PROBLEM OF THE FORTNIGHT
Can I still activate Windows 7?
Q I have an old Toshiba laptop. Recently, I was able to get a copy of the original Windows 7 Home from a computer dealer. When I try to activate it with the code on the underside of the laptop, it doesn't work. Is there anything I’m doing wrong? Is it not possible to activate it any more? There’s no help on the Microsoft site that I can find. Should I go back to the dealer?
Kevin Docherty
Q Windows 7 has been out of official support for more than two years, so Microsoft could decide to stop the activation facility at any time. However, it is still possible at the moment. So, as it sounds like you got Windows 7 installed, the problem appears to be with the product key.
You didn’t tell us if you get a specific error message, but we do wonder what ‘code’ you’re entering. If it’s merely the laptop’s serial code, then that won’t work. What’s actually required is, as noted, a product key. This is a 25-digit alphanumeric string either supplied in the retail box or, yes, sometimes as a sticker applied to the machine somewhere (pictured below). If you don’t have one of these, you can’t activate Windows 7. The copy of Windows 7 purchased from the dealer should have included one, unless you understood it to be an under-the-counter transaction just so you could get an installation disc to use with your existing product key.
Otherwise, the problem could be that Microsoft’s activation servers are rejecting the product key for some reason. In that case, you’ll need to subject yourself to Microsoft’s phone system.
First, click Start followed. Type in your product key and click Next and, assuming activation fails again, click ‘Show me other ways to activate’. Now click ‘Use the automated phone system’ , then select your location and click Next.
