The following error code or error message may appear when users try to activate Windows Vista or Windows 7:

An error has occurred

After the error message, users will subsequently get an error code to describe the problem that the Windows Vista or Windows 7 activation process faced. The error codes and their descriptions are listed in table below:

Error codeDescription
0xC004C003The activation server determined that the specific product key is in use.
0xC004C001The activation server determined that the specific product key is invalid.
0xC004C008 (Error 0xC004C008 on Windows 7)The activation server determined that the specific product key could not be used.
0xC004C812SL_E_CHREF_BINDING_0UT_0F_T0LERANCE: The activation server determined that the specific product key has exceeded its activation count.
0xCD004F050The Software Licensing Service reported that the specific product key is invalid.
0xC004C4CEUnable to find a detailed error description.
0x80072328DNS name does not exist.
0xC004F027The Software Licensing Service reported that the license is tampered.
0xC003E004The Software Licensing Service reported that the license has not been evaluated.
0xC004E003The Software Licensing Service reported that the license evaluation failed.
0xC004F033The Software Licensing Service reported that the product key is not allowed to be installed. Please see the event log for details.
0XC004D401The security processor reported a system file mismatch error.
0x80080250Unrecognized error.
0x8004FC03unrecognized error.
0X8004FE2DHTTP_STATUS_DENIED.
0x8004FE33HTTP_STATUS_PROXY_AUTH_REQ.
0x8004FE91HTTP_STATUS_NOT_SUPPORTED.
0x80072EE7The server name or address could not be resolved.
0x80072EFDA connection with the server could not be established.
0x80072F78The server returned an invalid or unrecognized response.
0x80072F8FA security error occurred.

Microsoft has provided suggestion resolutions, solutions or workarounds to the activation problems and erros.

Error codes 0xC004C003, 0xC004C001, 0xC004C008, 0xC004C812, 0xCD004F050, 0xC004C4CE, and 0x80072328

If you receive one of these error codes, change the product key to activate Windows Vista or Windows 7. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Open the System item in Control Panel. To do this, click the Start button, go to Computer, and then click System properties on the toolbar.
  2. In the Windows activation section, click the Change product key link. If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation by User Account Control, type the password, or click Continue.
  3. In the Product key field, type the product key, and then click Next.
  4. Follow the steps in the Windows Activation Wizard to complete the activation process.

These errors may occur for KMS activation too. For more information, visit Windows Vista Volume Activation 2.0 Step-by-Step Guide, FAQ and Technical Attributes.

Error codes 0xC004F027, 0xC003E004, and 0xC004E003

If you receive one of these error codes, reactivate Windows Vista. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Open the System item in Control Panel. To do this, click the Start button, go to Computer, and then click System properties on the toolbar.
  2. In the Windows activation section, click the Change product key link. If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation by User Account Control, type the password, or click Continue.
  3. In the Product key field, type the product key, and then click Next.
  4. Follow the steps in the Windows Activation Wizard to complete the activation process.

Error code 0xC004F033

If you receive this error code, verify that the product key is compatible with your version of Windows, or the product key can be used to upgrade Windows Vista or upgrade Windows 7 from the its original edition to the current edition for which the key is intended. Remember that product key is different for 32-bit and 64-bit of Windows. A product key intended for 64-bit Windows will not be able to upgrade a 32-bit Windows PC. You can only upgrade a 32-bit version of Windows to another 32-bit version of Windows.

Error codes 0XC004D401 and 0x80080250

You receive one of these error codes because your antivirus software or Digital Rights Management (DRM) software is incompatible with Windows Vista or Windows 7. Contact the software manufacturer of the antivirus software or of the DRM software to obtain a version that is compatible with Windows 7 or Window Vista, and then reactivate Windows.

Error codes 0x8004FC03, 0X8004FE2D, 0x8004FE33, 0x8004FE91, 0x80072EE7, 0x80072EFD, 0x80072F78, and 0x80072F8F

If you receive one of these error codes, verify that your Internet connection is working, and then try to reactivate Windows 7 or Windows Vista.

Other than common error codes above, another problem may occur during Windows Vista activation with the symptoms below:

  • Activation fails with error code 0x8004FE33.
  • The following Error events may be recorded in the Application log:

    Log Name: Application
    Source: Software Licensing Service
    Event ID: 8198
    Level: Error Description: License Activation (SLUI.exe) failed with the following error code: 0x80004005

    Log Name: Application
    Source: Software Licensing Service
    Event ID: 1008
    Level: Error Description: Acquisition of Secure Processor Certificate failed. Status Code=hr=0x8004FE33

  • Activation is not successful, and you are not prompted for credentials.

This issue may occur when you connect to the Internet through a proxy server that is configured with Basic authentication is enabled. In this case, the server requires that you type a username and a password. However, the activation user interface does not let you enter these credentials. Therefore, the Basic authentication fails, and activation is not successful.

To work around this issue, use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Do not use Basic authentication

Do not use Basic authentication on the proxy server.

Method 2: Exclude CRLs URLs from Basic Authentication

If you must use Basic authentication, exclude the URLs for the certificate revocation lists (CRLs) from the requirement for Basic authentication. To do this, configure the following list of CRLs to be unauthenticated on the proxy server:

  • http://crl.microsoft.com/pki/crl/products/MicrosoftRootAuthority.crl
  • http://crl.microsoft.com/pki/crl/products/MicrosoftProductSecureCommunications.crl
  • http://www.microsoft.com/pki/crl/products/MicrosoftProductSecureCommunications.crl
  • http://crl.microsoft.com/pki/crl/products/MicrosoftProductSecureServer.crl
  • http://www.microsoft.com/pki/crl/products/MicrosoftProductSecureServer.crl

Method 3: Use the telephone to activate Windows

If you cannot use Method 1 and 2, click Show me other ways to activate, then Use the automated phone system in the Windows Activation Wizard to activate Windows over the telephone.

You May Also Interested In: