Vista Tutorial - Reduced Functionality Mode

**Brink** · **METHOD ONE:**

How to Get Out of Reduced Functionality Mode in Vista

Information

This will show you how to get out of Reduced Functionality Mode if you did not activate Vista within the 30 day activation trial period and the period has expired, Vista determines or thinks that it is installed on a different computer than it was originally activated on, or you have a non-genuine version of Vista. For more information, see: Microsoft Help and Support: KB925582 Article and Genuine Microsoft Software

WARNING

Microsoft no longer provides support for OEM copies of Vista. If you have one of these, then you must contact the OEM, instead of Microsoft in this tutorial, to activate your OEM Vista. OEM contact information should be included in the documentation that came with your computer or OEM Vista installation CD/DVD package.

RELATED LINKS:

METHOD ONE:
With Vista SP1 Installed

NOTE

For more information, see: Windows Genuine Advantage : Taking the next step with Windows Vista SP1

1. Whe you logon to Vista, you will see this message with a window with the options below if Vista is running in reduced functionality mode. To use Vista again, select the option (see table below) in the window that you want to do. (See screenshot below table)
NOTE: You will have to wait 15 seconds for the Activate Later option to not be grayed out.
Option Description
Activate now This will attempt to activate Vista now. For more on activation, see: How to Activate Vista Normally and by Phone Activation
Activate later This will take you to the desktop again, but with reduced functions and features available in Vista until you activate Vista.

2. If you click on Activate Later, then you will notice that you will have a message in the lower right corner of the desktop that says Windows Vista ™ Build 6001 This copy of Windows is not genuine.
A) Features like DreamScene will not longer function until you activate Vista. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: DreamScene is only available for the Vista Ultimate edition. For more about DreamScene, see: How to Install and Use DreamScene in Vista

METHOD TWO:
Without Vista SP1 Installed

1. You will see this message with a window with the options below at the startup of Vista if Vista is running in reduced functionality mode. To use Vista again, select the option in the window that will best resolve the problem. See the table below the screenshot for a description of each option.
WARNING: If you click on the Cancel button, you will be taken to the logon screen. However, after you logon, you will be taken back to this window.

Option Description
Activate Windows online now If you did not activate Windows within the 30-day activation period, or you typed a valid product key but might have ignored previous activation notifications, select this option to activate Windows on the Internet.
Access your computer with reduced functionality If you need to buy another product key, or you’re running a version of Windows that was detected as non-genuine and you did not activate Windows within the 30-day activation period, select this option to go to a website where you can buy a new product key. You can also use this option to extend the 30-day activation period. (See step 1 below)
Retype you product key If you mistyped your product key, or have not yet typed a product key, select this option.
Show me other ways to activate If you did not activate Windows within the 30-day activation period, or you typed a valid product key but might have ignored previous activation notifications, select this option to activate Windows with a modem or by phone. Also select this option if you made a hardware change that requires activating Windows again and you did not activate Windows within the allotted 3-day activation period. See: How to Activate Vista Normally and by Phone Activation
2. Click on Access your computer with reduced functionality.
NOTE: This option will get you out of the Reduced Functionality mode for now and extend you trial period to 30 more days so you can activate Vista later.

3. This will open Internet Explorer.

4. Check the Do not show me the warning for this program again box. (See screenshot below)

5. Click on the Allow button in the IE Security Warning prompt.

6. Type C:\ into the address bar and press Enter. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: This will open a Windows Explorer window.

7. Navigate to C:\Windows\System32 (See screenshot below)

8. Scroll down until you find the file cmd.exe.

9. Right click on cmd.exe and click Run as administrator.
NOTE: This will open a elevated command prompt window.

10. Click on the Continue button in the UAC prompt.

11. In the command prompt, type slmgr -rearm and press Enter. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: This will only work if you have not already did this 3 times, or installed the Vista SP1 (Service Pack). If you have, you will receive a denied error.

12. It will take a few moments, but you will hear a ding and get a pop-up success prompt soon. (See screenshot below)
NOTE: If you do not see it, then minimize the IE7 window to be able to.

