How to reset Office 2021 activation count

Question

How to reset Office 2021 activation count

jsaeg12 45

Hello,

Is there a way I can reset my Office 2021 activation count? I installed Office on a virtual machine, and then I lost the virtual machine. When I installed Office on a new VM, it says "This product is already installed on another device". How can I fix this?

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Answer accepted by question author

Stefan Blom 348.2K MVP Volunteer Moderator

See https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/activation/activate-microsoft-perpetual-products-using-the-product-activation-portal .

jsaeg12 45 Reputation points

2026-07-13T19:24:58.2766667+00:00

I see that this article is about the new method for phone activation. But I don't see any option for phone activation in my product. Am I missing something?
Stefan Blom 348.2K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2026-07-13T20:01:17.85+00:00

I don't see any option for phone activation in my product. Am I missing something?

No, phone activation is no longer supported. The article is about activating perpetual (one-time purchase) licenses, that is, those licenses that are not subscriptions.

If the steps do not apply to you, what remains to do is to try the support chat at https://support.microsoft.com/contactus .

1 additional answer

Your answer

jsaeg12 45 Reputation points

2026-07-13T19:24:58.2766667+00:00

I see that this article is about the new method for phone activation. But I don't see any option for phone activation in my product. Am I missing something?
Stefan Blom 348.2K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2026-07-13T20:01:17.85+00:00

I don't see any option for phone activation in my product. Am I missing something?

No, phone activation is no longer supported. The article is about activating perpetual (one-time purchase) licenses, that is, those licenses that are not subscriptions.

If the steps do not apply to you, what remains to do is to try the support chat at https://support.microsoft.com/contactus .

Answer 1

Manoel Barros 21,555 Independent Advisor

Hi!

What type of license did you buy? OEM or Retail?

Did you purchase it directly from Microsoft, at a retail store, or from a third party?

If your license is linked to your account, go to https://account.microsoft.com/devices and remove your old virtual machine from the list.

Also, did you download Office 2021 from https://www.office.com/ or from the "Services & subscriptions" section of your account (https://account.microsoft.com/services)? Or did Office come pre-installed on the new virtual machine?

jsaeg12 45 Reputation points

2026-07-13T17:40:55.15+00:00

Hello Manoel Barros,

I got it free with my computer. I downloaded it from https://account.microsoft.com/services . I removed all the old computers I may have installed office on. I tried activating again after I did that, and still didn't have any luck.
Manoel Barros 21,555 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-13T23:58:20.3533333+00:00

Thanks!

Licenses that come pre-installed on computers are generally OEM licenses, which can only be used on a single device. Do you have this information from the seller or the receipt from when you bought the computer?

Have you tried looking for the virtual machine under "Devices"?

It is also worth checking the article the moderator sent regarding product activation.
jsaeg12 45 Reputation points

2026-07-14T16:55:43.91+00:00

Hi,

I had previously installed Office on a VM before, and was able to activate it. I can't see any devices that would have office on it.
Manoel Barros 21,555 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-15T00:14:14.1666667+00:00

I see. So the most viable option would be to contact the chat, as the moderator instructed in the last reply. Have you tried that?
jsaeg12 45 Reputation points

2026-07-15T18:35:59.79+00:00

Yes, I will try that now. Thank you for all your help!