Frequently Asked Questions

OfficeGSM sells genuine Microsoft product keys at a one-time price, delivers them by email within minutes, and backs every key with a 180-day money-back guarantee and real people on support. That combination is the short answer.

Here’s what it looks like in practice. You pay once in USD, with no subscription and no renewal fee. Your email arrives with the product key, the official download link and an installation guide, and the same details stay in your customer account on our site. If activation hits a snag, you’re not left with a ticket number and a bot. Our team answers contact@officegsm.com every day, and you can call +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern.

• Clear guarantee: if a key doesn’t activate and we can’t fix it, you get a replacement key or a full refund, your choice.
• Help with the tricky parts: telephone activation, Confirmation IDs and Windows 11 Home to Pro upgrades are things we walk customers through all the time.
• A real company behind the store: OfficeGSM is operated by Makers Unity LLC, a US company based in Sheridan, Wyoming.

Browse the full catalog in our shop, or read the refund policy before you buy.

OfficeGSM is an independent reseller operated by Makers Unity LLC. Use official Microsoft software sources and review the exact product edition, device count and licensing requirements before purchase.

Successful activation alone does not establish that a license permits your intended use. Ask us to confirm the acquisition channel, qualifying requirements, region and transfer restrictions, and the records supplied for your product. A marketplace profile is not proof of authorization for every Microsoft product.

If activation fails, contact us with your order number and error message. We will investigate the problem; eligible refunds follow the 180-day refund policy.

Our prices are lower because we’re an independent reseller selling perpetual license keys digitally, without the retail boxes, shelf space and bundled subscriptions that push up store prices.

The Microsoft Store mostly steers buyers toward Microsoft 365, which you pay for every year. We don’t sell Microsoft 365 subscriptions at all. We sell one-time licenses: Office 2024, 2021, 2019 and older, Windows 11 and Windows 10, Windows Server, plus standalone apps like Word, Outlook, Access, Visio and Project. You pay once and the license doesn’t expire on the computer where you activate it.

Delivery is fully digital. There’s no DVD, no shipping and no packaging, so those costs never reach your price. The product key, the official Microsoft download link and an installation guide simply land in your inbox within minutes of payment.

A lower price doesn’t mean less protection. Every order comes with our 180-day money-back guarantee, and our support team helps with installation and activation by email every day and by phone on weekdays.

No, OfficeGSM is an independent reseller and is not Microsoft, not part of Microsoft, and not endorsed by Microsoft. We sell genuine Microsoft licenses, but the store is run by our own company.

That company is Makers Unity LLC, registered in the United States at 1309 Coffeen Avenue STE 1200, Sheridan, WY 82801. Makers Unity LLC has a verified Microsoft AppSource partner profile, which you can look up yourself. That profile is a business listing, though, not a sign that Microsoft owns or runs this store.

Why does it matter to you? Mainly for support. If you have a question about an order, a product key or activation, contact us first rather than Microsoft. Microsoft’s support staff can’t see our orders, and they won’t replace or refund a key bought from us. We can, under our 180-day money-back guarantee.

Here’s how to reach us:

• Email contact@officegsm.com, answered every day by people.
• Phone +1 (347) 201-7406, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern.
• The form on our contact page.

Product names such as Windows, Office and Visio are Microsoft trademarks, and we use them only to describe what we sell.

OfficeGSM sells perpetual Microsoft Office licenses (2024, 2021, 2019, 2016 and older), Office for Mac, Windows 11 and Windows 10, Windows Server, and standalone Word, Access, Outlook, Visio and Project. Every one is a one-time purchase.

Here’s where to find each range:

• Microsoft Office for Windows: Office 2024 Professional Plus, Office 2021 and earlier versions. Office LTSC 2024 Professional Plus includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and Access.
• Office for Mac: editions that are installed from your Microsoft account.
• Operating systems: Windows 11 Pro, Windows 11 Home and Windows 10 keys, including the Windows 11 Pro upgrade for Home PCs.
• Office products: standalone apps such as Word, Outlook, Access, Visio and Project.
• Windows Server: licensed per physical core, with at least 16 cores per server.

We also sell multi-PC packs, for example Windows 11 Pro for 5 PCs or Office 2021 Professional Plus for 5 PCs. For bigger orders, ask for a quote through our contact page.

Your product key arrives by email within minutes of payment, together with the official Microsoft download link and a step-by-step installation guide. Nothing is shipped. There’s no DVD and no box, because every product is delivered digitally.

The email goes to the address you typed at checkout, so double-check it before you pay. You’ll also find the same key and download link in your customer account on our site, which is handy if an email ends up in spam or you delete it by accident.

Most orders are delivered almost immediately. Once in a while a product needs restocking, and delivery can then take a few hours. You’ll still receive your key; it’s just queued. If you’d like to know where it stands, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll tell you.

When the email arrives:

1. Save it somewhere safe, or add it to a folder you won’t clear out.
2. Write the product key down, or keep it in a password manager.
3. Open the installation guide before you start, since some products (Office for Mac, for example) install from a Microsoft account rather than a setup file.

Stuck at any step? Our download and activation guides cover each product.

First check your spam or junk folder, then search your mailbox for “OfficeGSM”, because a filtered email or a typo in the checkout address is behind nearly every “missing” key. In Gmail, also look under the Promotions and Updates tabs.

Next, confirm you’re checking the right inbox. The key goes to the exact email address typed at checkout, and a single wrong letter sends it somewhere else. You can also sign in to your customer account on our site, where your order, product key and download link are shown.

If you’ve waited more than an hour and still see nothing:

1. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and the email address you used.
2. If you think the address was mistyped, include the correct one.
3. We’ll check the order, fix the address if needed and resend your key.

You can also call +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern.

Email us your order number and the correct email address, and we’ll update the order and resend your product key to the right inbox. It’s a common mistake and quick to fix.

If you don’t have the order number (which is likely, since the confirmation went to the wrong address), send these details instead:

• Your full name as entered at checkout.
• The date of purchase and the product you bought.
• The email address you think you typed, even if it’s wrong.
• The correct email address where you want the key.

Write to contact@officegsm.com from the correct address if you can, because it helps us match you to the order. Prefer the phone? Call +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern, and we can find the order with you.

Once we’ve matched it, we correct the address on the order and send the full product email again: the key, the official download link and the installation guide.

Yes, we can resend your product key and download link at any time; just email us your order number or the email address you used for the purchase. You can often skip that step too, because your key is also stored in your customer account on our site.

To check your account first:

1. Sign in on our website with the email address you used at checkout.
2. Open your orders and select the order.
3. Copy the product key and use the download link shown there.

If you can’t sign in, or you checked out without creating an account, write to contact@officegsm.com with the order number, or your full name and purchase date if the number is gone too. We’ll send the complete product email again, including the installation guide.

A word of advice from experience: when the key arrives, save a copy of the email and write the key down somewhere separate. People usually need it again months later, after a Windows reinstall or a new hard drive, and that’s exactly when the original email is hardest to find.

Usually yes, because many of our multi-PC products use one key that activates several computers, so you don’t need a separate key for each PC. The number of devices each key covers is stated in your product email.

