- How To Remove Product Activation Failed In Microsoft Excel 2010 Free
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- How To Remove Product Activation Failed In Microsoft Excel 2010 64-bit
After MB replacement, the calendar date was set to 1/1/98. Not realizing this occurred, I opened up MS Word 2010, and realizing the incorrect date, proceeded to change the date 2010. This is the first instance where I received the Product Activation Failed ribbon in red at the top of all MS Office products. You can change the product key of the Microsoft Office 2010 via the Backstage View of just about all Office 2010 applications. It is either Excel, Publisher, or in Word. Start with opening the file tab, and then look for the Help tab on the left side of the box. In the About area of the window box, click the link that says Change Product Key. Microsoft Office: Product Activation Failed - posted in Business Applications: Hey, so this message keeps popping up everytime I open any office applications. I did torrent my copy of office 2010.
For those who routinely use text documents, spreadsheets or presentation slides at work or study, Microsoft Office is nigh on indispensable. You can as well say it is in a league of its own when it comes to the total package for creating, managing and forwarding documents in any common format. Even though pretenders to the Office throne have sprung up in recent times, it remains a fact that no other application bundle comes close to the ease, sheer versatility and plain old familiarity we get with Microsoft Office.
How To Remove Product Activation Failed In Microsoft Excel 2010 Free
Most computers not called a MacBook ship with some version of Microsoft Office already installed. Usually, it is not the complete package of legacy apps — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access, Publisher, along with OneDrive and Skype services — but Microsoft Word, and perhaps Excel and PowerPoint too. Moreover, it is not the full version of these applications but a limited period version that becomes unlicensed after the stipulated time expires.
So, the bundled productivity apps that make up Microsoft Office on a new Windows computer are there on a trial basis, unless the activation has been paid for by the OEM (unlikely). The trial period usually lasts for 30 days, after which Windows tells you to activate Office. Sure, you’d like to do that, but there’s just one little problem: Office is very expensive. The Home and Student edition of Office 2019 contains just Word, Excel and PowerPoint yet costs $119.99 as a one-time purchase, while Office 365 Home will set you back $79.99 a year (or $7.99/m).
With the exorbitant costs, it is understandable if you aren’t in a hurry to fork out money to fully activate Office. But what happens if the trial period finishes and Office remains unlicensed? Read on to find out.
What if my Microsoft Office is not activated?
Common sense says that if you’re using an unlicensed version of Office, you should get reduced functionality, and this is precisely what happens. The features affected in each application depend on the version of Office on your computer, but in general, you lose editing and creating functionalities. This means that during the period your Office is unlicensed, you cannot create new documents or edit existing ones. Your Office apps will become more of viewers than anything else.
Before the advent of Office 365, PC users activated Office through product keys that either came with the Office installation disc or were purchased online. The current method uses your Microsoft account details stored in the cloud. Since Office now adopts a subscription model, aside from special versions like the Home and Student edition that are bought through a one-time payment, you now have to pay subscription fees at specified intervals to keep using Office.
Back to the question at hand, how your Office behaves after the 30-day free trial ends depends on your sign-up method. Those who got Office shipped with their new computers will get a flashing prompt asking them to pay for a version of Office. On the other hand, if you downloaded Office through the Office 365 website, you will get no such message. Instead, if you have enabled recurrent billing, you are automatically migrated from trial mode to full mode at the expiration of the free trial. Your account is also billed with the amount of the version of Office you have chosen for the specified duration. Therefore, if you intend to use Office on a trial basis only, it is important you do not activate this feature; you can still manually pay for Office activation after receiving a prompt.
In the actual applications like Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Publisher, you get one of several types of action messages informing you that your Office has been deactivated and you should make a purchase. In Microsoft Word, you get one of these messages:
- PRODUCT DEACTIVATED To keep using Word without interruption, please reactivate now: This is a rectangular orange strip between the toolbar and the page, containing a white Reactivate button next to the message
- We’re sorry, something went wrong and we can’t do this for you right now. Please try again later error message: This shows up as an error bar; at which point one is unable to make use of the application
- Unlicensed Product/Product Activation Failed: Both of these show up on the title bar next to the title of the opened document. If the latter message shows up instead of the former, it is still possible to use the full functionalities of Word for an indeterminate period
- Microsoft Office Activation Wizard: Pops up the minute a Word document is opened. It tells you your copy of the application isn’t activated and contains options for (re)activation
Effects of deactivation on Office apps for Windows
If your Office trial period expired and you are yet to reactivate it, a lot of things can happen when you want to use any of the applications. One of these happens if Microsoft Office is not activated or licensed:
- Constant Product Activation Failed messages
- Error messages telling you your copy of Word, Excel, might be counterfeit
- Disabled features, increasing in severity as time goes by
- In some versions of Office, you get a dialog to enter your product key
- In Office 2019, you get a sign-in prompt
- If you signed up through Office 365, your account is disabled 31-120 days after deactivation
- Your account is decommissioned and closed, permanently erasing you from the Office program
How to unlock unlicensed Office 2016/2019
If you don’t want your Office disabled, you can just pay for activation and renew your Office license. That way, you keep enjoying the awesome features of Word, Excel and other Office apps on your Windows computer. There are two methods to use for Office activation:
- Purchase a license online
By buying a license direct from Microsoft online, you don’t have to leave the comforts of your home. Just go to office.com/renew and choose the version of Office you want to purchase.
