Having to Reactivate Office 365 application License every day after 25 hours on a Mac Pro.

Question

Having to Reactivate Office 365 application License every day after 25 hours on a Mac Pro.

Hobson, Ronald C, Jr., 'Ron' 0

I have to reactivate my Office 365 application License on my Mac Pro every 24 hours. (School Account)

Solutions already tried:

Updated Mac Pro to the latest OS

Checked Keychain Access for Office 365 credentials

Uninstalled Office 365 and reinstalled it

Updated the installed applications

Updated all Office 365 applications to the latest versions (MAU)

The online Office 365 applications are functioning well.

0 comments

2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Jayden-P 2,760 Independent Advisor

Hi @Hobson, Ronald C, Jr., 'Ron'

To better understand the issue, could you please let me know:

Which Microsoft 365 subscription/license are you using? (For example: Microsoft A1, A3, A5, etc.) Using this link to check: https://portal.office.com/account/?ref=Harmony#subscriptions
What exactly happens when Office asks you to reactivate every 24 hours? Do you receive any error message or error code? If so, please share the exact wording.
Are the Office applications entering read-only/view-only mode, or do you see a message indicating that most features are disabled and you need to activate Office?

The exact activation message and your subscription type will help me determine the next troubleshooting steps.

Hobson, Ronald C, Jr., 'Ron' 0 Reputation points

2026-08-31T16:45:10.3733333+00:00
The user has an A5 License. This issue started occurring after we fixed the "Unknown Error 0x0 / License Not Found" issue back in July 2026, but we were left with this issue.

The Office applications entering view-only mode.

Applications state to Activate

Screenshot 2026-08-31 123909.png
Jayden-P 2,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-31T16:53:19.8566667+00:00

You mentioned macOS is the latest right? Is it macOS 26?

Can you please also provide your Office app version? Check this by open any Office apps (e.g Word) > About Word.

The 0x0 error can occur if the device doesn't meet the minimum requirements required after Microsoft's licensing certificate update on July 13, 2026. To continue using Microsoft 365 apps normally, the Mac must be running macOS 12 (Monterey) or later and Microsoft 365 version 16.83 or later. Devices that cannot be updated to these minimum requirements may experience licensing-related issues or reduced functionality. It could be due to an old credential stored on the Mac during 0x0 error that caused this behavior.

If all the requirements are met, you can try License removal tool

Then try signing in again.
Hobson, Ronald C, Jr., 'Ron' 0 Reputation points

2026-08-31T17:04:20.5433333+00:00

I've used the license removal tool and tried reinstalling Office 365

I'm using the latest macOS update, Tahoe

The 0x0 error has already been fixed since July.

The Office applications are entering view-only mode after 24 hours of activation.

Opening all applications after 24 hours states to Activate License.
Jayden-P 2,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-31T17:11:08+00:00

This is an unexpected behavior.

As a last troubleshooting steps, please try creating a new Mac profile. Try signing in and wait around 24 hours to see if the reactivation appears again. If not, that mean the old Mac profile is having issue.

This link is shared by community members for your convenience. It points to a third-party site that is not managed or verified by Microsoft. I can’t guarantee the quality, safety, or suitability of any content or software found there.

If the issue persists, please open a support ticket via Admin Center. The support team will be able to help you further.

Answer 2

Since Office for the web works and the Mac apps lose activation daily, the most relevant supported fix is to fully clear the local Office activation state and reactivate.

Quit all Office apps.
Run the License Removal Tool to remove existing Office license files on the Mac.
Open Spotlight Search and open Keychain Access.
Delete these entries if present:
- Microsoft Office Identities Cache 3
- Microsoft Office Identities Settings 3
- Microsoft Office Ticket Cache
Restart the Mac.
Open any Microsoft 365 app and sign in again with the school account that has the active license.

Additional checks that are directly relevant:

Verify the Mac can reach the internet consistently. Microsoft 365 for Mac must contact the Office Licensing Service online to keep activation valid.
Confirm the school account is the same account being used to activate Office. If the wrong account is signed in, Office can show No license found.
If the school account license was not set up correctly, the organization’s IT administrator needs to verify that the Microsoft 365 license is assigned to that user.

Important notes:

Changes in Keychain Access require local admin privileges.
If the Mac cannot contact the Office Licensing Service, Office can fall into reduced functionality mode.
For organization-managed Microsoft 365 on Mac, users activate by signing in themselves; activation is tied to the licensed user account.