New Microsoft Windows 10 bug downgrades users' Pro licences

New glitch comes just weeks after latest Windows update had to be be temporarily withdrawn

Just weeks after Microsoft was forced to temporarily withdraw its latest Windows 10 update, the operating system has been hit with a new bug.

Users are now complaining that they are being forced to downgrade machines running Windows 10 Pro to the lesser (and cheaper) Windows 10 Home edition.

The problem stems from Microsoft's anti-piracy system which now resides in a mixture of a hardware-based solution tied to individual machines, and tying the serial numbers to a Microsoft account.

However, at the moment no-one seems to know why the bug is occurring.

Affected customers will see resolution over the next 24 hours as the solution is applied automatically

Reddit users seem to suggest that the issue is mostly affecting ex-Insiders and people who upgraded from Windows 8 Pro, but that's a trend rather than a rule; most users are unaffected.

Tom's Hardware reports that one user has claimed that they weren't even downgraded, but instead switched to Windows 10 Enterprise for virtual deskops, suggesting that with the right conditions, the bug can make things even weirder.

An official statement from Microsoft indicates that the company is aware of the problem and working on a fix. "A limited number of customers experienced an activation issue that our engineers have now addressed," a spokesperson said.

"Affected customers will see resolution over the next 24 hours as the solution is applied automatically. In the meantime, they can continue to use Windows 10 Pro as usual."

For ordinary users, the difference between the Home and Pro editions of Windows 10 will be negligable, but for people that need the extra features, it could be disastrous - or, at the very least, a headache for sysadmins across the world.

Not only did the original release of the latest update to Windows 10 have to be withdrawn after it was found to be chewing up users' files, but more bugs have been appearing every few days or so.

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