Bug said to hit Microsoft's activation servers

Nov 8, 2018 10:10 GMT  ·  By

UPDATE: Microsoft has confirmed the bug and says that it's working on a fix. For now, users are recommended to wait as the issue should be resolved within the next two days. Original story below.

As if the critical file deletion bug in Windows 10 version 1809 wasn’t enough, users of Microsoft’s operating system are now encountering a new issue that causes activation problems on their machines.

A growing number of users are reporting an error on reddit, explaining that all of a sudden, their Windows 10 installation is no longer activated. Reactivation doesn’t seem to work, they add, and in some cases, it looks like Windows 10 Pro has been downgraded to Home.

While it’s not yet clear how many systems are impacted, it’s being reported that getting in touch with Microsoft Support doesn’t make any difference, as the company is still investigating what’s happening on these computers.

On the other hand, one Microsoft engineer told a user whose system was deactivated that it’s all caused by a bug experienced on the company’s activation servers and everything should return to normal in just a few hours.

All Windows 10 versions impacted

At this point, the glitch seems to affect Windows 10 version 1809 and version 1803, and most users say they upgraded from Windows 7 or 8.1 during the free upgrade campaign in 2015.

“I am having the same problem. It’s even gone as far as my digital entitlement is gone from my Microsoft account and I have a Windows 10 home key now. Windows is deactivated because I went from Windows 10 Pro to home and it doesn’t match anymore. Where did my digital license go though.. I hope it comes back,” one user explains.

Nothing works for the moment to re-activate Windows 10, and running the built-in troubleshooter doesn’t make any difference. Microsoft hasn’t provided a statement to explain what’s happening on the affected systems, and we’ve reached out to the company for more information and will update the article when an answer is offered.

In the meantime, the best thing you could do is get in touch with the company’s support services and request their assistance.