Here’s how that can look. An order for 5 licenses might arrive as a single key that activates 5 PCs, or as two keys valid for 2 and 3 activations. Both add up to the 5 you paid for. Multi-PC packs such as Windows 11 Pro for 5 PCs or Office 2021 Professional Plus for 5 PCs work the same way.

Before contacting us, check two things:

1. Read the product email carefully and add up the activations listed for each key.
2. Look for more than one email. Larger orders are sometimes split across several messages, and one may be sitting in spam.

If the total number of activations still doesn’t match what you ordered, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll send the missing keys.

No, your order didn’t fail. Abandoned-cart reminders are sent automatically when a cart is left open in your browser, and they can go out even after you’ve completed a payment in another tab or session.

The reliable sign of a successful order is the order confirmation and the product email containing your key. If you have both, you’re done, and the reminder can be ignored or deleted. You can also sign in to your customer account on our site to see the order and the key listed there.

If you’re not sure whether the payment went through:

• Look for the product email in your inbox, spam folder and, in Gmail, the Promotions tab.
• Check your customer account for a completed order.
• If neither shows up, email contact@officegsm.com with the name and email address you used and we’ll check.

Did the reminder lead you to place a second order by mistake? That happens. Contact us with both order numbers and we’ll refund the duplicate, as long as its key hasn’t been activated or redeemed.

Each completed order creates exactly one charge, so extra lines on your statement are usually temporary pending authorizations from a failed or repeated checkout attempt. Your bank places a hold while a payment is attempted, and if the order isn’t completed, that hold drops off by itself.

This tends to happen when a payment is declined and retried, when the page is refreshed mid-checkout, or when a different card or wallet such as Apple Pay or Google Pay is tried after the first attempt. The held amounts look like charges, but they aren’t collected.

Here’s what to do:

1. Compare the lines on your statement with the order numbers in your confirmation emails.
2. Wait a few days. Pending authorizations normally vanish without any action from you.
3. If a charge is still there after 5 business days and you can’t match it to an order, email contact@officegsm.com with a screenshot of the statement line (hide the card number) and we’ll investigate.

Yes, we can send a PDF invoice for any order; email us your order number along with the billing name and address you want printed on it. Businesses often need the company name or a specific billing address shown, and we’re happy to add it.

Write to contact@officegsm.com and include:

• Your order number.
• The name or company name for the invoice.
• The full billing address.
• Anything else your accounts team requires on the document, such as a purchase order reference.

We’ll reply with the invoice as a PDF you can forward straight to accounting or keep for your records. If you’ve ordered several times, list every order number in one message and we’ll handle them together.

Your order confirmation email already works as a basic receipt, showing the product, the price in USD and the date of purchase. For many personal purchases that’s enough, and you can see the same order details in your customer account on our site.

Yes, we offer multi-PC packs for common products and custom quotes for larger orders, so a company, school or IT reseller can equip many computers in one purchase.

For smaller setups, check the product pages for ready-made packs. Examples include Windows 11 Pro for 5 PCs and Office 2021 Professional Plus for 5 PCs. These are delivered as one or more keys, each with a stated number of activations, and the total matches the pack size.

For larger orders, such as 10, 50 or more licenses, contact us for a quote:

1. Tell us the exact product and edition, for example Office LTSC 2024 Professional Plus or Windows 11 Pro.
2. Give the number of computers or users you need to cover.
3. Mention if you need an invoice with company details.

Send this through our contact page, email contact@officegsm.com, or call +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern. We’ll reply with pricing and explain how the keys will be delivered.

A lifetime license means you pay once, with no subscription and no renewal fee, and the license doesn’t expire on the computer where you activate it. That’s the key difference from Microsoft 365, which you pay for every month or year.

In practice, when you buy a perpetual Office 2024 key or a Windows 11 Pro key from us, the software keeps working on that PC for as long as you use it. Nobody switches it off after twelve months, and nobody sends you a renewal invoice.

There are two things “lifetime” doesn’t cover, and it’s better to know them up front:

• It isn’t transferable. Most keys are tied to the first computer they activate. A lifetime license lasts for the life of that machine, not for every PC you’ll ever own.
• Security updates have an end date. Microsoft supports Office 2024 until October 2029 and Office 2021 until October 2026. Office 2019 and 2016 support ended on October 14, 2025. The software still runs afterward, but it stops receiving security fixes.

If you want the longest support window, Office 2024 is the version to pick. Compare options in our Microsoft Office range.

No, standard Office and Windows product keys can’t be moved to a new computer, because each one is tied to the first PC it activates. That applies to Office Professional Plus, Office Standard, standalone Word and Excel, and Windows keys, even if the old computer breaks.

Uninstalling Office or Windows from the old machine doesn’t release the activation either. Microsoft records the key against that hardware, so the new PC needs its own license.

If you already know you’ll replace your computer before long, there’s a better option. Account-bound products, labeled “Bind to your Microsoft account”, are linked to your Microsoft account instead of a single machine. You can reinstall them on another device by signing in to that account. Many Office for Mac editions work this way, and you’ll find them in our Office for Mac range.

When you do buy a new computer, check the product pages for a matching key, or email contact@officegsm.com and tell us what you had before. We’ll point you to the right edition so your files and workflow stay the same.

Yes, you can reinstall on the same computer and enter the same product key again after formatting the drive, upgrading Windows or swapping in a new hard drive or SSD.

Keep your product email, or sign in to your customer account on our site to find the key and download link again. Then install as you did the first time and enter the key when asked. In Windows 11 you’ll find this under Settings > System > Activation, and in Office under File > Account.

Sometimes online activation is refused after a reinstall, often with a message that the key has reached its activation limit (error 0xC004C020 is the usual one). That doesn’t mean the key is dead. It usually means Microsoft wants telephone activation:

1. Open the phone-activation screen. In Office go to File > Account > Change Product Key and choose “I want to activate the software by telephone”. In Windows press Win+R and type slui 4.
2. Send a clear screenshot of the Installation ID, plus your order number, to contact@officegsm.com.
3. We’ll help you get the Confirmation ID, or replace the key if needed.

Our Confirmation ID guide shows each screen. A replaced motherboard counts as a different computer.

You can install on exactly the number of computers stated on the product page and in your product email, such as 1 PC, 2 PCs or 5 PCs. A multi-activation key is simply one product key that’s valid for more than one of those activations.

Multi-PC packs are delivered as one or more keys, and each key lists how many activations it covers. For a 5 PC pack you might receive one key good for five computers, or two keys valid for 2 and 3. The total always matches what you paid for, and you enter the same key on each computer until its count is used up.

A few points that often cause confusion:

• Bundles aren’t packs. A bundle such as Windows 11 Pro plus Office 2024 includes one key per product for one computer. A second computer needs a second bundle.
• Single-PC keys stay single. Using a 1 PC key on a second machine won’t work, and it can trigger an activation error on the first.
• Online limits aren’t the end. If a multi-activation key is refused online, telephone activation with a Confirmation ID usually completes it. See our Confirmation ID guide.

Need more than a pack? Ask for a quote through our contact page.

Please install and activate your product key as soon as you can, ideally within a few weeks and no later than about three months after purchase. We guarantee the key at the time of delivery, but we can’t promise an unused key will still activate a year later.

