FIX – Windows 11 Setup Failed to Validate Product Key

Many users have reported facing the Windows 11 Setup Failed to Validate Product Key error when performing an in-place upgrade on Windows 11. This error generally occurs when temporary files, third-party antivirus, or missing configuration files interfere with the PC.

If you are facing this issue and cannot perform the in-place upgrade, you can prefer to follow the steps in this article. In this article, we will be discussing how you can fix Windows 11.

Also Read- Fix Windows 11 Startup Folder Not Working

Fix Windows 11 Setup Failed To Validate Product Key

Below are various ways to fix the Windows 11 setup that failed to validate the product key.

1. Disable Third-Party Antivirus

The first step to fixing a Windows 11 setup that failed to validate the date product key is disabling third-party antivirus on your PC. Third-party antivirus often conflicts with the proper functioning of your PC, and you may encounter this issue. Therefore, you should try disabling the antivirus installed on your PC and then check whether you encounter this issue.

If it doesn’t work, you can temporarily remove the antivirus from your PC and check whether you are still encountering it. If you still encounter the issue, third-party antivirus software is not the reason for this error. You can refer to the next troubleshooting step in this article.

2. Perform Disk Cleanup

Another thing that you can try doing is performing disk cleanup. To perform a disk cleanup, follow the steps given below:-

1. Open the Start Menu and search for Disk Cleanup and open it.
2. Select the system drive you need to clean in the Disk Cleanup window. Select the drive and click OK.
3. After doing so, click on Clean up system files and wait for the process to finish.
4. Now, check the checkbox for all the files you need to clean and click on OK.
5. After doing so, try performing the in-place upgrade again.

3. Create Missing Config File

You may also face issues if the config file goes missing. Therefore, you should try manually creating the missing config file, and they will check whether you still face the issue. To create the missing config files, follow the steps given below-

1. Open the Start Menu, and search for Notepad. Right-click on it and then click on Run as administrator to run the application with administrative privileges.
2. In the Notepad, copy and paste the following text-

   • [EditionID]
     [Channel]
     Retail 
     [VL]
     0

3. Now save the file with the name ei.cfg and Copy the file you created.
4. Now, head to the official page of Windows 11 and download Windows 11 ISO file from here.
5. Open the File Explorer and head to where the Windows 11 ISO file was downloaded.
6. Extract the Windows 11 ISO file to the folder.
7. Now, open the extracted folder, head to the Source folder, and paste the copied file.
8. After doing so, run the Setup file inside the folder and you should no longer face the issue.

Bottom Line

We have discussed troubleshooting steps to fix the Windows 11 setup that failed to validate the product key error in this article. If you are facing the Windows 11 setup failed to validate the product key and are looking for a way to fix it, you can follow this guide. Following the above steps, you will be all to fix the issue you have been facing.