Activating VMs Under Windows Server 2022 Standard

Question

Hi all,

Sadly, I can't seem to figure out what is going wrong here. Here is my build details. Nothing really special.

1. Dell 740xs with Windows Server 2022 STANDARD installed. Hyper-V Role assigned.
2. Two Windows 2022 Standard VMs installed.
3. External vSwitch created on single adapter. Both VMs connected to switch
4. Host and VMs both appear to have internet access.
5. Static IPs have been assigned to the two VMs and the Host
6. The correct Key for the servers seems to be picked up. ( I did not have to enter for installation).
7. This activation is being done over Starlink connection. latency doesn't look too bad 40-50ms.
8. Since this not a Datacenter edition, AVMA will not work
9. Standard Edition will allow you to run two registered Windows VMs with the same key.

When i try to activate the server. I get the following:

When I try running the Troubleshooter feature, I get the following:

What I'm seeing is the following in event viewer:

What I've tried:

1. Rebuilt VMs
2. Played with the configuration on the vSwitches. As you guys know this is pretty limited and all I really should need is Internet to activate
3. Port 1688 appears to be open and is not currently blocked.
4. I have tried the usual attempts at DISM commands including installing a Eval version of the server and upgrading to standard. That version would not register as well. I have used DISM to remove and re-enter the key on two VM installs.

Any help would be great guys.

Much appreciated!

Answer 1

Hello  getbent(2)，

Thank you for posting in Microsoft Community forum.

It sounds like you've been quite thorough in your attempts to troubleshoot the issue. Here are a few additional steps and considerations that might help:

1. Ensure Time Synchronization:
   • Make sure both the host and the VMs have the correct date and time.
   • Synchronize them with an internet time server. Incorrect time settings can cause activation failures.
2. Check Network Configuration:
   • Verify that your VMs can reach the Microsoft activation servers. You can do this by attempting to access a few Microsoft websites from within the VM's browser.
   • Make sure there are no DNS issues. Use nslookup or ping to confirm DNS resolution is working properly.
3. Review Activation Service:
   • Verify that the Windows Activation Service is running. You can do this by going to Services.msc and ensuring the Software Protection service is set to automatic and is running.
4. Check for Firewall or Proxy Issues:
   • Ensure that outbound TCP traffic on ports 80 and 443 are not blocked.
   • If there is a proxy or firewall performing deep packet inspection, it might be interfering with the activation process.
5. Activation via Command Line:
   • Sometimes, activation might work better via command line. Open an elevated Command Prompt and run:

     
          slmgr.vbs /ipk <your-product-key> 
     
          slmgr.vbs /ato 
     
     

6. KMS Activation:
   • If you have access to a KMS server, you might consider configuring your VMs to use that for activation. Check out the documentation for the correct commands to set this up, if applicable.
7. Check Activation Logs:
   • The Event Viewer logs you referenced should give you more detailed error codes. Look these up to get more specific guidance on the issue.
   • Check C:\Windows\Logs\SoftwareProtectionPlatform for detailed activation logs.

It sounds like you have the right to use the VMs under your Standard Edition license, so the problem likely lies in communication or configuration rather than licensing validity. Good luck!

I hope the information above is helpful.

If you have any question or concern, please feel free to let us know.

Best Regards,

Haijian Shan

Answer 2

same issue have you fix this?

Answer 3

How to activate Windows Sever 2022 Standard

Steps

Powershell: as admin 

	dism /online /set-edition:serverstandard /productkey:xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx /accepteula 

	reboot 

Powershell: as admin 

	dism /online /set-edition:serverstandard /productkey:xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx /accepteula 

	opem cmd: as admin 

		slmgr /ipk xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx 

Search: 

	activation settings 

	Chage key: 

		xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx 

Have a great day....