Troubleshooting InstallShield 2010 and Later Activation Issues

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Summary

This article provides some troubleshooting tips for the activation process.

Synopsis

InstallShield requires activation within 14 days of first launching it. Activation is a process that needs to be performed periodically. This article provides some troubleshooting tips for the activation process.

For an explanation of activation-related concepts and terms, as well as specific time frames and other details for activation of node-locked licenses of InstallShield, see Knowledge Base article: Licensing Information for InstallShield 2010 and Later

Here are the steps to activate InstallShield:

1. After InstallShield is installed, launch the program.

2. When the InstallShield Splash screen is displayed, click on the ?Own? or "activate/purchase" link.

3. Enter your product serial number and make sure to include the hyphens (format as follows: XXXXXXX-XXX-XXXXXXXXXX or XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX and does not start with the letters ISMTK; There are zeros in the serial number, not the letter ?O?).

Note: failure to enter the serial number following this format may result in the "serial not registered" browser popping up.

4. Click on the ?Verify? button. If the online activation is successful, a dialog will appear stating that the verification is complete.If the online verification fails, proceed with step 5.

5. Click the "Proceed with offline verification" button. Click the Save button, save the License.request file and email the License.request file to oactivations@flexerasoftware.com. We need the License.request file to generate a License.response file that should allow you to complete the activation process.

Discussion

General Troubleshooting Tips

The following tips may help you resolve issues that may occur during the activation process.

If you try to activate InstallShield but your serial number has not been registered, the activation wizard that is displayed when you launch InstallShield prompts you to register online. To register your serial number, visit the Product Registration Page.
Ensure that you are entering the product serial number correctly. If you are entering the serial number by copying and pasting, make sure that you are not copying an extra space before or after the serial number. A product serial number does not begin with the letters ISMTK. If you purchased a maintenance plan (i.e. support contract), the serial number beginning with ISMTK is your maintenance plan serial number. This maintenance plan serial number identifies your maintenance plan, but cannot be used to activate the product--a product serial number must be used to activate the product.
If you previously activated InstallShield on another machine, you must first return the InstallShield license on that machine through a full uninstallation before it can be activated on a new machine. For the return to be successful, the machine must have an active connection to the Internet during the uninstallation. To learn more, see Uninstalling and Reinstalling InstallShield.

Email Activation

If you are unable to activate InstallShield through the automatic online method, email activation is required. For more information, see Activating Through Email.

Activation Errors

The following table contains tips on how to resolve errors that may occur while attempting to activate InstallShield using your InstallShield product serial number.

Error Number	Description	Troubleshooting Information
20653	The number of activations allowed for this account has been exceeded.	The InstallShield end-user license agreement allows you to install and activate InstallShield a limited number of times. This error occurs if that limit has been exceeded. To resolve this error, try one of the following solutions: Uninstall InstallShield on one machine; doing so returns your license to your account on the activation server, allowing you to activate on a different machine. Contact your InstallShield sales representative to purchase an additional InstallShield license, or to purchase concurrent licensing. Ensure that no one else in your organization is already using the same serial number for their activated copy of InstallShield. For details such as how many times and how often you can activate InstallShield, see Knowledge Base article: Licensing Information for InstallShield 2010 and Later.
20660	The Serial Number that you entered has been disabled.	The serial number that you entered has been disabled. One example of when this may occur is if you returned your copy of InstallShield and then later tried to use your serial number to activate InstallShield. If you encounter this error, ensure that you entered the serial number correctly. If you did enter it correctly, please complete and submit a Support Contact Form to InstallShield Support so that your serial number can be re-enabled if it is allowed. Once the serial number has been re-enabled, you can proceed with activation.
20661	The serial number you purchased requires product registration prior to serial number activation.	If you try to activate InstallShield but your serial number has not been registered, the activation wizard that is displayed when you launch InstallShield prompts you to register online. To register your serial number, visit the Product Registration page. If you did not purchase InstallShield through a reseller, ensure that you entered the serial number correctly.
20676	The license has been transferred between computers more times than is allowed.	There is a limit to the number of times that you can transfer your InstallShield license from one machine to another in your organization. This error occurs if that limit has been exceeded. To resolve this error, contact your InstallShield sales representative to purchase an additional InstallShield license, or to purchase concurrent licensing. For details on the number of times that you can transfer your license, see Knowledge Base article: Licensing Information for InstallShield 2010 and Later.
50020	The response text you entered is invalid.	This error occurs if you are attempting offline (e-mail) activation and the response text that you entered in the activation wizard is incorrect. Ensure that you correctly entered the response text. The response text starts with the following string: <?xml version The following string marks the end of the response text: </Response>
50040	An unexpected error occurred.	This error may occur if an online activation attempt fails. For example, if your machine does not have an Internet connection, online activation cannot occur. If you do not have an Internet connection or if you are having problems completing the online activation process, the activation wizard gives you the option of performing offline activation through email. For information on how to activate offline through email, see Activating Through Email.

Additional Information

For frequently asked questions and answers about activation, see Activation FAQs.

If you have tried all of the aforementioned suggestions and you still have not been able to activate InstallShield, please complete and submit a Support Contact Form to our Technical Support Team for additional assistance.