Suddenly I am told to activate 365; I have purchased a license (in 2021), version 16.109.3

Question

There was apparently an update to do with AI and suddenly I don't have access to my Word documents, editing, etc. Help.

Answer 1

Hi, I'm John! I will help you with this.

Please click the Apple menu > About This Mac, then tell me the macOS name and version shown there.

Also, please confirm if your purchase is Microsoft 365 subscription or a one-time Office 2021 license. You can check this at https://account.microsoft.com/services using the Microsoft account used for the purchase.

For now, this sounds like either an activation issue or Office is signed in with the wrong license. Your documents should still be there, but editing may be blocked until Office is activated again.

Can you confirm these 3 things?

1. What macOS version is installed?
2. Does your license show under your Microsoft account Services page?
3. What exact activation message appears in Word?