The reason is on Microsoft’s side. Over time Microsoft may retire batches of keys, and a key that sat unused in an inbox for a long stretch can be caught by that. There’s no fixed countdown printed on your key, so the safe habit is simply to activate early.

If you’re buying ahead for a new computer that hasn’t arrived yet, that’s fine. Just plan to set it up within that window. And if you’re buying a multi-PC pack for a rollout, try to activate every seat in the same period rather than spreading them over a year.

What if an unused key fails anyway? Contact us. Send your order number and a screenshot of the error to contact@officegsm.com, and we’ll do our best to help. Orders within our 180-day money-back guarantee get a replacement key or a full refund, your choice, if we can’t get the key working.

MAK means Multiple Activation Key, an activation method used for Microsoft volume licensing. It is different from a retail license. An activation method does not by itself establish the rights to use, resell or transfer software.

A volume key must be used under the applicable licensing agreement. If the activation count is exceeded, contact the agreement administrator or Microsoft support; a limit should not be treated as something to bypass. Phone activation, when offered by Microsoft, does not create additional licensing rights.

Before purchase, ask OfficeGSM to confirm the channel and documentation for the specific product. If a delivered key appears inconsistent with the listing, send us your order number and the displayed license type so we can investigate.

We sell standalone Access and Outlook, along with standalone Word, Visio and Project, while Publisher comes as part of Office Professional Plus 2021 and earlier editions. Which option suits you depends on the apps you actually use.

Here’s how the suites break down:

• Office LTSC 2024 Professional Plus includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and Access. It doesn’t include Publisher, because Microsoft left Publisher out of the 2024 release.
• Office 2021 Professional Plus and earlier Professional Plus editions include Publisher as well as Access and Outlook.
• Standalone apps such as Word, Outlook and Access are a good fit if you only need one program and don’t want a full suite.

So if Publisher matters to you, pick Office 2021 Professional Plus or an earlier Professional Plus version. Keep in mind that Office 2021 support ended on October 13, 2026, while Office 2024 is supported until October 2029.

You’ll find the single apps in our Office products range and the full suites under Microsoft Office. Not sure which fits? Email contact@officegsm.com with the apps you need and we’ll suggest the right product.

To install Office 2024 Professional Plus or Standard, remove any other version of Office, run the installer from the download link in your order email, then open Word and enter your Office 2024 key under File > Account > Change Product Key. That’s the whole process, and it usually takes 15 to 20 minutes on a normal connection.

Office 2024 Professional Plus gives you Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and Access. Publisher isn’t part of the 2024 release, so if you rely on it you’ll need Office 2021 or an earlier Professional Plus edition.

1. Uninstall other Office versions first. Microsoft 365, Office 2021, 2019, 2016 and the trial that ships on many new laptops can’t live alongside Office 2024. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps, remove every Microsoft Office or Microsoft 365 entry and restart.
2. Use the download link in your email. This product isn’t redeemed at setup.office.com, which will just show “Service unavailable”.
3. Run the file. When you see “You’re all set”, installation is finished. There’s no second setup file to run.
4. Press the Windows key, type Word and open it. Close any sign-in pop-up.
5. Go to File > Account > Change Product Key (or Activate Product), type your key and follow the prompts until it says Product Activated.

Step-by-step guides with screenshots are on our download and activation guides page.

The Office installer never asks for a product key, so nothing is wrong. With Office 2024, 2021 and 2019 Professional Plus you install first and enter the key afterwards, inside any Office app. It surprises a lot of people because older software and most other programs ask for the key right at the start.

Here’s how to add your Microsoft Office product key once the installer has finished:

1. Press the Windows key, type Word and open it.
2. If a sign-in or “Let’s get started” window appears, close it.
3. Click File > Account, then Change Product Key or Activate Product, depending on which button Word shows.
4. Type the 25-character key from your order email, click Continue and follow the prompts.

You only need to do this once. Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and the other apps in the suite share the same license and activate at the same time.

Until you enter the key, Office runs in a short grace period. After that you’ll see a yellow “Product Activation Required” bar and the apps drop into read-only mode, where you can open files but not edit them. If the key is refused or you’re told there have been too many activations, our telephone activation guide covers the next step, and you can always email contact@officegsm.com for help.

Word and Excel are in the Start menu, not always on the desktop: press the Windows key and type Word or Excel, and the app should appear at the top of the results. The Office installer doesn’t always create desktop shortcuts, so a clean desktop after setup is perfectly normal.

A few tips that save time:

• Pin the apps you use. Right-click Word in the search results and choose Pin to taskbar or Pin to Start. Do the same for Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint.
• Don’t open Word from the Microsoft Store. The Store listing is the Microsoft 365 subscription app. If you install or open that one, it’ll ask you to sign in and buy a subscription, and your product key won’t work there.
• Check the full app list. Click Start, then All apps, and scroll to the W and E sections. The Office apps are listed individually rather than inside a folder.

If nothing shows up at all, the installation probably didn’t finish. Run the installer from your order email again and wait for the “You’re all set” message before closing it. A slow connection can make the download take a while, so give it time.

Still missing? Send a screenshot of Settings > Apps > Installed apps to contact@officegsm.com and we’ll tell you what happened.

If Office shows up as 2021 or Microsoft 365 after you installed Office 2024, leftover parts of an older installation are being picked up, and a clean removal followed by a fresh install fixes it. The same cause is behind installers that keep putting your old version back no matter how many times you run them.

1. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps and uninstall every Office or Microsoft 365 entry. Include the small ones people miss: OneNote, Teams, standalone Outlook and any language packs.
2. Download and run Microsoft’s official Office removal tool (the Office uninstall support tool, sometimes called SaRA). It clears out components that the normal uninstaller leaves behind. Restart when it’s done.
3. Run the installer from our download link again. Don’t sign in with a Microsoft account during setup, because that can pull a Microsoft 365 license back onto the PC.
4. Open Word and activate with your key under File > Account > Change Product Key.

To confirm what’s actually installed, open Word, go to File > Account and read the product name under Product Information. It should say Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024 or Office Standard 2024, depending on what you bought.

Yes, it’s safe to continue: the SmartScreen message is a generic Windows warning that appears for many installers downloaded from the internet, and it doesn’t mean the file is harmful. Our Office installers come from Microsoft’s official distribution. Windows simply shows the warning when it hasn’t seen a particular file often enough on its own to trust it automatically.

To get past the blue SmartScreen box:

1. Click the small More info link under the warning text.
2. A Run anyway button appears. Click it and the installer starts.

On Windows 11 you may instead see a message from Smart App Control, which has no Run anyway button. In that case:

1. Open Windows Security > App & browser control > Smart App Control.
2. Switch it to Off. Only do this if the installer is actually blocked, since Smart App Control is a useful layer of protection.
3. Restart the computer and run the installer again.

Third-party antivirus tools sometimes quarantine installers too. If yours does, restore the file from quarantine or pause protection for a few minutes while Office installs.

If you’d like us to confirm a file before you run it, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and a screenshot of the warning.

