8 Fixes For Your Windows License Will Expire Soon Error

This article is written to discuss one of the most annoying errors in Windows 10/8.1/7 i.e “Your Windows License will expire soon” error message. 

Many Windows users face this frustrating problem when they are working on their systems or having fun such as watching movies, YouTube, playing games, etc. Having this error message that suddenly pops up in the middle of a work or entertainment session will surely have a horrible impact on Windows users.

So, we are here to discuss some possible methods to resolve this problem. Just keep reading the article and find out more details about this error and various counter-solutions.

What Is/Are The Possible Reasons Behind This “Your Windows License Will Expire Soon” Error?

Microsoft has been doing successful business for over 3 decades since the release of the first version of Windows GUI. Although the popularity of their operating system is excellent, these operating system also comes with some bugs. Some of these bugs are very simple and don’t affect the overall operation of the work system, but there are some bugs or errors that are very annoying.

One such bug or error in Windows 10/8.1/7 is the “Your Windows License will expire soon” message. This error covers most Windows users and because of the large popularity base of Windows OS around the globe makes the total number of affected users a tremendous number. What is/are the reasons that sustain this “Your Windows License will expire soon” bug or error? The following are some of the causes that are responsible for this error:

  1. Windows Updates.

Most Windows Updates are free in nature and there are some update packages that are not meant for regular OS development rather they are meant for autonomous system updates. For this reason, purchasing an original Windows License is recommended so that users can get the benefits of Microsoft Windows Updates. Most users are using the older updated version of Windows and are unable to update to a higher version.

  1. Using Windows License with a limited or short time period(for example 180 days).
  2. Rejected License Key.

Methods To Fix “Your Windows License Will Expire Soon” Error

Now that you know the general information about the Windows License and its bugs, here are 8 different methods to fix the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error:

  1. Restart The Windows Explorer
  2. Reset The Windows Activation Timer
  3. Modify the Group Policy
  4. Get The Windows License Manager And Windows Update Services Disabled
  5. Re-activate Windows Using Product Key
  6. Modifying The Registry
  7. Use The Windows Activation Troubleshoot
  8. Reset your Windows PC

Method 1- Restart The Windows Explorer Process

This is a simple solution to the “Your Windows license will expire soon”. For users that face this bug or error when there is still plenty of time before the Windows License expires, this method can easily fix windows license errors.

Here is a step-by-step guide that you can follow and resolve the problem.

Step 1- Open the Task Manager. Right-click on the Taskbar and select the Task Manager option from the list or you can directly press Ctrl + Alt + Esc on your keyboard to open the Task Manager.

Open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the taskbar

Step 2- In the Task Manager, you can find various tabs including Processes, performance, App history, Startup, Users, Details, and services. Now in the Processes tab, right-click on Windows Explorer and click on the End task option.

Right-click on Windows Explorer and select the End task option

Step 3- In the uppermost there are three tabs namely File, Options, and View. Click on File and select Run New Task.

Start a new task by clicking on File then on Run New task

Step 4- In the Create new task window, type “explorer.exe” in the Open text box and click Ok.

In the Create new task tab, type explorer.exe in the text box

Now restart your computer and check if the method resolves the problematic message.

Method 2- Reset The Windows Activation Timer.

This method of resetting the Activation Timer will give an extra 30-Day time period expansion when the expiration date of the Windows Trial or License is near. Moreover, it is only a temporary fix and it will only stop the “Your Windows License will expire soon” expiration message for 30 days only, and the number of times that a user can “rearm” is limited.

Step 1- Open the Command Prompt in Administrator Mode.

Step 2- After the Command Prompt opens, type “slmgr -rearm” and hit Enter key.

Executing "slmgr -rearm" in CMD

Step 3- Now close the command prompt window and restart your computer and check if the frequent activation notification has stopped or not.

The “slmgr -rearm” will only give a time period of only 30 days and the number of times that a user can “rearm” is limited. To know the total number of times that you can Reset the Activation timer execute the command “slmgr -dlv” in Command prompt.

Now a detailed report screen will be presented to you. Check the “Remaining Windows rearm count” row for the total number of times that you can rearm/extend the Windows Trial period.

Check the “Remaining Windows rearm count” row for the total number of times that you can rearm/extend the Windows Trial period.

Method 3- Modify the Group Policy

To fix the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error, you can use the method of changing Group Policy. To do this follow the given step-by-step guide.

Step 1- Open the Run dialog box. Press Windows + R on your keyboard.

Step 2- Type “gpedit.msc’ in the dialog box and click Ok.

Opening Local Group Policy Editor using Run

Step 3- Now that the Local Group Policy Editor has opened, navigate to Computer Configuration-> Administrative Templates-> Windows Components-> Windows Updates.

Local Group Policy Editor

Step 4- Now on the right side of the screen you can see various configurations settings. Search for a setting named: No auto-restart with logged-on users for scheduled automatic updates installations.

