You maybe a victim of piracy Office 2019

RolandJS said:

@ MisterEd -- here is one quote from Sean that got me also wondering: "I loaded Office 2019 from the DVD pack I bought from PC World a few years ago." I only purchased non-OEM MS Windows 7 Pro, so I don't know what OEM packaging or OEM DVD looks like. If Sean posted a jpg of the DVD in question, would that help to determine whether OEM or MS?

@RolandJS - With respect, OEM means Original Equipment Manufacturer.

There was a dodge many years ago whereby sellers could evade Microsoft's licensing restrictions on its current OS at the time by including the cheapest hardware available as part of the sale... typically an audio cable for an optical drive.

Microsoft plugged the misuse of that licensing gap years ago... well before the release of Windows 10.

I am confused why are you posting about Windows 7 in a Windows 10 thread about MS Office 2019?

• PC World could not have sold an 'OEM version' of Office 2019 legitimately as it is not an OEM.
• PC World could only sell a retail version of Microsoft Office products at that time.
• OP could only have purchased a retail version of MS Office from PC World.
• The license for retail versions of MS Office allows for transfer from one device to another provided the 'installation' terms are not breached.
• Nothing the OP has written so far indicates that he/she has breached the licensing terms of the retail version of MS Office that he/she purchased from PC World.

Hope this helps...

RolandJS said:

@ RickC -- I wanted to know more about the packaging and DVD printing of OEM products. I could have left off Windows 7 name. I am trying to learn how to visually differentiate between OEM and TrueBlue MS. Years ago, one could tell by the product key differences between OEM and MS. I want to learn more about present-day OEMs.

Again, with respect... IMO your wish to learn more about DVD packaging of products is absolutely irrelevant to this discussion thread so - rather than confuse the thread about the OP's request for help - perhaps create your own new post?

idgat said:

There's always the possibility that the "nag" screen is co-incidentally appearing as if it refers to MS Office (i.e. nothing to do with MS) and is some sort unrelated malware that just decided to latch on to MS Office.

OP has already been asked by @Try3 to provide a screenshot.

sean5302 said:

I've told you the full story above.
The solution you quote doesn't work for me.
From speaking to MS today, it's clear the problem is due to the licence details being tied to my old PC and the new one is very different in architecture, flagging the MS computers to see multiple use.
I really don't like your accusatory implication.
If you can't accept what I wrote, why respond at all?

I've seen situations where a windows license has interfered with Office. Some have screwed up KMS activated OS's that trigger the Office license. Wasn't trying to accuse you, just making sure of the facts.

DId you try what MS said to uninstall and reinstall again. Typically when the software cannot be moved from machine to machine, it's the activation that fails, not a warning about software piracy.

There is a perfect solution currently on Youtube and it solved my problem.
It changes the version of Office back from 2105 to 2102 and you then click the Office Account tab from the File menu. You select update options and atop future updates. All is then OK.
[Fix] Your License Isn't Genuine | You May Be A Victim Of Software Counterfeiting | Method-4 - YouTube
Command prompt
Run as administrator
cd "\Program Files\Common Files\microsoft shared\ClickToRun"
Enter
OfficeC2rclient.exe /update user updatetoversion=16.0.13801.20266
Enter

You then get the box Office is downloading updates
Close command prompt
When you click an office application, there is no nag screen.
You press File
You press Update options
Disable updates.

Bingo. Job done.

Denis,

Thanks for your help throughout the thread.
I'm very grateful.
M$ are dreadful in most respects now. They passed me around their call centre people in Delhi and I had to explain the problem again to every one of them.
It's annoying that I paid good money for a standalone application and used it fine for 2 years.
Now, because M$ has "updated" it, it won't work as planned. I'd be surprised if some numpty hasn't corrupted a bit of software on the "update" because Youtube is rife with folks detailing exactly the same problem.
This is a very handy Forum, and I'm grateful to all who helped me.
Many thanks,
Sean

sean5302 said:

Denis,

Thanks for your help throughout the thread.
I'm very grateful.
M$ are dreadful in most respects now. They passed me around their call centre people in Delhi and I had to explain the problem again to every one of them.
It's annoying that I paid good money for a standalone application and used it fine for 2 years.
Now, because M$ has "updated" it, it won't work as planned. I'd be surprised if some numpty hasn't corrupted a bit of software on the "update" because Youtube is rife with folks detailing exactly the same problem.
This is a very handy Forum, and I'm grateful to all who helped me.
Many thanks,
Sean

You're much better off relying on forums such as this one for problems with any software/device/appliance you purchase than the manufacturer's official support channels. Corporations care little about providing any support once they have your money and will utilize the cheapest support/call centers that are sub-sub-sub contracted in third-world nations. These employees barely make a living wage and are given a database to search for the most common problems. They have a daily quota of calls they must complete or they're fired (ever be in the middle of a call and be suddenly disconnected?). Mostly they're just paid to apologize and be yelled at by angry customers. At the end of their shift they drink heavily so go easy on them, they don't actually work for the company.
Do I speak from experience?
Maybe.

jimbo45 said:

Hi folks

I've posted on this recently -- I have also a special isolated machine where I test for Viruses, malware and the likes - which is probably why some of you might have seen some of my generally vitriolic posts on the ineffectiveness of current 3rd party A/V software - including the popular malwarebytes compared with Windows Defender on bog standard home computers.

(For those interested - if you do any A/V testing - keep that computer isolated from the rest of your network and ONLY have it by itself on the Internet - so essentially stand alone testing so you don't contaminate other things in your network),

Cheers
jimbo

I reached that same conclusion about AV products when I was using Windows 95. They are a placebo encouraging reckless abandon when it comes to opening attachments from dubious sources or clicking on any link sent your way. Like you, I have a dedicated Windows 10 machine except with Defender disabled for testing potential malware. Sometimes it's not even malware I'm testing but new software that may install toolbars/startup processes/hijackers. I have restored from image countless times on this PC, no AV necessary.