When Google Drive says it can’t scan the file for viruses, click Download anyway; Drive shows that message for every file above a certain size, and Office installers are large. It isn’t a sign that anything is wrong with the file itself.

If the download starts but never finishes, check the file name in your Downloads folder. A name ending in .crdownload (Chrome) or .partial (Edge and Firefox) means the download was interrupted and the file is incomplete. It won’t run properly, so:

1. Delete the unfinished file.
2. Start the download again from the link in your order email.
3. Leave the browser window open and avoid letting the PC go to sleep until it’s done.

A few things that often help with stubborn downloads:

• Use a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi, or move closer to the router.
• Try a different browser. If Chrome keeps failing, Edge or Firefox often succeeds.
• Pause any VPN, since some VPNs cut long downloads short.

If the link asks you to sign in, says “access denied” or doesn’t open at all, don’t worry. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll send you a fresh download link. You can also find your download link again in your customer account on our site.

Errors 30015-25 (1006), 30038-25 and the “can’t install because Microsoft 365 is installed” message all mean an existing Office or Microsoft 365 installation is blocking the new one, so removing it and restarting fixes the problem in most cases. Windows only allows one family of Office installations at a time, and it’s strict about it.

Here’s the fix:

1. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps and uninstall every Microsoft Office and Microsoft 365 entry, including trials, single apps like Outlook, and language packs.
2. If entries won’t uninstall or keep coming back, run Microsoft’s official Office uninstall support tool to clear the leftovers.
3. Restart the PC. Skipping the restart is the most common reason the error comes straight back.
4. Run our installer again from the link in your order email and activate under File > Account.

Visio 2024 and Project 2024 are a special case. They’re built to sit alongside Office 2024, and the installer may ask you to remove Microsoft 365 or an older Office version before it will continue. If you want to keep Microsoft 365, see the Visio and Project question on this page before installing anything.

Our standard Office download is the 64-bit version, and that’s the right choice for nearly every modern Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC. 64-bit Office handles large Excel workbooks and big files better, and it’s what Microsoft installs by default today.

There are only a few situations where the architecture matters:

• Visio and Project must match your Office. If you already have 64-bit Office, you need 64-bit Visio or Project. Mixing 32-bit and 64-bit Office products on one PC isn’t supported, and the installer will stop with an error.
• Old add-ins. Some older Excel or Access add-ins, and a few database drivers, only exist in 32-bit form. If your workplace uses one, check with whoever supports it before installing.
• Very old hardware. A PC running a 32-bit edition of Windows can only run 32-bit Office.

Not sure what you have? Open any Office app, go to File > Account > About Word (or About Excel), and the first line tells you whether it’s 32-bit or 64-bit. For Windows itself, check Settings > System > About and look at System type.

If you specifically need a 32-bit installer, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll provide one. Your product key works with either version.

Usually not on the same PC: Visio 2024 and Project 2024 are built to sit alongside Office 2024, and the installer may ask you to remove Microsoft 365 or an older Office version before it will continue. That catches people out, because it’s easy to assume any version of Visio will slot in next to whatever Office they already have.

What this means in practice:

• If your PC runs Office 2024, Visio 2024 and Project 2024 install without any trouble.
• If your PC runs Microsoft 365, Office 2021 or older, the Visio or Project 2024 installer may stop and tell you to uninstall those first.
• Architecture has to match too, so 64-bit Office needs 64-bit Visio or Project.

If you want to keep your Microsoft 365 subscription, please contact us before installing. Tell us which Office you currently have and we’ll suggest a compatible option or arrange an exchange for a version that fits your setup. Once a key is activated it can’t be refunded, so it’s much easier to sort this out first.

Email contact@officegsm.com or call +1 (347) 201-7406 on weekdays between 9:00am and 6:00pm Eastern. You can also browse standalone Visio and Project licenses in our Office products category.

To install Office 2021 or 2019 Professional Plus from an .img file, double-click the file so Windows opens it as a virtual drive, run Setup.exe, then activate in Word under File > Account. Windows 10 and 11 can open .img files on their own, so you usually don’t need any extra software.

1. Uninstall any other Office or Microsoft 365 version from Settings > Apps > Installed apps and restart.
2. Download the .img file from the link in your order email.
3. Double-click it. Windows mounts it as a new drive letter in File Explorer, showing a few folders and Setup.exe.
4. If double-clicking doesn’t open it, install the free 7-Zip or WinRAR, right-click the .img file and choose Extract. WinRAR works fine in its free trial, so there’s no need to buy it.
5. Run Setup.exe and wait until it finishes.
6. Open Word, go to File > Account > Activate Product and enter your Microsoft Office key.

If activation says the key has been used too many times, you’ll need telephone activation. Our Confirmation ID guide walks you through it, and we can help you get the Confirmation ID by email.

An Office 2010, 2013 or 2016 setup failure, including the “Office Setup Controller” error, is almost always caused by another Office product already on the PC, and removing it before you run setup again solves it. Even a single leftover app such as Outlook, or a trial that came with the computer, is enough to block the installer.

1. Open Control Panel > Programs and Features (on Windows 11 you can also use Settings > Apps > Installed apps).
2. Uninstall every Microsoft Office product listed, including Microsoft 365, standalone apps, language packs and proofing tools.
3. Restart the computer.
4. Run the Office installer again and let it finish.

Then activate with your product key:

• Office 2010: open Word and go to File > Help > Change Product Key.
• Office 2013 and 2016: open Word and go to File > Account.

These older versions are for Windows only. Keep in mind they no longer receive security updates from Microsoft: Office 2016 support ended on October 14, 2025, and 2010 and 2013 ended earlier. If you’re buying for a current Windows 10 or 11 PC, Office 2024 is the version supported the longest, until October 2029. You’ll find all versions in our Microsoft Office category.

Office 2024, Office 2021 and Office 2019 run on Windows 10 and Windows 11, and on Windows Server 2019 and newer, but they can’t be installed on Windows 7, 8 or 8.1. If you try, the installer stops with a message saying your operating system isn’t supported.

A couple of points worth knowing before you buy:

• Windows 10 support ended on October 14, 2025. Office still installs and works on Windows 10, but Windows itself no longer gets security updates. If your hardware meets the Windows 11 requirements (TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and a supported 64-bit processor), upgrading is a sensible step. Windows licenses are in our operating systems category.
• Office support dates differ by version. Office 2024 is supported until October 2029 and Office 2021 until October 2026. Office 2019 support ended on October 14, 2025.
• Older PCs. On Windows 7 or 8.1 the only options are older Office releases such as Office 2016 or earlier, which are no longer supported by Microsoft.

We don’t offer Office for Android phones or iPads. Those devices use Microsoft’s own mobile apps from the app stores. For a Mac, you’ll need a Mac edition of Office rather than a Windows one.

Not sure which version suits your PC? Email contact@officegsm.com with your Windows version and we’ll recommend one.

To install Office Home & Business for Mac, redeem your product key at setup.office.com while signed in to your Microsoft account, download the installer Microsoft gives you, and sign in to Word with that same account to activate. The same steps apply to any key described as “bind to your Microsoft account”, including some Windows editions.

