If you made substantial hardware changes to your PC, such as replacing your hard drive or motherboard, Windows might no longer be activated. For Windows 10 and 11, you can add your Microsoft account to help you reactivate Windows after making a hardware change.
What happens if Windows 10 Pro is not activated?
When it comes to functionality, you won’t be able to personalize the desktop background, window title bar, taskbar, and Start color, change the theme, customize Start, taskbar, and lock screen etc.. when not activating Windows. Additionally, you might periodically get messages asking to activate your copy of Windows.
Why does my Windows 10 say it’s not activated?
You might see this error if you’re not connected to the internet or the activation server is temporarily unavailable. Make sure that you’re connected to the internet and your firewall isn’t blocking Windows from activating.
Does Windows 10 Pro need to be activated?
Nothing. Windows 10 Home or Pro is installed, and you can use it.
