Keep getting the need to buy 365 when I already did

Question

I purchased this years office 365, and my computer keeps saying that I need to buy it. And desktop items have red Xs on them. Get a warning that all office files will be deleted soon.

Answer 1

Hello,

Can you please sign into your account online https://account.live.com, then go to Subscriptions, do you see Microsoft 365 here? If so, is it Microsoft 365 Basic, or Personal/Family/Premium? Please tell me the full name of it. And tell me if it is active.

If yo don't see anything there, then go to Order History, adjust the date filter further back if needed, and tell me if you have any Office product listed, if so, what's the full name?

Answer 2

The messages appear because Office on the PC is not correctly activated with the purchased Microsoft 365 subscription, or the subscription has not actually started yet.

Follow these steps:

1. Confirm the subscription is active
   • Go to the Microsoft account services page and check that the Microsoft 365 subscription shows as active and that the expiration date is correct. If the expiration date is wrong or the renewal failed, follow the guidance in "ACCOUNT NOTICE. We've run into a problem with your Microsoft 365 subscription and need your help to fix it." which is usually caused by a declined or expired payment method.
   • If the subscription did not renew correctly, fix the payment issue or renew again as described in "Renew your subscription" or "Subscription expired".
2. If a product key or email link was used
   • If a physical box/card or an email receipt was used to buy this year’s Microsoft 365, make sure the product key has been entered or the activation link has been followed. The subscription does not actually start until the key is redeemed or the link is used. See the section "If you're still getting notifications after renewing or buying Microsoft 365" for details.
3. Make sure Office is signed in with the correct account
   • Open any Office app (Word, Excel, etc.).
   • If a yellow bar appears saying "ACCOUNT NOTICE. We've run into a problem with your Microsoft 365 subscription and need your help to fix it.", select the button in the bar and sign in with the Microsoft account that owns the active subscription.
   • If Office was previously licensed through work or school, that old license may have been deactivated. In that case, remove the old license and sign in with the personal Microsoft account that has the new subscription.
4. Check for other activation or license issues
   • If you see Unlicensed Product, Product deactivated, or similar activation errors, follow the steps in Unlicensed Product and activation errors in Office referenced in the context to re‑activate.
   • If a Get genuine Office message appears, the installed Office might not be genuine. In that case, uninstall the counterfeit Office, then install and activate a genuine copy associated with the subscription.
5. What happens if nothing is done
   • If the subscription is not correctly activated, Office will eventually enter reduced functionality mode. Files can still be opened and printed, but editing and creating new files will be disabled, and Unlicensed Product notifications will appear.
   • The red Xs and warning about files being deleted are related to OneDrive cleanup for inactive or over‑quota accounts. Sign in to the correct Microsoft account and ensure the OneDrive/Office subscription is active to avoid data loss.

If, after confirming the subscription is active and signing in with the correct account, the notifications still appear, check the renewal status again and then contact Microsoft Support as described in "If you're still getting notifications after renewing or buying Microsoft 365".

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References:

• A subscription notice appears when I open a Microsoft 365 application
• Why did I get a message saying my files will be erased?
• Stay safe with a genuine Office license