1. Go to setup.office.com and sign in with your Microsoft account. If you don’t have one, you can create one for free with any email address, including Outlook or Hotmail.
2. Enter your product key. From this point the license is permanently linked to that Microsoft account.
3. Click Install, or go to account.microsoft.com and open Services & subscriptions to download the installer.
4. Run the installer, open Word and sign in with the same Microsoft account. Office activates on its own within a few seconds.

Write down which Microsoft account you used. You’ll need it every time you reinstall Office or set up a new computer, and it’s the first thing our team asks for if you contact contact@officegsm.com.

No Download button, or a “token already redeemed” message, means the key has already been linked to a Microsoft account, most often your own from the first time you entered it. An account-bound product key can only be redeemed once. After that, Office lives in the Microsoft account rather than in the key itself.

To get to your installer:

1. Go to account.microsoft.com and sign in with the Microsoft account you used when you redeemed the key.
2. Open Services & subscriptions.
3. Find your Office product in the list of products you’ve purchased and click Install.

If Office doesn’t appear there, you’re probably signed in to a different account. Many people have more than one, for example a personal Outlook address and an old Hotmail or work address. Sign out and try each one.

Can’t remember which account you used? Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number, and we can tell you the partially masked email address linked to your key. That’s usually enough to jog your memory. We can’t move a redeemed key to another account, so finding the original one is the way forward.

A “No license found” or “Activate Microsoft 365” message on a Mac almost always means Office isn’t signed in to the Microsoft account that holds your license, and signing out and back in with the right account fixes it. It often shows up after a macOS or Office update, which can reset the sign-in.

1. Open Word, click your name or the account icon in the top corner and sign out. Then sign in again with the exact Microsoft account that redeemed the key.
2. If the message is still there, download Microsoft’s License Removal Tool for Mac and run it. Then uninstall Office, reinstall it from account.microsoft.com and sign in again.
3. Check that your macOS is recent enough. Microsoft currently requires macOS 14 or later for Office updates on Mac. Older Macs, such as 2015 models limited to macOS Monterey, can’t run current builds, and Office 2016 for Mac is the compatible choice there. Contact us and we’ll help with an exchange.

Your license stays in your Microsoft account the whole time. Uninstalling or reinstalling Office doesn’t delete it or use it up.

If none of this helps, send a screenshot to contact@officegsm.com and we’ll take a look.

Yes, you can exchange it, as long as the key hasn’t been redeemed or activated yet; Windows and Mac editions of Office are different products and can’t be swapped on the same key. Windows installers are .exe or .img files that simply won’t run on macOS, and a Mac license can’t be used to activate Office on a Windows PC.

Here’s what to do:

1. Don’t try to enter the key on the wrong platform. Once a key is redeemed to a Microsoft account or activated, we can’t exchange or refund it.
2. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and tell us which computer you actually have.
3. We’ll swap your license for the matching edition. If the new edition costs a different amount, the price difference applies.

Mac versions of Office are listed in our Office for Mac category, and Windows versions are in the main Microsoft Office category. Product pages state the platform clearly, so a quick look before checkout saves the back-and-forth.

If you’ve got both a Mac and a Windows PC, one license won’t cover both. Each platform needs its own key. We’re happy to suggest the right pair if you tell us what you use.

Yes, an account-bound Office license can be moved to a new Mac or PC, because the license lives in your Microsoft account rather than on the old computer. That’s the main advantage of account-bound, or “bind”, keys over standard Professional Plus keys.

To move it:

1. On the old computer, open Word and sign out of your Microsoft account. If the old machine is broken or already gone, skip this step.
2. On the new computer, go to account.microsoft.com, sign in with the same Microsoft account and open Services & subscriptions.
3. Click Install next to your Office product, run the installer and sign in to Word with that account. It activates straight away.

The license covers one device at a time, so it’s meant for replacing a computer, not running Office on two machines at once. For a second computer you’ll need a second license.

Standard Office Professional Plus keys work differently. They’re tied to the first computer they activate on and don’t follow a Microsoft account. Moving one to new hardware usually means telephone activation, which our Confirmation ID guide explains.

If you’re unsure which type of key you have, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll check.

You fix error 0xC004C020 by switching from online activation to telephone activation and entering a Confirmation ID, because the message doesn’t mean your Office license is invalid. It only means Microsoft’s servers won’t activate that key over the internet, so the phone route is the way through. With our help it takes a few minutes.

1. Open Word and go to File > Account > Change Product Key. Enter your key and click Next. Always activate from here, not from the pop-up that appears when Office starts.
2. When the error shows up, click Back, pick “I want to activate the software by telephone” and click Next.
3. Choose your country. The wizard now shows an Installation ID: nine groups of seven digits.
4. Get your Confirmation ID. You can call the automated Microsoft number shown on screen, or email a clear screenshot of the Installation ID screen to contact@officegsm.com and our team will help you get it.
5. Type the Confirmation ID into boxes A to H and click Activate. Office should then read “Product Activated”.

A Confirmation ID gets rejected almost always because it was created for a different Installation ID than the one currently on your screen. Each Confirmation ID matches exactly one Installation ID, and that number changes more often than people expect.

Here’s what usually causes the mismatch, and how to fix it:

• The window was closed or the PC restarted. If you closed the telephone activation screen, restarted, or reinstalled Office, Windows generated a new Installation ID. The old Confirmation ID is now useless. Open the phone activation screen again and send us the current Installation ID.
• The Installation ID came from an old key. If we sent you a replacement key, the Installation ID has to be generated with that new key. Enter the latest key under File > Account > Change Product Key, choose telephone activation again, and use the fresh Installation ID.
• A typing slip. Check all eight groups, A to H, digit by digit. One missing or extra number is enough to fail.

If it still won’t take, email a screenshot of the full activation screen to contact@officegsm.com with your order number. We’ll check it against the key and get you a working Confirmation ID. Our Confirmation ID guide shows each screen.

It means Microsoft has blocked that particular product key, and the fix is a replacement key from us. You didn’t do anything wrong, and there’s nothing on your PC to repair. The key itself simply won’t activate anymore.

Here’s what to do:

1. Take a screenshot of the error message. On Windows, press Windows + Shift + S.
2. Email it to contact@officegsm.com along with your order number. You can also reach us by phone on weekdays at +1 (347) 201-7406.
3. We’ll send a new Office product key for the same order.
4. Open Word, go to File > Account > Change Product Key and enter the new key.
5. If Office asks for telephone activation, generate a new Installation ID with the new key and follow our Confirmation ID guide.

Keys that don’t activate are covered by our 180-day money-back guarantee, so if a replacement doesn’t solve it, you can choose a refund instead.

Office usually switches to “Product Activation Required”, “Unlicensed Product” or read-only mode because the key was never fully activated, or because something reset the license state. Your files are safe. It’s a licensing status problem, not a broken installation.

In most cases one of two things happened:

• Office was installed and the key was entered, but activation was never finished. Office then ran in its grace period, which lasts about 30 days, and started complaining once that ran out.
• A Windows upgrade, an Office reinstall, or signing in with a Microsoft account inside Office reset the license.

To get it activated again:

1. Open Word and go to File > Account > Change Product Key.
2. Enter your Office product key from your order email or your account on our site.
3. If online activation is refused, choose telephone activation and follow our Confirmation ID guide to enter a Confirmation ID.

