Windows 10: Re-Activation of Windows After a Hardware Change

Hello,


I have a bit of situation and cannot get windows to re-activate after a hardware change. Here is the situation, I purchased a MSI AM4 socket motherboard to upgrade from an AM3 board at the beginning of December which was the original system my product of Windows was running on. I entered my product key on the new AM4 board and everything ran fine for a bit. Early in January I had a major hardware failure (Graphics Card and Motherboard both fried for some reason, probably related to an issue with the GPU), regardless I had to send my motherboard back and go back to the old AM3 board for a few months (windows did not ask to be re-activated) and everything ran fine.


I received a replacement MSI AM4 board and have installed it, fresh installed windows on my SSD. It shows my product key on the activation page but with error0xc004f050 claiming that this is activated on another device, which technically I'm assuming it is still tied to/active on either my broken AM4 board which is god knows where it is now (it was within Amazon return period so I just returned it and bought a new board instead of waiting for a manufacturer RMA) or my Am3 board which is sitting on my shelf in a box. When I go further in the trouble shooter clicking I've made a hardware change and I select my current device (the AM4 board) it simply says Windows Cannot activate this device please try again later with no explanation as to why.


I know I've already used the product key before but I'm simply trying to use my legitimate copy of windows on my current motherboard/setup. Is there a way I can get my windows product key tied to this device (this motherboard)?


Any advice would be much appreciated.


- Michael

:)

 

windows activation—hardware changed siginficantly

From time to time on my thoroughbred PC, I get a Windows activation message that says my hardware changed siginificantly and I have to re-activate Windows. My hardware hasn't changed any more than a network card (went from a wireless g card to onboard lan to a wired network card), and the install is legit. Why is it doing this, and how can I stop it?

 

Unable to activate Windows after hardware change

Hi,

Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

Usually the error code 0xC004F213 comes when there is a hardware change done on the computer (like Motherboard or Hard drive). The Windows license is associated with the device hardware. If there is any significant hardware changes, such as replacing
motherboard or hard drive, Windows won’t be able to recognize the license.

I suggest you to try the troubleshooting steps from the article
Reactivating Windows 10 after a hardware change and see if Windows gets activated.

If you are using an OEM computer that came with Windows 7, and the motherboard has not been changed, then you can follow the steps to retrieve the product key that came with your OEM computer. To retrieve the product key follow the steps mentioned
below:

1. Type Command prompt in the search bar, that is on the taskbar.
   
2. Right click on Command prompt icon and select Run as administrator.
   
3. Type the command and press on Enter: wmic path SoftwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey
   
4. You will find the product key.
   

Hope it helps.

Please reply with the status of the issue, we will be glad to help you further.

Nikhar Khare

Microsoft Community - Moderator

 

Activation problems after hardware changes and reinstallations.

Hi Meli,

Thank you for posting the query on Microsoft Community.

I do appreciate your efforts and time.

Was Windows 10 activated before re-installing it?

Along with the suggestions provided by Greg, you can also refer the steps below.



The only hardware changes that can negatively impact activation status once you upgrade to free version are the changes to the:

• CPU
• TPM
• Motherboard replacement

The following changes are examples of hardware changes that will NOT impact the activation status:

• HDD/SSD
• Video card
• Adding extra memory

If you replace the CPU, TPM, or Motherboard you may have to re-activate but this will not require a purchase of Windows 10.

Why can't I activate Windows 10?:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/why-activate-windows-10

Get help with Windows 10 activation errors:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/activation-errors-windows-10

Can I clean re-install Windows 10 after upgrading?

Can I clean re-install Windows 10 after upgrading?

Hope this helps in resolving the issue. If the issue persists, do get back to us. We will be happy to assist you.