Multiple obstacles activating Windows need solving

I cannot validate my Windows product key, and need some help.

My computer is a refurbished machine I bought about 3 or 4 months ago, so Walmart put the OS onto it before I got it, and I never made a note of what the Windows Product ID was when I got the computer.

Recently I got a virus I couldn't remove, so since my computer was acting buggy I did a system refresh so I could keep my files. After the refresh, there appeared a message telling me to activate Windows. It didn't automatically validate after the refresh as I think it should have.

When I open Settings and try to activate my product key, I get the message: We can't activate Windows on this device because you don't have a valid license or key. If you do think you have a valid license or key, select Troubleshoot below. Error code 0xC004F012.

Running the troubleshooter yields: Something interrupted our troubleshooting. Make sure you're connected to the internet, wait a few minutes and try again. (0xc0000022) I've tried that many times over the past few days and always get the same results.

I've also tried the option to change the product key using the product key I obtained from running a .vbs script in command prompt which gave me the product key that's supposedly installed on my machine. The result is: The product key you entered didn't work. Check the product key, or enter a different one. (0x80041023)

I also ran different .vbs scripts and have results yielding two other different product keys which don't work either.

I ran the command slmgr /dli to display the current license with activation status and partial product key. The result is a popup message: Error: 0x0000022 On a computer running Microsoft Windows non-core edition run slui.exe 0x2a 0xC0000022 to display the error text. I ran that command and got a popup saying an error has occurred. Code: 0xC000022 Description: Access is denied. A process has requested to access an object, but has not been granted those process rights.

Finding suggested solutions online, I ran slui.exe 4 with command prompt. The Windows Activation tool opened and I entered my location: United States. "Call and provide your installation ID" appeared, and then on the window that opened the dotted wheel of (non)progress kept turning with no confirmation ID ever appearing that I could use to "Enter confirmation ID". I've tried this many times with no luck.

I ran slmgr /ato to try and activate the license and product key and got a popup: On a computer running Microsoft Windows non-core edition run slui.exe 0x2a 0xc0000022 I ran that command again and got a popup saying an error has occurred. Code: 0xC000022 Description: Access is denied. A process has requested to access an object, but has not been granted those process rights.

I ran the command slmgr /dli to display the current license with activation status and partial product key. The result is a popup message: Error: 0x0000022 On a computer running Microsoft Windows non-core edition run slui.exe 0x2a 0xC0000022 to display the error text. The message was as the same as above.

Looking online I find that there can be this problem if the Software Protection Service isn't running. It isn't and I cannot start it. I get Error: 5 Access is denied.

In addition, I looked at Task Scheduler > Microsoft > Windows > Software Protection Service and there are three tasks scheduled. 1) SvcRestartTask > Disabled > at 12:00AM every day... and 2) SvcRestartTaskLogon > at logon of any user > ready...and 3) SvcRestartTaskNetwork . On event-Log:On Event-Microsoft-Windows-NetworkProfile/Operational Event ID:10000

I don't know if that's relevant but added anyway. If the information in the menu "General, Triggers, Actions, Conditions, etc. is needed I'll add that. I never added these tasks myself.

I read online about a fix that rebuilds te Windows Licensing Strore, but %windir%\ServiceProfiles\NetworkService\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\SoftwareProtectionPlatform is missing so that's obviously a problem.

I tried opening Turn Windows Features on or off > Legacy > Direct Play and checked them to start as an online source suggested. No luck.

It also impossible for me to start the Background Intelligent Transfer Service. It reverts back to stopped.

I'll add that my computer is on a LAN which may be the source of these problems.

I'd be very grateful to anyone who can help me get my product key validated.

This useful utility by a Tenforums member could be useful:

ShowKeyPlus

It may shed light on the actual product key, or whether a generic OEM key is installed.

You should check all over and under the device to see if a Microsoft Certificate of Authenticity sticker/label is still present, which should have the product key printed on it.

Check out this Microsoft site for activation information:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12440

It may be necessary to contact Microsoft directly for activation assistance.

Thanks for your reply and your suggestions. I used the tool and then I tried to activate both the resulting OEM Key and the installed key and got error code: 0xc0000022. I really think the problem might be rooted in the Software Progtection Service being stopped with no apparent way to start it. That's the main reason I don't call Microsoft to get help with activation-because I think the problem might be with my computer.

Hello brother,

I have the exact same problem as yours. have you managed to solve ? if yes,how? please let me know.