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Documentation & User Guides | Fotoware

Moving your copy of FotoStation to another computer

Learn how to deactivate FotoStation so you can install it on another computer.

About activation

FotoStation is licensed on a two-devices-per-user basis. Any single-user license of FotoStation can be activated and run on two computers, allowing a user to run FotoStation on an office computer and a computer at home, for example.

If you want to install and run FotoStation on a new machine, you must deactivate FotoStation on the old machine and then activate your license on the new one. To do so, follow the steps below.

Licensing rules

  • A FotoStation Standalone license and FotoStation licenses purchased on fotostation.com can be activated a maximum of three times per year. This means that when it has been installed and activated the first time, you can "move" the license to a new computer a maximum of two times in the calendar year.
  • A FotoStation Client, on the other hand, can be activated and deactivated without any limitations. (FotoStation Client is the version that can connect to Index Manager archives.)

Moving your FotoStation license to a new computer

Before continuing, ensure you have the FotoStation software at hand for installation on your new computer and a license card or email with your FotoStation product key. The product key is required to install and activate FotoStation on your new machine.

If you need to download FotoStation again, go to https://account.fotoware.com/ and log in to find the available versions. If you have lost your product key for activation, you can find that in the Licenses area at https://account.fotoware.com.

Important: If you obtained FotoStation from fotostation.com, go to that site to download the correct software version. The FotoStation versions found at fotostation.com and fotoware.com are not the same.

Moving the license involves deactivating FotoStation on the old computer and activating the license on the new one.

Start FotoStation on the machine you're about to deauthorize. Open the Help menu and choose Manage activations...

Menu item - Manage activations.png

 

In the dialog that appears, select Deactivate FotoStation:

Deactivate FotoStation.png

 

Confirm this operation when asked. Once the deactivation is complete, FotoStation closes.

Now, install FotoStation on the new computer and start it. You need to enter a valid product key.


Activate FotoStation.png

Once the activation is completed, FotoStation will start.

What to do if I fail to activate or deactivate FotoStation?

There are several reasons FotoStation may fail to activate or deactivate:

  • If you have a valid agreement, you may have fulfilled this agreement on the Fotoware website, at which point new keys have been created. If you know you have an agreement, we recommend checking the Fotoware License Center to ensure you are using the most recent, valid key.
     
  • If you have an active agreement with Fotoware and you have recently received new product keys following a license fulfillment on the Fotoware License Center website, there is a possibility that you cannot deactivate your old installation of FotoStation. If that is the case, try to use the new product key to activate FotoStation on your new hardware.
     
  • If you try to activate FotoStation and receive an error message saying that the maximum amount of activations has been exceeded, you may have tried to activate FotoStation on a new computer before deactivating it on the old machine. If there is no way that you can deactivate FotoStation on the old machine (for instance, if you formatted the hard drive), you need to contact Fotoware Support for assistance. You can email support at support@fotoware.com. Remember to include any agreement number you have and the License ID and Product key if possible. Also, describe what you think caused the problem and note any error messages.
     
  • If you are certain you are using the most recent product key to activate and have tried all the above, contact Fotoware Support for assistance. You can email support at support@fotoware.com. Remember to include any agreement number you have and the License ID and Product key if possible. Also, describe what you think caused the problem and note any error messages.