In Windows update folder select "No auto-restart with logged on users for scheduled automatic updates installations"

Step 5- Double-click on it.

Step 6- A separate window will open after the previous step is completed. Now on the left side, you will find three options namely Not Configured, Enabled, and Disabled. Click on the Enabled option.

Click on the Enabled option of the configuration setting

Step 7-  Now click on Apply and then on Ok.

Method 4- Get The Windows License Management Service And Windows Update Services Disabled.

Step 1- Open the Run dialog box. Press Windows + R on your keyboard.

Step 2- Type “services.msc” and click on Ok.

Opening Windows Services editor using Run

Step 3- Now search for the service named Windows License Manager Service. Double-click on it to access its Properties window.

selecting the Windows License Manager Service

Step 4- In the Properties window, Press Stop if Running is shown in the  Service status section.

Step 5- In the Startup type drop-down box, select Disabled and apply the changes that you have made.

Step 6- Now search for Windows Update service in the services list and double-click on it.

Selecting the Windows Update service

Step 7- Click on Stop if Running is shown in the Service status section. 

Click Stop if the Service status is Running

Step 8- In the Startup type drop-down box, select the Disabled option and apply the changes.

Select Disabled in the Startup type drop-down box

Step 9- Restart your computer and check if the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error has been resolved or not.

Method 5- Re-activate Windows Using Product Key

To get rid of the “Your Windows license will expire soon” error, you can try to reactivate Windows with the same product key. Also, this method will work if you have a valid license for your Windows OS and know the product key.

Step 1- Open the Run dialog box by pressing Windows + R, type “cmd” and click on the Ok button. It will open the Command Prompt on your computer.

Step 2- In the Command Prompt, type in the following command and hit Enter key:

Wmic path softwarelicensingservice get  OA3xOriginalProductKey

Step 3- After execution of the command, you will get the Product Key. Copy it somewhere else to be used in later steps and close the Command Prompt.

Step 4- Now open the Windows Settings app on your computer.

Step 5- Click on the “Update & Security” option. Next, you will find the Activation option on the left side of the screen. Click on it.

Step 6- Here, you need to click on the “Change Product Key” option. It is found in the centre of the screen.

Click on the “Change Product Key” option. It is found in the centre of the screen.

Step 7- Now Paste the Product Key copied in Step 3 in the “Enter a Product Key” box. Click on Next.

Paste the Product Key copied in Step 3 in the “Enter a Product Key” box. Click on Next.

Method 6- Modifying The Registry.

To fix the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error, you can use this method is to be used only if you have an original version of the Windows OS. Also making modifications to the registry is very risky behavior and unwanted or unnecessary changes in the registry will compromise your Windows operating system. 

Step 1- Open the Run dialog box by pressing Windows + R.

Step 2- Type “regedit” and hit the Enter button. It will open the Registry Editor on your computer.

Type “regedit” and hit the Enter button

Step 3- Now click on File on the top-left corner of the Registry Editor window, then click on Export.

Click on File on the top-left corner of the Registry Editor window, then click on Export.

Step 4- Select the “All” option for the Export Range, choose the File name of Export then click on the Save button. This step is done if some unwanted situation happens then you can click on the saved Export file and restore the registry to its original state.

Select the “All” option for the Export Range, choose the File name of Export then click on the Save button.

Step 5- After finishing the Export process, Open the Command Prompt on your computer and execute the following command:

reg add “HKLM\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\Software Protection Platform”/ v NoGenticket /t REG_DWORD/d 1 /f

Step 6- Close the Command Prompt and restart your computer.

Method 7- Use The Windows Activation Troubleshoot

The Windows Activation Troubleshooter only works in Windows 10, version 1607 or later. The Activation Troubleshooter can help users detect and fix the problems regarding Activation such as the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error message, reactivate Windows 10 if any major change has been made to their system such as changing a Hardware component(Motherboard) or reinstalling Windows operating system.

Step 1- Open the Windows Settings on your computer.

Step 2- In the Settings Home Page, click on the “Update & Security” option.

Step 3- Now you can see numerous error messages with respect to Windows Activation. Click on the Activation option on the left side of the screen.

Step 4- The option of Troubleshoot can be seen on the bottom of the screen. Click on it and complete the process by following the corresponding instructions.

Method 8- Reset your Windows PC.

If any of the above methods don’t work for your system, then Resetting the PC is the last option available to fix the “Your Windows License will expire soon” error. Before reinstalling Windows you need to backup your data to an external storage device.

Step 1- Open the Windows Settings app on your computer.

Step 2- Navigate to Update & Security-> Recovery.

Step 3- In the “Reset this PC” section click on the “Get started” option.

Step 4- Select your preferred choice from the two options: Keep my files and Remove everything.

Step 5- In the “How do you like to reinstall Windows?” page select either of two options “Cloud download” and “Local reinstall”.

Step 6- Now preview the reinstallation settings that you have selected and click Next to proceed.

Step 7- Click on Reset to start the reinstallation process.