Minecraft licenses stay attached to the Microsoft account that redeemed or purchased them. They are not transferred by moving files from the old Windows installation.
For each of the 2 Minecraft Java licenses:
- Reinstall Windows on the laptop or set up the new installation.
- Sign in to Windows, Microsoft Store, and Minecraft Launcher with the same Microsoft account that owns that Minecraft license.
- In Microsoft Store, search for Minecraft and confirm it shows Owned or Install.
- Open Minecraft Launcher and verify the correct edition is being used: Java.
If the launcher still shows Buy after reinstalling:
- Sign out of Minecraft Launcher and Microsoft Store.
- Restart the PC.
- Sign back in to Microsoft Store first, then Minecraft Launcher, using the same account that owns the license.
Important points:
- Each license remains on its original Microsoft account.
- Microsoft does not support transferring or merging purchased products between Microsoft accounts.
- If one license was bought on one account and the other on a different account, each laptop must sign in with the matching account to use that license.
If the purchase appears in Microsoft order history but the launcher still does not detect it, that is likely a license sync issue and Minecraft Support is the next step.