- Select the Renew now option to pay a yearly subscription
- Select the Renew with a monthly subscription option to pay monthly rentals for Office
If you want your Office automatically renewed, enable recurring billing, otherwise turn it off.
- Renew with a product key
If you buy a physical Microsoft Office disc that comes in a physical box or card, you should see the 25-character product key somewhere on the inside. Alternatively, the seller might send it in an email. Go to Office.com/setup and log into your Microsoft account. Then enter your product key to activate your copy of Office.
With activation completed, you should be able to enjoy the full features of Office. Beware though, your Office apps can be a target for phishing and malware attacks, especially if you use the internet often. To safeguard your applications and ensure that no problems develop when using Office, we recommend Auslogics Anti-Malware for the total obliteration of dangerous and harmful items on your computer. Just download and install it and let it scan your computer for potential sources of damage. It will quarantine them. It will also automatically block any phishing attempts or bogus messages and documents that might compromise your computer’s safety.
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If you learned something about Office from this article, please let us know in the comments.
How To Remove Product Activation Failed In Microsoft Excel 2010 Product
-->Note
Office 365 ProPlus is being renamed to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information about this change, read this blog post.
Introduction
This article contains some of the most frequently asked questions about the Microsoft Office Activation Wizard.This article only pertains to Retail versions of Office 2010 suite or program.
Note Activation is now required for Office 2010 Volume License suites and programs. For further information on Volume License activation in Office, see Volume activation of Office 2013.
Microsoft Office 2010 and the Microsoft 2007 Office system include an Activation Wizard. To fully use a retail version of an Office 2010 suite or program or an 2007 Office system suite or program, you must activate it. If you do not activate the product after you install it, the Office 2010 programs and the 2007 Office system programs can be started only in reduced-functionality mode. In reduced-functionality mode, Office 2010 programs and 2007 Office system programs function more like viewers. In other words, you cannot save changes to documents or create new documents. Additional functionality may be reduced. No existing Office 2010 files or 2007 Office system files are damaged when a product runs in reduced-functionality mode.
More Information
Q1: What is product activation?
A1: Microsoft asks that you activate your product to make sure that your installation is performed with a genuine Microsoft product. Product activation is an anti-piracy technology that is designed to make sure that the product is legitimately licensed. When you activate a product, no personal information is sent to Microsoft.
Q2: Who must activate their retail copy of an Office 2010 suite or program?
A2: Product activation is required for all licenses that are purchased through retail distribution. If you purchased a new computer from a computer manufacturer, you may have to activate the Microsoft software that is installed on the computer. However, some computer manufacturers may activate the Microsoft software in the factory.
Q3: How does product activation work?
A3: Product activation checks that the product key has not been used on more personal computers than are permitted by the Microsoft Software License Terms. You can activate your product either over the Internet or by telephone. If you activate a product by telephone, you provide an installation ID code. In return, you receive a confirmation ID number. A Microsoft customer service representative activates the product by telephone. This process takes several minutes. If you want to activate your product over the Internet, the process is performed automatically. The only information that you must provide is the name of your country and your region.
Note If you are activating the Product Trial Program version, you can activate the product only over the Internet.
Q4: How do I activate my product?
A4: You can access the Office 2010 Activation Wizard in two ways:
How To Remove Product Activation Failed In Microsoft Excel 2010 64-bit
- The Office 2010 Activation Wizard appears when you start an Office program that has not been activated.
- On the File menu, click Help, and look for the section under the Microsoft Office logo. If 'Product is not activated' text appears, click Change.
You can access the 2007 Office system Activation Wizard in two ways:
- The 2007 Office system Activation Wizard appears when you start an Office program that has not been activated.
- Click the Microsoft Office Button, click Program_Name Options, clickResources, and then click Activate.
Q5: What happens during product activation?
A5: During product activation, the Office Activation Wizard creates a hardware identification that represents the configuration of your computer at the time of activation. This hardware identification is not unique. It does not include any personal information, any information about software or data that may reside on your computer, or any information about the specific make or model of your computer. The hardware identification identifies only the computer. Additionally, the computer identification is used only for activation.
During product activation, you may also provide your personal contact information if you want to register the product with Microsoft.
The Office Activation Wizard can detect and tolerate changes to the configuration of your computer. Minor hardware upgrades do not require reactivation, but if you make major changes to the computer over time, you may have to reactivate the product.
Q6: How does product activation protect customer privacy?
A6: Microsoft highly values respecting and protecting customers' private information. If you do not register the product, none of the information that is collected during product activation will be used to personally identify you.
