Forum Discussion
Windows 11 Pro activation fails indicting hardware changed
Receive unable to activate windows - looks like hardware on this device has changed
My old laptop was dying. Proactively purchased a win 11 pro license through my company benefits site since I knew my current system would have to be replaced.
Purchased a new laptop with Win 11 Home. Changed to local account for login and uninstalled some bloatware. Attempted to upgrade to Pro and receivied the unable to activate due to hardware changes. This is an out of the box laptop, no hardare changes have been made.
I tried using the generic key and the change to the new license fix posted on this site and still get the same activation error.
I now have an unactivated Windows 11 Pro on the system.
I logged into my MS account and checked licensed devices under Microsoft Account - Devices
Strangely, it no longer lists my old HP laptop which was a win 11 pro. Just the new ASUS laptop.
I had hopes to replace a few motherboard solder points and revice the old HP system for a grandchild. Concerned now that the HP system is missing that i will encounter licensing issues for it as well once it is revived.
Additonal point, not sure if it matters, but I did use the same device name for the new laptop that i had on the old one
Thanks,
Kent Engle
3 Replies
It sounds like you're experiencing activation issues with Windows 11 Pro after upgrading your new ASUS laptop, even though no hardware changes have been made since purchase. The activation error indicates that Windows thinks the hardware has changed, and your old device no longer appears under your Microsoft account devices, which complicates re-activation and licensing management. You’ve already tried using a generic key and the suggested license fix, but the problem persists, leaving you with an unactivated Windows 11 Pro and concerns about licensing for both your new and old devices.
Thanks Wayneyan,
Finally was able to talk with a very good MS support individual which helped resolve the issue by checking the validity of the license and then was able to activate. He also questioned if the BIOS had recently been updated so that may have been the culprit with the activation but he did not confirm that. Not sure what other changes he made after verifyinig the license, but once we put the key in, it activated right away. The computer also showed up under my devices the next morning.
When I first put the laptop on the wire and windows Home activated, things were good. Then I let ASUS do all if it's updates via the ASUS app and I think the BIOS was one of those updates. , and when I tried to upgrade the licence, the BIOS update may have caused it to get flagged as a hardware change.
Hi, im facing a verry similar issue but i cant find any way to contact a person from support, i always get redirected to the 'Get help with Windows activation errors' page. how did you manage to contact someone ?
