License error 9 when opening HW - troubleshooting helpless

Hello,

I just uninstalled my 2021 Student's Edition HyperBundle so as to update it for a newer 2022 version. The process of installation went smoothly just like last time, but when I wanted to start up HyperMesh I was welcomed with the following error:

I found a thread dedicated to this problem and followed it step by step. The ethernet ID is identical in both cmd ipconfig /all and the license file:

I also made sure that the file was named altair_lic.dat instead of altair_lic.dat.dat and that the environmental variable is set to the correct file within the security folder:

Everything to no avail... the error message stays the same. Is there any way I can handle this? I've tried every method and step listed on the dedicated troubleshooting thread. Thank you in advance.