprise edition when prompted to select an edition, but…
Felix An
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2
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2 answers

Reinstall MS Office after reinstalling Windows

I have reinstalled Windows 10 on a new hard drive as my laptop had become unusable. I still have the old hard drive with the old windows installation on it. Can I get MS Office back?
Blue7
  • 165
2
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1 answer

Retrieving forgotten serial number for adobe CS4

I have Adobe CS4 installed on my iMac, but I forgot where I wrote down the serial number. I want to move it to a different computer in the future, but I would need the serial number to reinstall in. Is there some way I can get it? The current…
mk12
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1
vote
1 answer

Activate Office without contacting Microsoft and without Hotmail Address

I bought new tablet that was supposed to come with Microsoft Office 365 (free 1 year subscription). I'm hoping the latest Word has a number of problems fixed that I have experienced in Word 2010 and 2013. I'm trying to use office, but I keep getting…
jww
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vote
1 answer

Unable to activate Photoshop CS4 on a new computer

I've sold my old Apple Mac Pro 3,1 to get a new Mac Pro 4,1 and moved my Areca RAID card with all drives and graphics card to it. Now my Photoshop CS4 is displaying message: "Our records indicate that this serial numbe has already been used to set…
Spacedust
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vote
1 answer

Can components of different Adobe Creative Suites be installed alongside each other?

Last year I purchased Adobe Design Standard (which is primarily Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign) on a student license. This year, I have a need for DreamWeaver, as well, and possibly other components of Web Premium. I'm considering buying a…
Dan J
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Are M365 apps like Excel activated by logging in?

I have a Windows 10 PC with M365 apps installed - Word, Excel. The PC is connected to the internet but I am no longer able to logon from Excel or Word to my M365 account, but only from that PC. It is by design that I cannot login, I do not seek any…
Vojtěch Dohnal
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Office 2007 Key Goof Up

A friend brought a new Toshiba laptop. That came preloaded with Windows 7 (x64) and Office 2007 Student Edition. He tried a key and it came with a prompt "They key entered is invalid". He, in his enthusiasm, entered a key which he found in the Net…
Kanini
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1
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2 answers

office activation with kms fails (ERROR CODE: 0x80070005)

I tried to activate my office with a persnoak working kms of mine. c:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16>cscript ospp.vbs /act Microsoft (R) Windows Script Host Version 5.812 Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights…
office activation
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Can I Switch Same Model of Motherboard in Computer Without Needing to "Reactivate" Windows 7 Home Premium OEM and Office 10?

I have an HP 500-164 desktop computer with some broken USB ports. I found a replacement of the exact same motherboard that I could purchase and "switch out" with the old; however I am concerned about the potential that my Microsoft Windows 7 Home…
Cfguy100
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ODT Visio 2019 installation will not accept volume license key

I am trying to get Visio 2019 installed via ODT. After executing ODT and installing Visio, no matter what product ID I attempt to use in the configuration XML, I get the error "This product key is for the volume-licensed version of Microsoft Visio…
Tim T
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