Member Avatar for crusher_craig

I had a friend play with my laptop so that the thing would run a bit quicker. After a month or so of use, it appears i can't use it any more because it requires a product key. so i tryed the product key on the sticker on the under side of my laptop (from when i bought the laptop) and it won't accept it. is their any way i can use this key so i don't have to buy another one but
i have no discs for it any help would be great many thanks craig

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Dani AI

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A few common causes explain why a COA sticker key gets rejected, and there are simple checks to do before spending money. As and noted, phone activation often solves the symptom — but it helps to narrow the reason first so the call goes quickly.

First, confirm the COA edition exactly (the sticker names the Vista SKU: Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Ultimate). Boot the laptop and confirm which edition is installed (right‑click Computer → Properties, or run winver). If the installed edition and the COA edition don’t match, the sticker key will be refused. Also check whether the machine was reinstalled from non‑OEM media — an OEM machine preactivated by the factory image can behave differently from a clean retail install.

If the editions match and activation still fails, gather info before contacting support: open an elevated Command Prompt and run cscript %windir%\system32\slmgr.vbs /dli (or /dlv) to get license status, note the Product ID shown in System Properties, and copy any activation error code you see. That information speeds up automated phone activation and helps support determine whether the key has been used elsewhere, is an upgrade key being used on a clean install, or is being blocked for another reason.

If you lack recovery discs, contact the laptop maker for recovery media or use the OEM recovery partition if it’s intact — restoring the factory image often reactivates without entering the COA. If the COA sticker is damaged or looks tampered, the manufacturer can verify authenticity. As a last resort, a retail license will be required. Following these checks will make either the phone activation or manufacturer recovery request much smoother.

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Member Avatar for Laser

Give Microsoft a call, they can fix you up over the phone. I did it when a BIOS update caused the windows activation on my oem system to de-activate. Took less than 10 minutes.

Member Avatar for crusher_craig

thanks very much i'll give it ago tomorrow

Member Avatar for cohen

If it has already been activated before it won't accept the key because it has already been used / being used.

As said above, give Microsoft a call and they will give you a new product key.

Good Luck,

Cohen

Member Avatar for ijaz ahmad

i have a key butt this time this key is not accepted by my computer.
please help me in this case
regards

Member Avatar for caperjack

i have a key butt this time this key is not accepted by my computer.
please help me in this case
regards

call microsofts 1-800 number

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