Windows 7: Manually Activating with command

1. Open Command Prompt with Administrative Privileges:  (Type "cmd" into the search box.  right-click on cmd and select "Run as administrator".)    

Note:  See detailed instructions on Opening the Command Prompt as an Administrator in Windows 7.

2. When the DOS prompt appears:

Type in:  c:\windows\system32  and press the Enter key.

Type in:  cscript \windows\system32\slmgr.vbs /ato  and press the Enter key.

(IMPORTANT:  You must type in the command exactly as shown, including spaces.) 

 

3. The results of running this command will be an Output Message: 

• If the output message says 'Product activated successfully', then the product activated successfully.
   
• If the output message DOES NOT say 'Product activated successfully', do the following:

1.  Make a note of the error code that is generated in the Command Prompt window.

2.  Refer to Windows 7: Activation Troubleshooting to find out how to resolve the error code.

3.  Try activating Windows again.   (Return to Step 1.)

4. Following these steps will activate Windows 7 for 180-days.  After this 180-day time period, you will need to complete these steps again to reactivate.