If the key is rejected outright, email a screenshot and your order number to contact@officegsm.com. When it’s needed, we provide a replacement key for the same computer.

Office keeps asking for the product key because activation was never completed. Most often the activation pop-up was closed before the Confirmation ID step was finished, so Office still considers itself unlicensed and asks again at every launch.

It’s an easy fix:

1. Open Word and go to File > Account. Look at the status under Product Information.
2. If it doesn’t say “Product Activated”, click Change Product Key and enter your key.
3. If online activation fails, choose “I want to activate the software by telephone”, note the Installation ID, and get your Confirmation ID from the automated line or by emailing a screenshot to contact@officegsm.com.
4. Type the Confirmation ID in boxes A to H and click Activate.

Once that’s done, the prompts stop for good.

Our Confirmation ID guide has screenshots of every step.

This happens when the apps haven’t picked up the license yet, or when a second Office edition is installed next to yours. One Office Professional Plus product key licenses the whole suite, so you don’t need a separate key for Word, PowerPoint or Outlook.

Try this first:

1. Close every Office app, including Outlook, which often keeps running in the background.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Open Word and go to File > Account > Change Product Key.
4. Enter the same key once more. If telephone activation is requested, follow our Confirmation ID guide.

If the apps still show different statuses, check for a second copy of Office. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps and look for something like Office Standard, Microsoft 365 or a trial that came preinstalled with the PC. Two editions side by side confuse the licensing, and one app can end up tied to the other edition.

Uninstall the extra edition, restart, and activate again from Word. Still stuck? Email a screenshot of File > Account from each app to contact@officegsm.com and we’ll tell you exactly which piece doesn’t match.

That message means the Office edition on your computer doesn’t match your Office 2024 key. An Office 2024 Professional Plus key only works with the Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024 installer we send you, not with Microsoft 365, Home & Business or another edition that came with the PC.

Here’s how to fix it:

1. Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps and uninstall any Office or Microsoft 365 version that’s there.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Install Office using the official download link from your order email. You’ll also find it in your account on our site and in our download and activation guides.
4. Open Word, go to File > Account > Change Product Key and enter your key.
5. If Office asks for telephone activation, follow our Confirmation ID guide.

The same rule applies to Office 2024 Standard: the key only activates the Standard installer. If you’re not sure which one you bought, or you’d rather use a different version, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number. We’ll send the matching download link and key.

No, Office LTSC 2024 isn’t a subscription: it’s Microsoft’s perpetual, one-time purchase edition of Office 2024. LTSC stands for Long-Term Servicing Channel, and it’s the non-subscription version of Office 2024 Professional Plus. You pay once and it keeps working on the computer where you activated it.

Office LTSC 2024 Professional Plus includes:

• Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Outlook and OneNote
• Access

Publisher isn’t part of Office 2024. Microsoft dropped it from this release, so if you rely on Publisher, Office 2021 Professional Plus and earlier versions still include it.

You don’t need Microsoft 365 to use it, and it doesn’t expire. Microsoft supports Office 2024 with security updates until October 2029, which is longer than Office 2021 (October 2026). It runs on Windows 10 and Windows 11.

You can compare editions in our Microsoft Office category.

setup.office.com rejects your key because that page only works for Office products bound to a Microsoft account, and Professional Plus keys aren’t redeemed there. The error doesn’t mean your key is bad. You’re just using the wrong door.

Microsoft’s setup page is meant for account-bound products, such as Office for Mac, Office Home & Business and keys described as “bind to your Microsoft account”. Those get redeemed online and then downloaded from your Microsoft account.

These products work differently:

• Office 2024, 2021 and 2019 Professional Plus
• Office 2024 Standard
• Standalone Word or Excel 2024 for PC

For those, you install Office from the official download link in your order email, then activate inside the app:

1. Run the installer from our link and let it finish.
2. Open Word and go to File > Account > Change Product Key.
3. Enter your key. If online activation is refused, use telephone activation with our Confirmation ID guide.

Not sure which type you bought? Your order email says, or check the download and activation guides. You can also email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll tell you.

No, we don’t sell Microsoft 365 or Office 365 subscriptions. OfficeGSM sells perpetual licenses you pay for once: Office 2024, 2021, 2019, 2016 and older versions, plus standalone Word, Access, Outlook, Visio and Project.

A perpetual license works differently from a subscription. There’s no monthly or yearly renewal, and the software keeps working on the computer where you activated it. The trade-off is that you get the version you bought, not ongoing feature updates. Microsoft still ships security updates until that version’s support ends. For Office 2024, that’s October 2029.

If you’re choosing between versions, here’s the short version:

• Office 2024 Professional Plus is the newest, with support to October 2029.
• Office 2021 Professional Plus still includes Publisher, with support to October 2026.
• Office 2019 and 2016 reached end of support on October 14, 2025.

You can browse everything in our Microsoft Office category. If you own an old Office 365 account product that stopped working, email contact@officegsm.com. We’ll look at your order and let you know what we can offer.

We don’t take remote control of your computer, but we can help you by email every day and by phone on weekdays. For security reasons we don’t use tools like AnyDesk or TeamViewer. Instead, we guide you step by step using screenshots, which works just as well for activation problems.

How to reach us:

• Email: contact@officegsm.com, answered every day by real people.
• Phone: +1 (347) 201-7406, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern.
• Contact form: /contact-us/

The fastest way to get help is to send a screenshot of the exact screen where you’re stuck. To take one on Windows, press Windows + Shift + S, drag over the area, then paste it into your email. A photo of the screen from your phone is fine too, as long as the numbers are readable.

Our help center and Confirmation ID guide cover the most common steps.

Your Windows 11 Pro key usually fails with error 0xC004F050 because the computer is running Windows Home, and a Pro key can’t activate Home directly. The edition has to be switched to Pro first. The same applies to a Windows 10 Pro key on Windows 10 Home.

Check your edition before anything else:

1. Open Settings > System > About.
2. Scroll to Windows specifications and read the Edition line.

If it says Home, that’s your answer. Follow our steps for upgrading Windows 11 Home to Pro, which keeps your files and apps. It’s a two-stage process: switch the edition, then enter your Pro key.

If it already says Pro and the key is still refused, something else is going on. Send us:

• a screenshot of the error, including the code,
• a screenshot of the Windows specifications section,
• your order number.

Email it all to contact@officegsm.com and we’ll check the key. If it’s faulty, you get a replacement or a refund under our 180-day money-back guarantee.

You upgrade Windows 11 Home to Pro from Settings by entering a generic upgrade key first, then your Windows 11 Pro product key, and your files and programs stay where they are. There’s no reinstall. The whole Windows 11 Pro upgrade usually takes 5 to 10 minutes plus a restart. The same steps work for Windows 10 Home to Pro.

1. Go to Settings > Windows Update, install every available update and restart.
2. Open Settings > System > Activation. Under Upgrade your edition of Windows, click Change product key.
3. Enter the generic upgrade key from your order email. Windows switches to Pro and restarts.
4. After the restart, go back to Activation > Change product key and enter your Windows Pro product key.
5. Wait for the message “Windows is activated”.