13. Click on OK.

14. Click on the Cancel button on the window in the example at the top. (See screenshot below step 1)
NOTE: This will log you off and take you back to the logon screen.

15. In the logon screen, click on the red box arrow at the bottom right corner to expand it. (See screenshot below)

16. Click on Restart.

17. When the computer restarts, you will see another window with these options:
NOTE: Choose the option you want to do. See the table below the screenshot for a description of each option.

Option Description
Activate windows online now This will attempt to activate Vista now. For more on activation, see: How to Activate Vista Normally and by Phone Activation
Ask me later This will take you to the desktop again.
* You will have 30 days, or how long it gives you, to activate Vista. For how, see: How to Activate Vista Normally and by Phone Activation .
* If you want to extend the trial period further, then see: How to Extend Vista Trial Time for Up to 120 Days

That's it,
Shawn

**sidney1st** · 05-08-2008

Post SP1, i think it would be a good idea to add what Alex Kochis wrote in his blog (MSDN) about WGA.
WGA post SP1

Sid.

**Brink** · 05-08-2008

Thank you Sid.

Done.

**dmex** · 05-14-2008

Hey Shawn, When in Reduced functionality mode its possible to bring the entire desktop up aswell...

1. Click on Access your computer with reduced functionality.
-This will open Internet Explorer.
2. press alt and click File > open and type explorer.exe
3. click OK when asked if IE can open the file in a new window
4. then click Run on the File Download Window

You then have access to the entire desktop and all the programs/files...Just dont close the activation Window and you can keep using the entire desktop for awile.

Steven

**Brink** · 05-14-2008

Thank you Steven.

JaakkoA · 05-18-2008

Does not work.

After the rearm command this is what it says: C:\Windows\system32\slmgr.vbs<303, 9> <null>: 0xC004E017

Please I need help, my computer was working just fine yesterday and I have a real key. I have vista home premium 32-bit. My email is <EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED by Brink> if anybody has any advice. When I tried to use my key to activate it gives this error code: 0xC004F050 When I tried to activate through internet it says the key is already in use (by the same computer) When I tried phone activation the field in step 2 where there should be number codes in empty.

**Brink** · 05-18-2008

Hi JaakkoA,

Double check to make sure that you entered the product key number in correctly.

From: How to troubleshoot Volume Activation error codes on Windows Vista-based computers

	Quote:
	Error code 0xC004F050 Symptom When you try to use KMS, a KMS client, or a MAK to activate one or more computers, you may receive the following error message: 0xC004F050 The Software Licensing Service reported that the product key is invalid. Cause This issue may occur if the KMS key is not entered correctly. Also, this issue may occur if the key for a beta version of the operating system has been entered when you are using the release version of the operating system. Workaround To work around this issue, install the appropriate KMS key on the corresponding version of Windows. Verify that the key is entered correctly. If you copy and then paste the key, make sure that em dashes (—) are not substituted for en dashes (-) in the key.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

JaakkoA · 05-18-2008

I have checked and tried my product key for like about 20 times but the activation does not work and I get that error always. I have used this computer half year. This same thing has happened to me a few times before but in the first time the product key worked and next time after I restarted my computer the activation requirement was mysteriously gone. I have the real version and key but it does not work, I have never had any beta version.

Why can't I rearm my activation period??

And is there any good reason why in the phone activation thing all I see is the blank field where there should be numbers?

Nothing seems to work I hate this. Vista shut me out of my own computer.

**Brink** · 05-18-2008

JakkoA,

You might try doing a System Restore using a restore point dated before this happened, then check to make sure that your Vista is activated before you enter the Reduced Functionality Mode again.

JaakkoA · 05-18-2008

	Quote:	Brink
	You might try doing a System Restore using a restore point dated before this happened, then check to make sure that your Vista is activated before you enter the Reduced Functionality Mode again.

How do I do this? The last thing I want is to loose all the data I have stored in the computer.