Weird License Key error

colinp · 19 Mar 2022

I bought a "refurb" HP Prodesk 600 G1 off Newegg a year ago. It came with Win 10 Home that has worked just fine over the past year, currently on 21H2. A couple of days ago, I was reading a thread from another forum and I was curious about my setup and went into the Settings to check on my activation status. Even though windows is activated digitally and says so, I noticed an error that said : "The last product key (id:*****-*0000-00000-AAOEM) you entered can't be used on this copy of Windows (0x********)". I have replaced some of the numbers/letters with * even though the number looks like some sort of generic volume key. Now interestingly, I did a search online and someone had the exact same number as me, hence why it seems like a standard volume key.

Again, everything is working properly (I use a local standard user account but I also have the original MS account when I first activated windows) and windows indicates all is well and properly activated, other than the error message. But that is the issue as I have never (or at least ever recall) tried to input a different key so something unknown to me tried to. Has anyone heard of such a thing and is it something that I will have to lie awake at night worrying about?

I think the error message is fairly recent as I don't ever recall seeing it before, but my memory is a little sketchy at best.

Edition Windows 10 Home
Version 21H2
Installed on ‎2021-‎03-‎09
OS build 19044.1586
Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 120.2212.4170.0

Bree · 19 Mar 2022

colinp said:

....I noticed an error that said : "The last product key (id:*****-*0000-00000-AAOEM) you entered can't be used on this copy of Windows (0x********)". I have replaced some of the numbers/letters with * even though the number looks like some sort of generic volume key.

The second number (0x********) is actually an error code and did not require redacting. In fact, if you had given it in full we could have told you what type of error was being reported.

In fact, nothing needed redacting at all. The first number is not a product key, it is a product ID.

When you try to change the product key and it is not accepted, then you get this message. The key used is not shown, but the product ID is - this just tells us the type of Windows that the key would have installed. In this case it ends with AAOEM, which tells us that an OEM key had been tried, possibly lifted from a Windows 7 CoA sticker.

The error message is nothing to be worried about. It just means that someone (possibly at Newegg?) tried and failed to change the product key. Here's and example where deliberately used a key I knew would fail:

colinp · 19 Mar 2022

I wasn't sure but here is the number
Weird License Key error actual number: 00330-50000-00000-AAOEM (0x8007045B)

- - - Updated - - -

Apparently I didn't do a proper search last night as today I found this:
The last product key (ID:xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-AAOEM) you entered can't be

I guess it's nothing to be alarmed about as windows is still showing it's properly activated.

Thanks for the reply

edit: I just noticed that I typed while you gave the answer so thanks again Bree, I appreciate it.