If the Change product key button doesn’t appear, make sure you’re signed in as an administrator and Windows is fully up to date. Microsoft’s Windows 11 Installation Assistant can also perform the edition switch while keeping your files. Stuck on a screen? Email a screenshot to contact@officegsm.com.

It means Microsoft’s activation servers have already recorded that Windows license key on a different device, and the fix is to contact us for a check and, if needed, a replacement key. Errors 0xC004C008, 0xC004C020 and 0x803fa067 all point to the same thing.

What to send to contact@officegsm.com:

• a screenshot of the error message,
• your order number,
• a quick note on whether you’ve activated this key before, for example on an older PC.

If you haven’t activated the key before, we replace it right away with a new Windows activation key. Keys that don’t activate are covered by our 180-day money-back guarantee, so a refund is an option if you’d prefer it. Keys that were already activated can’t be refunded.

You can also call us on weekdays at +1 (347) 201-7406 between 9:00am and 6:00pm Eastern. Having the screenshot ready makes the call much quicker.

Not through a simple upgrade: there’s no direct edition switch from Windows Home to Pro for Workstations, Enterprise or the N editions. These editions need a clean installation of that exact edition, and then the key activates normally.

That’s different from the Home to Pro upgrade, which Windows handles from Settings without touching your files. A clean installation erases the drive, so back up your documents, photos and anything else you need first.

A few points that help:

• Windows 10 and Windows 11 keys of the same edition are interchangeable. A Windows 10 Pro for Workstations key activates Windows 11 Pro for Workstations, for instance.
• After the clean install, enter your key in Settings > System > Activation > Change product key.
• Windows 11 requires TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and a supported 64-bit processor.

If you bought the wrong edition and haven’t used the key yet, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and we’ll arrange an exchange for the right one. Most home users are better served by Windows 11 Pro, which you’ll find in our operating systems category.

Your Windows IoT Enterprise LTSC key is rejected because Evaluation copies of Windows don’t accept a license key until they’re converted to the full edition. The key is fine. The installation just isn’t in a state where it can take a key yet.

Evaluation installs are built for testing and expire after a set period. To use a paid license, the system has to be converted first. The conversion involves three general steps:

1. Adding the IoT Enterprise SKU files to C:\Windows\System32\spp\tokens\skus.
2. Resetting the Windows licensing service so it reads those files.
3. Entering your IoT Enterprise LTSC product key and activating.

Because it involves system files, we send the exact procedure by email rather than posting it here. Write to contact@officegsm.com with your order number and a screenshot of Settings > System > About showing the edition and version you’re running.

You can find the steps for other Windows editions in our download and activation guides.

You install Windows 11 on a blank PC by creating a bootable USB from the official Windows 11 ISO, installing Windows 11 Pro, and entering your key afterward in Settings. Your order email includes the official download link, and Microsoft’s Media Creation Tool works too.

1. On another computer, download the Windows 11 ISO from our link or run the Media Creation Tool.
2. Create a bootable USB stick of at least 8 GB. Everything on the stick is erased.
3. Boot the new PC from the USB and install Windows 11 Pro.
4. If setup asks for a product key, choose I don’t have a product key and continue.
5. Once you reach the desktop, open Settings > System > Activation > Change product key and enter your Windows 11 Pro key.

If activation fails, email a screenshot to contact@officegsm.com, or see the download and activation guides. For phone activation, run Windows + R, type slui 4, and follow our Confirmation ID guide.

Yes, activation normally survives a reinstall on the same PC, because it’s tied to the computer where you first activated the key. Our Windows keys are delivered digitally by email, so there’s no sticker, box or disc to keep track of.

How it works in practice:

• Each order gets its own key. Multi-PC packs, such as Windows 11 Pro for 5 PCs, come with a key and a stated number of activations.
• Reinstalling Windows on the same hardware usually reactivates on its own once you’re online. If it doesn’t, enter the same key under Settings > System > Activation > Change product key.
• Replacing the motherboard counts as a new device, and Microsoft treats that as a new activation.

If the key is refused after a legitimate reinstall on the same computer, email a screenshot of the error and your order number to contact@officegsm.com. We’ll look at it and help you get Windows activated again. You can also call us on weekdays at +1 (347) 201-7406.

A Windows Server license key is usually refused because the server is running the Evaluation edition or a different edition from the key, and both are fixable in a few minutes. Most Server tickets we see come down to one of three things, so check them in this order before assuming the key is bad.

• Evaluation edition installed. An evaluation install won’t take a retail key until you convert it. Open Command Prompt as administrator and run dism /online /set-edition:ServerStandard /productkey:YOUR-KEY /AcceptEula. Use ServerDatacenter instead if you bought Datacenter. The server restarts twice and comes back activated.
• Edition mismatch. A Standard key won’t activate a Datacenter install, and the reverse is also true. Open Server Manager > Local Server and look at the edition listed there.
• Settings page fails. Activate from the command line instead: run slmgr /ipk YOUR-KEY, then slmgr /ato, and wait for the confirmation dialog.

If it still fails after that, email contact@officegsm.com with your order number, a screenshot of the error and the edition shown in Server Manager. We’ll look at it and replace the key if that’s what it needs.

Your key activated the host only because each virtual machine is a separate Windows installation that needs its own activation, even though your Windows Server license covers it. That catches a lot of admins out, so you’re not alone.

Here’s how Windows Server licensing works for VMs. Windows Server Standard covers the licensed physical host plus two virtual machines. Datacenter covers an unlimited number of VMs on the licensed host. In both cases the guests don’t pick up activation from the host on their own. You activate each VM the same way you’d activate a physical server, from Settings or with slmgr /ipk followed by slmgr /ato.

What to do next:

1. Confirm which edition you bought, Standard or Datacenter, so you know how many VMs your license allows.
2. Check the edition installed inside each VM matches the host license.
3. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and the number of VMs you’re running. We’ll send the activation keys you need for those virtual machines.

You need enough core licenses to cover every physical core in the server, with a minimum of 16 cores per server even if the machine has fewer. That’s the basic rule of Windows Server licensing for both Standard and Datacenter, and it’s based on physical cores, not threads or virtual processors.

Start by counting the cores. Multiply the number of physical CPUs by the cores on each one. You can find this in the CPU vendor’s spec sheet or in Task Manager on the Performance tab, where “Cores” is listed separately from “Logical processors”.

Then combine packs to reach that total:

• A single 8-core or 16-core server needs one 16-core license, because 16 is the minimum.
• A server with two 16-core CPUs (32 cores) needs a 32-core license.
• A 48-core server needs three 16-core packs, or one 32-core plus one 16-core pack.

Remember that the core count covers the server itself. CALs for users or devices are licensed separately. If you’re unsure, send your server’s CPU configuration to contact@officegsm.com and we’ll confirm exactly which Windows Server license fits before you order. You can browse the options in Windows Server.

If your Windows Server or SQL Server download link won’t open, or it asks you to sign in to an account you don’t have, email us your order number and we’ll send a fresh download link. You don’t need to buy anything again, and your product key is still valid.

