Major activation problem

[flashist]

Hello, I recently bought the windows 7 home premium, then my motherboard fried. After getting a new one installed I had thought it was safest to reinstall windows just to make sure no hardware related software could cause problems. However now when I try to activate I get an error stating "the product key you typed cannot be used to activate windows on this computer".

What can I do? :S with todays computer marked where a computer component go from great to crap in less then a year, Microsoft can't expect to limit their OS to only one motherboard?

 

[kegobeer]

What type of Windows 7 did you buy - is it a student version, full retail version, upgrade version?

 

[bobkn]

Hello, I recently bought the windows 7 home premium, then my motherboard fried. After getting a new one installed I had thought it was safest to reinstall windows just to make sure no hardware related software could cause problems. However now when I try to activate I get an error stating "the product key you typed cannot be used to activate windows on this computer".

What can I do? :S with todays computer marked where a computer component go from great to crap in less then a year, Microsoft can't expect to limit their OS to only one motherboard?

I haven't seen this, but it sounds like what you'd get if you tried to install Win7 on a blank HD using an upgrade license.

If that's the case, all is not lost:

http://www.winsupersite.com/win7/clean_install_upgrade_media.asp

You may have to activate by telephone, though, as the activation server will list the key as already in use.

 

[Nosmo]

In a case like this, you do a phone activation. No problem. Explain what happened and MS will activate you

 

[flashist]

So I've got to use the phone? ok, another question for you then: I ordered my copy from amazon, so I got the uk version as far as I can tell. But I live in Norway, can I still get it activated by calling Microsoft Norway? or do I have to talk with Microsoft Uk?

Oh, and no, it's not an upgrade version. My previous install was also installed on a clean HDD, but I'm guessing the problem is related to this windows 7 only having one license now bound to my old fried motherboard?

 

[flashist]

Got it solved now. By calling some automatic phone service and activate it there, I find it sort of strange that the phone service can activate it, but online not. seeing I basically gave it the same information and it was all automatically handled.

Anyway, activation is completed. Thanks for all the replies and help I've got on this thread