Resolve Windows 11 activation error 0xC004C003: MiniTool Guide

When upgrading Windows 11 from Home to Professional and activate the system, you often encounter Windows 11 activation error 0xC004C003. This article will provide solutions provided by MiniTool to help you easily resolve this issue.

0xC004C003 error (suitable for Windows 10 21H1 and Windows 11)

Windows 11 is loved by users for its new user interface and features. You may have upgraded Windows 10 to Windows 11 and selected the Basic Edition – Home Edition. But for some reason, you need to upgrade Windows 11 Home to Pro. However, when activating the system, an error of 0xC004C003 occurs. This issue is just as troublesome in Windows 10 (including 21H1).

The message appears on the screen: "We cannot activate Windows on this device because you do not have a valid digital license or product key. If you think you have a valid license or key, select "Troubleshoot" below. Error code: 0xC004C003". Additionally, you may also see Windows 11 Enterprise Edition instead of the updated version.

The Windows License Code component is used to access the registry hive and verify the product key. However, if access is incorrect, a 0xC004C003 error is triggered. Fortunately, you can fix this issue.

How to fix error code 0xC004C003 in Windows 11 Professional Edition

Check Windows 11 version

Depending on how you install Windows 11 on your PC, the operating system may change. If you perform an in-situ upgrade of Windows 11, Windows will automatically detect the current version and install the correct version.

However, if you perform a fresh installation of Windows 11, you may have installed the Professional Edition instead of the Home Edition and you will receive the error code 0xC004C003 when using the Home Edition's license key. So let's check the Windows version.

Step 1: Start Windows 11 settings through the Win X menu.

Step 2: Under the System tab, go to About > Windows Specifications and you will see the Windows version.

If it matches the version you installed earlier, skip to Method 3. If you purchased the Windows 11 Home Edition license key and installed Windows 11 Professional Edition, perform a downgrade.

Downgrade Windows 11 Professional to Windows 11 Home

The downgrade process is relatively complicated and requires two steps.

Step 1: Modify the registry to install Windows 11 Home Edition

1. Type regedit in the search box and click Registry Editor.
2. Go to computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion .
3. Locate and double-click ProductName in the right pane, change the numerical data to Windows 11 Home Single Language in the pop-up window, and then click OK .

4. Locate and double-click EditionID , type CoreSingleLanguage , and then click OK .
5. Go to computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion .
6. Double-click ProductName , change its numeric data to Windows 11 Home , and save the changes.
7. Double-click the EditionID and change the data to CoreSingleLanguage and save the changes.

Step 2: Downgrade to Windows 11 Home Edition

The downgrade process requires an ISO file and an in-situ upgrade.

The operation method is as follows:

1. Access the Windows 11 download page from Microsoft.
2. Scroll down to the Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) section, select Windows 11, click Download , select a language, click Confirm , and then click 64-bit Download to download the ISO file for Windows 11.

3. Go to the folder where you saved the ISO file, right-click the ISO file, and select Load .
4. In the drive folder, double-click the exe file.
5. Click Change Installer How to Download Updates > Now Not .
6. After accepting the license terms, make sure to display Windows 11 Home Edition and retain personal files and apps .
7. Click Install to start the installation process. Reboots are required during this process.

After restarting, the downgrade is complete, you can go to Settings > System > Activate to activate Windows 11 without any error codes.

Activate Windows 11 using the command prompt

Sometimes, Windows cannot verify and activate your license due to server issues, resulting in Windows 11 activation error 0xC004C003. In this case, you can activate the system via the command prompt (CMD).

Step 1: Start the command prompt in Windows 11 with administrator permissions.

Step 2: Type slmgr.vbs –rearm and press Enter .

Step 3: After the activation is successful, click OK to restart your computer.

Have Microsoft reactivate Windows 11 after hardware changes

After activate Windows with the license key for the first time, it will automatically be associated with the PC hardware, and you do not need to activate the system again after a brand new installation. However, if you replace the hardware (such as the motherboard), Windows will not be able to verify its effectiveness. As a result, a Windows 11 0xC004C003 error will appear.

To resolve this issue, you need to use a digital license to activate Windows 11. This help document from Microsoft - Reactivate Windows after hardware changes provides more information.

Summarize

This article describes how to fix the error code 0xC004C003. After reading this article, you should be able to easily resolve Windows 11 activation error 0xC004C003. If you have any other methods, please leave a message below.

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