Links expire or get blocked now and then, and some browsers or company networks stop large file downloads without much explanation. Before you write, try the link in a private browser window or on another network. That fixes it more often than you’d think.

For Windows Server there’s also a second route. You can download the official ISO from the Microsoft Evaluation Center, install it, and then activate it with the key we sent you. The catch is that the Evaluation Center installs an evaluation edition, so you’ll need to convert it first with dism /online /set-edition:ServerStandard /productkey:YOUR-KEY /AcceptEula (or ServerDatacenter for Datacenter). The server restarts twice and then shows as activated.

Send your order number to contact@officegsm.com and tell us which product you need, SQL Server or Windows Server, and the edition. Our download and activation guides cover the install steps.

OfficeGSM offers a 180-day money-back guarantee: if your product key doesn’t activate and our team can’t fix it, you get a replacement key or a full refund, your choice. We stand behind every license we sell, and the guarantee exists so you’re never left with a key that doesn’t work.

To keep it fair for everyone, a few conditions apply:

• Let us try a fix first. Send a screenshot of the error to contact@officegsm.com. Most activation problems, like “product key not working” messages or error 0xC004C020, are sorted out with a single reply, often through telephone activation and a Confirmation ID.
• Used keys can’t be refunded. A key that’s been successfully activated, or redeemed to a Microsoft account, isn’t eligible for a refund.
• The 180-day window. Refund requests need to be made within 180 days of purchase. We keep helping with activation after that, but the order is no longer refundable.

Once a refund is approved, we process it in about 2 business days, and your bank may take up to 5 business days to show it. The full terms are on our refund policy page.

Yes, you can exchange a product you ordered by mistake, as long as the key hasn’t been used. It happens more often than you’d expect: someone orders Windows when they meant Office, or picks the PC version of Office when they’re on a Mac.

The one thing that matters is that the key is still unused. If it hasn’t been entered and activated, or redeemed to a Microsoft account, we can swap it.

Here’s how the exchange works:

1. Don’t try the key on your computer “just to see”. Leave it untouched.
2. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and the exact product you actually need, for example “Office 2024 for Mac” or “Office 2021 Professional Plus for Windows”.
3. We exchange the order and settle any price difference, either charging or refunding the gap.

If you’d rather not exchange and just want your money back for the unused key, tell us that instead and we’ll refund it under our refund policy. Not sure which product is right? Tell us your computer and what you need to do, and we’ll point you to the correct one. The Office for Mac and Microsoft Office categories are a good place to compare.

Yes, reply with both order numbers and we’ll refund the duplicate order, as long as its key hasn’t been used. Double orders are common, usually after a checkout page reloads, a payment seems to hang, or someone clicks Pay a second time.

The same goes if you bought more licenses than you need, say a multi-PC pack when you only have one computer, or two copies of the same Office product key. We refund the unused part of the purchase.

To sort it out quickly:

1. Find both order confirmation emails, or check the orders in your customer account on our site.
2. Email contact@officegsm.com with both order numbers and tell us which one you want to keep.
3. Don’t activate the extra key. A key that’s been activated or redeemed to a Microsoft account can’t be refunded.

After we approve the refund, it’s processed in about 2 business days. Your bank or card issuer may then take up to 5 business days before it shows on your statement.

Refunds are processed within about 2 business days after we approve them, and your bank or card issuer can take up to 5 business days to show the money on your statement. We confirm by email as soon as the refund has been sent from our side, so you’ll know when the clock starts.

The timing splits into two parts. The first part is ours. Once our team has checked the order and approved the refund, we process it within roughly 2 business days. The second part depends on your bank. Card networks and banks each have their own processing times, and some show a pending credit sooner than others. Weekends and public holidays don’t count as business days, which is why a refund approved on a Friday can feel slower.

The refund goes back to the same payment method you used, whether that was Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay, Google Pay or another card. We can’t send it to a different card or account.

If more than 5 business days have passed since our confirmation email and you still don’t see it, check with your bank first, then email contact@officegsm.com with your order number. We can share the refund details your bank may ask for. The full terms are on our refund policy page.

No, please contact us first, because we can fix activation problems or issue a refund directly, and that’s much faster than a bank dispute. A chargeback usually takes weeks to resolve, while most key problems are solved within one email.

There’s also a practical reason. Once a dispute is open, the payment is frozen. That means we can’t refund the order ourselves until the bank closes the dispute, even if we agree you should get your money back. So opening a chargeback can actually delay your refund.

Here’s what to do instead:

1. Email contact@officegsm.com with your order number and a screenshot of the error, or call +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern.
2. Let us try a fix. Many “Office activation error” or “Windows 11 Pro key not working” cases just need telephone activation with a Confirmation ID.
3. If we can’t get it working, you choose a replacement key or a full refund under our 180-day money-back guarantee.

If you’ve already opened a dispute, tell us. We’ll help where we can once it’s closed. See our refund policy for the full terms.

You can reach OfficeGSM support by email at contact@officegsm.com every day of the week, or by phone at +1 (347) 201-7406 Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern. Real people answer both, not a bot, and every message gets a reply.

Email is the best choice for most problems, especially activation errors, because you can attach screenshots and we can read the exact error code. Replying directly to your product delivery email works too, since it keeps your order details in the same thread. We answer email seven days a week. Complex cases, like a Windows Server edition mismatch or a telephone activation that needs a Confirmation ID, can take a little longer to finish.

Phone is handy if you’d rather talk it through during business hours. Just have your order number ready.

You can also use the form on our contact page.

Many answers are also in our help center and download and activation guides if you’d like to try first.

Send your order number, the email you used at checkout, and a screenshot of the exact error, and we can usually fix your product key problem in a single reply. The more we can see, the fewer questions we need to ask back.

Here’s the full checklist:

• Your order number and the email address used at checkout. If you’re writing from a different address, say so.
• The product involved, for example Office 2024 Professional Plus or Windows 11 Pro, and what you’ve already tried.
• A screenshot of the exact error. On Windows press Windows+Shift+S. On a Mac press Cmd+Shift+4.
• For Office: a screenshot of File > Account showing the installed version. If Office asks for telephone activation, also send the Installation ID screen, and keep that screen open.
• For Windows: your edition and version from Settings > System > About.

Please keep everything in one email thread rather than starting a new one each time. We can see the full history and answer faster. Send it all to contact@officegsm.com, and see our Confirmation ID guide for the phone activation steps.

First check your spam or junk folder, because that’s where a missing reply from our team usually ends up, and then confirm you wrote to contact@officegsm.com. We answer every message, so a gap almost always means the reply got filtered or the email went to the wrong address.

A few things to check:

• Spam, junk and promotions folders. Gmail and Outlook sometimes file support replies there, especially when they include links to a download or activation guide.
• The address you used. Make sure it’s contact@officegsm.com, and add it to your contacts so future replies land in your inbox.
• The email you ordered with. If you wrote from a different address, our reply may have gone there.

Please don’t send the same request several times. It doesn’t speed things up, and it can push your thread further back in the queue because each new email looks like a fresh ticket. One email with your order number, a screenshot of the error and what you’ve tried is all we need.

If you’d like to talk to someone, call +1 (347) 201-7406, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm Eastern. You can also use our contact form.