Activation problems After Creators fall Update

Fafhrd said:

Sometimes "unable to reach Windows activation servers" means just that - the servers are busy, and that it is necessary for you to wait for them to be able to check your device against the record of digital license allocation.

According to Kari, both digital licences are stored under a single entry shown on the Microsoft account Devices page - see his video at about 3:10 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P47A1HunIgc

If I go there, what is shown there is the currently installed and activated Edition on that Device. The last one I logged onto with my Microsoft ID. If I clean install a different Edition and log in with a local account it doesn't update. I still get a DL, it just isn't linked to my Microsoft Account. Its my belief this has nothing to do with Activation. It's just something extra, added to make transferring a DL easier.

Because of all my testing most of my PC's have multiple DL's. I have yet to lose one, as near as I can tell anyway. I've swapped around going up and down Editions and had no issues activating. What I'm doing is pretty close to dual booting. I have no idea what's broken with the OP activation though? My only activation issues have been with my MAK keys. It only happened once, the first time I used them on a second PC. I just put it down to an activation server glitch. slmr /ato fixed it.

License terms:
Installation and Use Rights.a. License. The software is licensed, not sold. Under this agreement, we grant you the right to install and run one instance of the software on your device (the licensed device)

Multi use scenarios.(i) Multiple versions. If when acquiring the software you were provided with multiple versions (such as 32-bit and 64-bit versions), you may install and activate only one of those versions at a time.


Those were the options I chose to get that license. You can choose others. (See my earlier post for link).

I read that to mean you can't have more than 1 activated instance of Windows on a PC at one time. That's not the same argument as how many are running at a given time.

However, this is legal stuff and I'm not a lawyer.

If so, we shouldn't be trying to help someone break the terms of the license, irrespective of what may have worked formerly.

@ dalchina I read that to mean you can't run 32 and 64 bit versions of the same "Edition" Two instances of Pro or two instances of Home, both activated with the same Product Code. It would be the same license used twice. In the Op's case its one instance of Home and one instance of Pro. Two different product codes, and two separate licences. They just happen to be one is 32 bit and the other is 64 bit. Just my 2 cents is all.

Granted if the OP has two separate licenses, there is a significant difference. (The first post refers to two retail copies - so I suppose that could mean two separate licenses).

However the behaviour observed would still seem to match a strict reading of the terms- only one activated copy per device. I.e. both cannot be activated at the same time- which is not the same thing as whether they are running.

Best discuss it with MS...