Windows 10: Replaced SSD and Now Windows 10 is no longer activated.

My PC was upgraded to Windows 10 from Windows 7 with free upgrade in late 2015. Today I replaced a 250 GB SSD with a 500 GB SSD by cloning and now Windows is no longer activated. I have the original Product Key from Windows 7.


I get this error when I try to activate Wndows 10: "We can't reach a critical Windows service. Make sure you're connected to the Internet, wait a few minutes and try activating again. (0x80070422)"


I clicked on "I changed my hardware on this device recently". I was told "Unable to activate Windows" and that no devices with my signon could be found. I upgraded three of my PCs from windows 7 to 10 at that same time. And I am somewhat certain I would have used my Windows signon that I have used for many years.


From a command prompt today, I used:



C:\WINDOWS\system32>slmgr.vbs /upk

C:\WINDOWS\system32>slmgr.vbs /ipk [Product key]

And was told: ("installed successfully" )


But after a reboot, Windows still shows not activated.


I am not certain I know which of my three Windows 7 Product keys apply to which of my three PC's. Also, I don't know whether the Product key being asked for in Windows 10 would be a Windows 7 Product Key.


I used two programs ("ProduKey" and "Belarc Advisor" in each of the three PCs. The Product key returned was the same for the two of them that show to be activated. An "no key" was shown for the PC not shown to be activated.


Any advice?

Thank you!

:)

 

Windows activation error

Hi Brandon,

Before replacing the Mother Board if Windows 10 was activated, then you can refer the steps/link below for activating Windows 10.

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.

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

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

 

Does Windows 10 automatically recognise that a SSD has replaced a HDD?

I have recently replaced the HDD in my Windows 10 laptop with a SSD. As I understand it, Windows periodically runs a defragmentation in the background on a HDD. However, SSD drives do not require defragmenting and running such a tool can shorten the life
of a SSD.

The SSD was a clone of the HDD and not a new installation. Will Windows 10 recognize that the laptop now has a SSD and stop its background defragmentation or do I need to take specific steps to prevent this activity occurring on the SSD? If I need to take
action please advise on the steps I should take.

Thanks for any advice anyone can offer.

 

Windows 10 Activation (Insider)

How long did you wait for activation?
When I re-installed with a fresh install... it took a few hours to sync and activate.
However, it did, finally, activate.