Microsoft 365 License Troubleshooting


 

Contents

This article will help troubleshoot Microsoft 365 licensing errors or messages on Windows-based computers used by University faculty, students, and staff, regardless of where the computer was obtained or who manages it. It will also provide information to the IT Services Service Desk and other IT groups in the event this knowledge base (KB) article does not resolve your licensing error.

Note: Please follow each instruction in this article and repeat them if necessary. Doing so will help your support team(s) quickly determine the likely cause of the issue and speed up their ability to resolve your licensing issues.

Tip: To collect information, you will need to take screenshots. You can use the Windows Snipping tool included with your Windows operating system or the keyboard shortcut Shift + Windows Key + S.

Identify what version of Microsoft 365 you have (version 2016 and higher)

  1. Open any Microsoft 365 application you have installed on your device like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.
  2. In the upper right, if you see your name, go to the User-based licensing section of this article, then complete the instructions.
  3. If you don't see your name, go to the Device-based Licensing section of this article, then complete the instructions.

User-based Licensing

  1. Select your Name in the upper right then select Account Settings. The Application window will change and display the license version.
  2. Take a screenshot of this information and save it to a location of your choice like your Desktop or Downloads folder.  This will provide details to assist in troubleshooting. 
  3. Find your Microsoft 365 version in the list below, then click on the link to your app's version name to see when support for your version is ending.
    1. Microsoft Office 2016
    2. Microsoft Office 2019
    3. Office 2021
    4. Office LTSC 2021
    5. Microsoft 365 Apps
  4. If support has ended, update your application. If it has not, continue to the next steps.
  5. Go to the Windows Taskbar then type cmd in the Search field.
  6. Select Command Prompt, then run one of the commands as shown below to force a license activation in case your license was inactivated or lapsed. Tip: The command to run is based on the location of the Microsoft 365 applications on your device.
    1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\ospp.vbs" /act
    2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\ospp.vbs" /act
      The command should return a message of "Product activation successful" or similar wording.
      1. If it does, close and reopen your Microsoft 365 application(s), then any displayed license messages will disappear.
      2. If it does not, go to the next step. (ALERT: Do not exit or close the Command Prompt window.)
  7. Take a screenshot of the displayed information and the /act command from the last step.
  8. Save the screenshot of the /act command to a location of your choice, such as your Downloads or Desktop folder.
  9. Run the following commands to gather information about your Microsoft 365 license activation. Tip: The command to run is based on the location of the Microsoft 365 applications on your device.
    1. Get the Current Status by running the appropriate command for your device.
      1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dstatus
      2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dstatus
        ALERT: Take a screenshot then save the displayed information and the command line you ran, as they provide details to assist in troubleshooting.
    2. Get the Activation History by running the appropriate command for your device.
      1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dhistoryacterr
      2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dhistoryacterr
        ALERT: Take a screenshot and save the displayed information and the command line you ran, as they provide details to assist in troubleshooting.
  10. Go to the Request Assistance section of this article.

Device-based Licensing

  1. Go to the Windows Taskbar then type command in the Search field.
  2. Select Command Prompt.
  3. Run one of these commands to force a license activation in case your license was inactivated or lapsed. Tip: The command to run is based on the location of the Microsoft 365 applications on your Windows device.
    1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\ospp.vbs" /act
    2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\ospp.vbs" /act
      The command should return a message of "Product activation successful" or similar wording.
      1. If it does, close and reopen your Microsoft 365 application(s), then any displayed license messages will disappear.
      2. If it does not, screenshot the output on your screen, including the command line you ran as it provides detail to assist in troubleshooting, then go to Step 4.
  4. Run each of the following commands to gather information about your Microsoft 365 license activation. Tip: The command to run is based on the location of the Microsoft 365 applications on your device.
    1. Get the KMS Activation History by running the appropriate command line for your device and Microsoft Office location.
      1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dcmid
      2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dcmid
        ALERT: Take a screenshot and save the displayed information and the command line you ran, as they provide details to assist in troubleshooting.
    2. Get the KMS Client Machine ID by running the appropriate command line for your device and Microsoft Office location.
      1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dhistorykms
      2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dhistorykms
        ALERT: Take a screenshot and save the displayed information and the command line you ran, as they provide details to assist in troubleshooting.
    3. Get the Token-based Licensing by running the appropriate command line for your device and Microsoft Office location.
      1. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dtokils
      2. C:\Windows\System32\cscript.exe 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office16\OSPP.VBS' /dtokils
        ALERT: Take a screenshot then save the displayed information and the command line you ran, as they provide details to assist in troubleshooting.
  5. Complete the instructions in the Request Assistance section below.

Request Assistance

  1. Open a request ticket with the IT Services Service Desk.
  2. Describe the error message you received in the Comments section.
  3. Select Add Attachments then add the screenshots you took as you followed the instructions in this article.
  4. Submit your request ticket.