Microsoft Office Error

[GregReid]

November 23, 2020

Greetings,  

Prior to sending my laptop in for repairs, I informed the customer service representative of how much I needed my computer. I explained to her that I am a teacher of students with disabilities and use my computer to teach students remotely. The representative informed me not to worry and that they would fix my computer as quickly as possible. She advised me to back up all my data in case they needed to reconfigure the operating system. She said that if I backed up my data and they did have to redo my system; I could easily reinstall all my programs.  

I took her advice and backed up my data. Then, I sent my laptop to HP to complete the repairs. Almost two weeks later, I finally received my laptop back from HP. Unbeknownst to me, the repair center reconfigured my entire operating system. As such, I had to reinstall all my programs. When I tried to reinstall Microsoft Office, the system would not allow me to install the program. Therefore, I called Microsoft to inquire as to why I was unable to reinstall the program.  The Microsoft representative informed me that the version of Microsoft Office that I have is no longer supported. And, as a result, I would be unable to reinstall the program. They advised me to call HP to inform them of this. Since the repair center reconfigured my operating system, this sounded like a plausible idea.    

When I called HP, the representative told me that there was nothing that they could do. Despite not informing me that there was a possibility that I could lose previously purchased programs, even If I backed them up, and possibly have to purchase the programs again, that they were not willing to assist me. Moreover, I would have to purchase another copy of Microsoft Office if I wanted to regain access to the program.  

Doing these unprecedented times, teachers are barely making it. We need all the help we can get to be able to effectively reach our students via this remote learning platform. I depend on programs such as Word, PowerPoint, etc. to be able to provide effective instruction to my students. For HP to show such blatant disregard for their actions and leave me without a program that I desperately need to teach my students is simply unimaginable. If I would have known that getting my laptop fixed could mean losing access to Microsoft Office, I would have waited until I was able to afford to buy the program again before getting my laptop repaired for the second time.  

This is shocking. I am amazed at the lack of concern/assistance shown by HP and their service team. Any assistance with this matter would be greatly appreciated.  

Take care,

G. Reid

Note. The reason I had to send my laptop back to HP was to complete additional repairs. Shortly before this, I had sent my laptop to HP to get the microphone fixed. When I received my laptop back from the service center, it was covered in dirt and the keyboard was not working.

[WAWood]

@GregReid 

My own view is this is entirely due to a lack of understanding of the clear use of complex terms.  The work "backup" means lots of things to lots of people -- and some of the common beliefs are just plain false -- as the believe that you can back up programs -- which you can not do except using specialized software.  Programs are not single files; instead, they are collections of files and data, stored at various places all over the drive.  There is no simple way to back that information up so that the apps can be restored.

The only thing that actually works is something known  as an Image Backup -- and that works because you store a copy of the data sectors used on the drive.  Those apps do not actually read the files, so they are not limited in what they can find and save.

So, unless you used an Image Backup app, you did NOT save your apps and therefore, have no hope of restoring them.  Had you come here prior to sending the PC to HP, I could have pointed you to a couple of image backup apps you can have used to save and restore not only your apps, but also everything else formerly on your drive.

Also, HP re-imaged your drive; they did not reconfigure Windows.  This is standard policy and it results in everything being erased from the drive.

You say you are a teacher, so I presume you knew enough to spend $10 on a USB stick and 10 minutes backing off your personal files and data so you could restore them when you got the PC back, right? IF not, you have no one to fault but yourself for your data being lost.

That said, if the PC still has the original drive in it, you MIGHT be able to get your personal data back, although you will not be able to recover the apps.  If you're interested in doing that, then let us know.

[IT_WinSec]

Hello @GregReid 

If I or another expert may help you with reinstalling the Office, that would be great.

The fact the certain Office version is old one means only that Microsoft cannot support it and that they will not provide new updates for it. But its age does not prevent it from being installed, reinstalled, used or activated.

I would like to concentrate on the technical aspect of your main issue now.

• Could you be very specific what happened and why the system would not allow you to reinstall Office ?
• Could you provide more details on what version of MS Office you wanted to install ?
• Where did you get the installer from ?
• How did you buy its license ?
• Do you still have the license key of Office with you ?
• Do you know the version it was (OEM, full retail package, etc) ?

On Windows 10 I have installed Office versions back to Office 2003. Personally, I use Office 2007 and it still works like a charm.

Looking forward to your reply.

[GregReid]

Greetings, 

Thank you for your response. I have addressed your questions below. Please review and let me know if you could further assist. 

Take care, 

Greg

Could you be very specific what happened and why the system would not allow you to reinstall Office ?

I attempted to reinstall the software using the provided disk and product key. When the icon came up for me to enter the product key after I entered it, I received a notification that the product key was not valid. Therefore, it would not let me complete the installation process

Could you provide more details on what version of MS Office you wanted to install ?

Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2010

Where did you get the installer from ?

The installer was preloaded on the program disk.

How did you buy its license?

I purchased the software when I in graduate school through my school’s online bookstore.

Do you still have the license key of Office with you ?

Yes

Do you know the version it was (OEM, full retail package, etc) ?

I am not sure about this one. I still have the original installation disk though.

[IT_WinSec]

What kind of disc you have, is it for Office Professional or Office Professional Plus

similar to this one:

• Office Professional Plus is generally not only available in Microsoft-made official discs
  and is for the so called Volume Licensing customers, a.k.a. big businesses who buy in big volumes, corporate accounts, organizations (like schools), etc. A retail version may have been offered through MSDN or TechNet

It could be you using wrong installer (for different version), the school you obtained it from may have somehow canceled the license, or the key you entered was entered in a wrong way (typo/mistake - pay attention to zero and letter O)...

This is not an installation issue, this is a licensing issue. There are some installers (for corporate versions) which do not require the key prior to installation and they are installed in a different way.

I would recommend you try the following:

- ensure the installer is for Office Professional Plus and the key is also for the same version

- try entering it again to activate again. Ensure you are connected to the Internet

If it still does not work:

- you may contact your school (if you are part of school) and ask them if they can offer you some license or installer for their Microsoft Office version. They will probably be eligible for one and it will probably be newer than 2010.

- if you are not part of school and you are working alone in private, you may consider purchasing your own subscription or license for active Office versions. Here are the Microsoft options :

>> https://www.microsoft.com/en-ww/microsoft-365/buy/compare-all-microsoft-365-products?tab=1&market=af

Microsoft now offers subscription model which gives you an option to use their apps on multiple machine and is valid as long you pay for it. 1 user subscription of Personal edition costs only 6  $ per month [monthly plan]. The subscription also offers some extras and upgrades.

One time payment for Home&Student edition (life time license) costs 120 $.

Hope this helps. Let me know how it goes