I have windows 10. It is telling me windows isn't activated and that I changed my hardware, I did not

Hello, this is Emily.

Can you please type cmd in the search on the taskbar and hit enter to launch command prompt, then run the following command:

slmgr /dlv

Then share a screenshot please. Thanks!

here you go

Thank you.

This looks to be an evaluation license that runs out of its time.

Where did you get this computer? From a reseller or another user?

Can you go back to command prompt, and run this command:

wmic path softwarelicensingservice get OA3xOriginalProductKey

Tell me if it returns a license key. Don't share with me, just yes or no is sufficient for me to determine what's next.

yes it did return a key. I got the computer off Amazon. It was refurbished

Ok, I am glad it gives you a key in return. That's good news. It means the motherboard itself has an OEM license onboard. Somehow the previous user must have upgraded it to enterprise using an eval license.

You will have to backup all of your personal files. Then perform a clean install to use the onboard license. It might be for Home or Pro, we don't know. But the clean install will pick up the license automatically and install what the license is for without asking you to input key or choose edition.


The following steps should be done on a working Windows computer:

Download the Windows Media Creation Tool from Microsoft's official website. https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/win...

Run the tool and select "Create installation media for another PC."

Choose your language, edition, and architecture (32 or 64-bit) and select "Next."

Choose "USB flash drive" as the media to use for the installation and select "Next."

Connect a USB flash drive with at least 8 GB of free space to your computer.

Select the USB flash drive you want to use, and then select "Next."

The tool will then download the required files and create the installation media.
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Now these steps will  be done on your problematic computer:

Go to the computer's BIOS boot menu to have it boot from the USB drive.

Follow the on-screen instructions to install Windows 10, making sure to choose "Custom install" and select the option to delete all existing partitions.

Once the installation is complete, you'll have a clean installation of Windows 10 on your computer.

ok. I guess that is what I get for buying a refurbished computer instead of building my own. I was just short on cash and hoping to get a year or so out of this one. Thank you so much for your help. I'll do that tomorrow and let you know.

It happened. At least you have an onboard license you can use, so you won't have to pay for an addition one. Keep me posted if you run into any issue with the installation. Good luck!