Microsoft Office Activation Error 0x80072f8f

When attempting to activate Microsoft Office, you may encounter an error:

An Unspecified Error has occurred. Your request cannot be processed at this time. Please try again later (0x80072f8f).

Resolution Steps:

  1. Verify date and time are set correctly on the computer
    1. right click the date/time in the taskbar
    2. click on "Change date and time settings"
    3. To change the date, click the black left and right arrows to move to the correct month. Then select the date you want. To change the time, click the up and down arrows below the clock. Click OK when the date and time are correct.
    4. Once Date and Time have been corrected, retry activating Office
  2. Verify Internet connectivity
    1. While MSN and Google may open, try navigating to a site like: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/
    2. If you cannot open Microsoft technet sites, troubleshoot your network connection issues
    3. Once network/internet connectivity issues are resolved, retry activating Office
  3. Reset your TCP/IP Stack
    1. Click Start
    2. Type in Search box  Command
    3. Right click Command and select Run as Administrator
    4. Enter these one at a time (or copy and paste) and hit enter after each
      1. ipconfig /flushdns
      2. nbtstat -R
      3. nbtstat -RR
      4. netsh int reset all
      5. netsh int ip reset
      6. netsh winsock reset
    5. retry activating Office
  4. Last Ditch Effort - Activate Office by using the automated telephone system