reset counter of office ltsc 2021 key

Question

Customer has to reenter the product key for office 2021 ltsc on Terminalserver.

Tried ospp.vbs - activating the key - the script telles the key has been too often used.

How can we reset the counter for this key - without logging in to customes tenant. The two existing global are locked out because of not working mfa.

Thanks,

Klaus

Answer 1

we already did this on Feb 17.[Moderator note: personal info removed]

But till now MFA for none of the two existing and locked out Global Admins was reset.

Answer 2

Hello @Klaus Schwärzler,

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum. 

To understand the situation better and provide you with the most suitable support, could you confirm the following information:  

• Which specific Microsoft product are you activating with the MAK? Is it Office 2019, Office LTSC 2021, or Office LTSC 2024?  
• Are you listed as an administrator in the Microsoft Volume Licensing Service Center (VLSC) for your organization’s agreement?  
• Do you have the necessary Key Admin role, VL Administrator role, or Key Viewer role in the Microsoft 365 admin center? 

Currently, you cannot reset a Volume License (MAK) activation counter yourself because only the organization’s Volume Licensing administrators or Microsoft can increase the MAK activation limit, and since the key has already reached its activation maximum as indicated by the OSPP script 

Regarding your situation, please kindly refer to this article for step-by-step instructions and requirements to request an increase to MAK activation limits: Find and use product keys for volume licensing | Microsoft Learn 

For more information/support: Here is how to contact Microsoft Activation Center: Volume License Key Phone Numbers | Microsoft Volume Licensing  

According to your concern about two existing global admin are locked out because of not working MFA, may I ask if there is any other Global Admin available in the tenant?

Note: Please understand that as a forum moderator, my primary goal is to provide helpful guidance and support through general troubleshooting steps. While I don’t have access to internal systems or test devices required to resolve backend/account issues, I truly appreciate your understanding of these limitations.  

Kindly let me know when there are updates or if you need further assistance. Any updates you’re able to share would be really helpful. I appreciate your time and look forward to hearing how things are going.

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Answer 3

To reset the activation counter for a volume license key in Office LTSC 2021, you typically need to use the Volume Activation Management Tool (VAMT) or the ospp.vbs script. However, if you are encountering an error indicating that the key has been used too often, it may be necessary to wait for a period before reusing the key, as there are limits on the number of activations allowed for a given key within a specific timeframe.

Unfortunately, without access to the customer's tenant or the ability to log in to the accounts, you may not be able to reset the counter directly. If the existing global admin accounts are locked out due to MFA issues, it is advisable to recover or reset those accounts to gain access to the necessary tools for managing the activation.

If you are unable to resolve the issue through these means, contacting Microsoft support for assistance with the activation limits and account recovery may be necessary.

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References:

• Troubleshoot volume activation of Office
• Tools to manage volume activation of Office