To view the Microsoft privacy policy, use one of the following methods.
Office 2010 programs
Start the Office 2010 program.
On the File menu, click Help.
Under the Tools for Working with Office heading, click Options.
In the navigation pane, click Trust Center.
Click the 'Show the Microsoft programprivacy statement' link.
In Access 2007, Excel 2007, PowerPoint 2007, and Word 2007
Start the 2007 Office system program.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Program_Name Options.
Click Trust Center in the navigation pane, and then click one of the following:
- Show the Microsoft Application privacy statement
- Microsoft Office Online privacy statement
All other 2007 Office system programs
Start the 2007 Office system program.
On the Tools menu, click Trust Center.
Click Privacy Options in the navigation pane, and then click Read our privacy statement.
Q7: Is product activation the same as registration?
A7: No. Product activation differs from product registration. You can voluntarily register your product by providing your name and contact information during product activation. Register the product if you want to receive future communications about product updates, service releases, and special offers.
Q8: How do I know whether my product is activated?
A8: The Office Activation Wizard does not run if you already activated your product. If the product was already activated, you receive the following message when you run the Office Activation Wizard: The product has already been activated.
In Office 2010, you can check the activation status by clicking Help on the File menu. On the right side of the dialog box, under the Microsoft Office logo,you see a message that says 'Product activated' or 'Product requires activation.'
Q9: Does the product stop working if I do not activate it?
A9: No. When the full functionality of the program and the number of program starts are exhausted, the product runs in reduced-functionality mode.
Q10: What is reduced-functionality mode?
A10: In reduced-functionality mode, programs function similarly to viewers. When a program runs in reduced-functionality mode, many commands are unavailable (dimmed). Therefore, you cannot access those functionalities. Some limitations of reduced-functionality mode include the following:
- You cannot create new documents.
- You can view existing documents, but you cannot edit them.
- You can print documents, but you cannot save them.
No existing Office files are damaged. Additionally, you can easily stop Office from running in reduced-functionality mode. To do this, follow the instructions on the screens that appear.
Q11: How do I update information that relates to product activation?
A11: To make sure that the information that you provide to Microsoft in the Office Activation Wizard is correct, you can contact Microsoft any time to review and update the information. In some Office products, you can use the Office Activation Wizard to update your information over the Internet or by telephone. If these options are unavailable to you, you can update or change any information that you provided. To do this, send your product ID and a description of the changes that you want made to the following address:
Microsoft
Attn: Microsoft Product Activation
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, Washington 98052-6399
Microsoft will update your information to reflect any changes that you want made. You must provide your product ID so that Microsoft can accurately identify your activation record.
Note To find the product ID, click About Program_Name on the Help menu in an Office program. In Access 2007, Excel 2007, PowerPoint 2007, and Word 2007, follow these steps:
Click the Office Button, and then click the Program_Name Options button.
Click the Resources option in the navigation pane, and then click the About button beside the about Microsoft Office Program_Name 2007 label.
Q12: Why do I receive notifications to activate my product?
A12: If you do not activate an Office product, you receive a reminder to activate your product every time that you start the program.
The reminder helps make sure that you are aware that license activation is required and that you can complete the product activation process before the program enters reduced-functionality mode.
Q13: Is there more than one kind of product license?
A13: Yes, the following license types are available:
- Perpetual
- Subscription
- Product Trial Program
Q14: What is a perpetual license?
A14: A perpetual license lets you use the 2007 Office system programs and the Office 2010 programs as long as you own the product.
Q15: What is a subscription license?
A15: A subscription license lets you use the 2007 Office system programs and Office 2010 programs for a determined time.
Q16: What is a Product Trial Program license?
A16: A Product Trial Program license lets you use the 2007 Office system and Office 2010 on a trial basis for one month.
Q17: How many times can I skip activation?
A17: For Product Trial Program license products, the Office programs run in reduced-functionality mode the first time that the programs start. For perpetual license products, you can skip product activation 25 times. If you do not activate the product in the allocated number of program starts, the 2007 Office system programs and the Office 2010 programs start to run in reduced-functionality mode.
Q18: How many installations can be performed with one license agreement? Can I install the product on my portable computer and on my desktop computer? How many times can I reinstall the product and still be able to activate it?
A18: The goal of product activation is to reduce a form of piracy known as 'casual copying' or 'softlifting.' Casual copying is a form of piracy that is characterized by the sharing of software between people in a way that infringes on the Microsoft Software License Terms. For example, Windows XP is primarily licensed for use on a single computer and cannot be installed on other computers without buying additional licenses. If someone were to obtain a copy of Windows XP and load it on his or her computer, and then share it with a second person who loaded it on his or her computer, they would be guilty of casual copying.
Most licenses allow for software to be re-installed and activated on the same computer an unlimited number of times. To make sure that you are using your license correctly, please see your Microsoft Software License Terms or product use rights for more information on a specific product.
References
For more information about Office Activation, visit the following Microsoft website: