Unable to activate Windows following backup and restore

[jmt356]

I backed up a hard drive running Windows 10 on it and restored it to a second laptop using ShadowProtect. After I restored the image to the second laptop, a faint message appears on the bottom right of the screen of the second laptop that states:

"Activate Windows
Go to Settings to activate Windows"

When I go to settings and try to activate Windows I am unable to. I receive the message, "We weren't able to activate Windows on this device. You can activate this device by going to the Store and purchasing a genuine copy of Windows." I don't want to buy another license. I have many. I just want the second laptop to be imaged off of the image of the first. Is there no way to do this by entering the license number of the laptop that the image was taken from?

Isn't the idea of backup and restore software like ShadowProtect that you can take an image and restore it to another disk without these issues? In the past, I have never had Windows activation issues like this in the past when restoring an image to another laptop. I wonder if it is related to Windows 10.

Also, I am unable to set a folder in Windows File Explorer to display my items as a list. There are no options under View | Layout. I suspect it is related to the fact that Windows does not seem to believe my version of Windows is activated.

[HansV]

You can't use the same license key on two computers simultaneously.

[jmt356]

I don't understand. I have always done this. Whenever I buy a new computer, I restore the image to a new laptop. I keep the old laptop around as a backup as well. I never had a problem with this.

What is the proper solution? Am I supposed to disable Windows on the old laptop after I restore the image to a new laptop?

I basically want two identical laptops so that I can seamlessly shift from one to the other in the event of a crash or other disaster.

[HansV]

I think you'll need two licenses for this. But perhaps someone who knows more about Windows can provide more clarity.

[Jay Freedman]

This is probably not related to JMT's issue, but there is an acknowledged bug in the most recent Windows Insider build 17063 that presents the same "activation required" message even though a valid license is present. It's in the Windows Blog article, near the bottom under "Known Issues" marked "Added 12/21".