Just a heads up, if you're thinking of switch to cubase

[roderick]

Given the outcome, I don't want to make a big noise about this - it did disable my license and did make it clear it was due to a system change - but I was able to get it back by running maintenance in the software. Something that wasn't really clear by the error it threw at me.

As it has been fixed up without support intervention - my jets are cooled. It was mostly infuriating because I was only loading cubase because ableton had decided to no longer function correctly (broken database file).

Both hosts are fixed now. The night is over, of course - so yeah, just wasted time.

[Jace-BeOS]

Why do PCs still even USE drive letters?

[chk071]

I know i'm repeating myself, but in case you have another problem, think about contacting their support. They once sorted out a problem i had with the license for Cubase LE 5, which is a sh** version i got with some mag's DVD. They really took a lot of time to fix the problem, and i was very happy with it. Helpful and competent.

[Gonga]

That sucks. This new paradigm of "activation" places the entire burden of anti-piracy on the paying user. It really gets frustrating when a company no longer supports a product. Even Microsoft is no longer authorizing the Plus Digital Media for Windows XP anymore. I did a fresh install of XP the other day so I could run Home Architect and a few old games, but can't install the goodies that I bought along with XP. Nothing the end user can do about it either - the authorization and support pages are gone. We just accept that software has a limited shelf life of 10 years or so in many cases. This is one of the worst anti-piracy burdens of all placed on the paying customer - limited useful life of the software. Even if you keep an older machine going, the software ceases to function now.

[Jace-BeOS]

That sucks. This new paradigm of "activation" places the entire burden of anti-piracy on the paying user. It really gets frustrating when a company no longer supports a product. Even Microsoft is no longer authorizing the Plus Digital Media for Windows XP anymore. I did a fresh install of XP the other day so I could run Home Architect and a few old games, but can't install the goodies that I bought along with XP. Nothing the end user can do about it either - the authorization and support pages are gone. We just accept that software has a limited shelf life of 10 years or so in many cases. This is one of the worst anti-piracy burdens of all placed on the paying customer - limited useful life of the software. Even if you keep an older machine going, the software ceases to function now.

+1. If i had the energy and emotional stamina, consumer activism is one possible role i might play. i used to, with the alternative OS scene, but the community drove me away because i was in a minority (believing that users aren't "lusers" and that the burden of usability is on the developers, not the users having arcane specialist knowledge). Why do i think this is relevant? i find most people who are content with anti-piracy measures are techno people.

[chk071]

How is that in any way linked to the problem of the OP? The problem he describes isn't even the normal behavior of this copy protection. At least it shouldn't be. And, as you can see, it was easily fixed by performing the maintainance operations within the software.

And being content with anti-piracy measures it out of question too. I don't want to lock my car either, but i have to because the world is bad, you know.

[Mariosprt]

And being content with anti-piracy measures it out of question too. I don't want to lock my car either, but i have to because the world is bad, you know.

I agree, and actually prefer a dongle to exquisite and possible troublesome internet activation stuff. Not that I had any problems with either, but they appear regularly on KVR.

[ZINO]

Perhaps they'll charge a point update to get this fixed.

[Gonga]

How is that in any way linked to the problem of the OP? The problem he describes isn't even the normal behavior of this copy protection. At least it shouldn't be. And, as you can see, it was easily fixed by performing the maintainance operations within the software.

And being content with anti-piracy measures it out of question too. I don't want to lock my car either, but i have to because the world is bad, you know.

I understand your point, but to answer your question...

it's linked because some day, Cubase 7 will not work when the authorization is "turned off" by Steinberg, either because they no longer wish to support the product, or because they've gone out of business, or whatever. It makes no difference what the reason is. If we purchase a "permanent" license it shoul be permanent. I remember when authorization was first introduced by Microsoft in Windows, and how many had troubles and complained, and were told all was OK. Well, it clearly wasn't and isn't, now that my software's license has expired when no such expiration date was set anywhere in the license. The software I paid for has expired when no such expiration date is spoken of in the license. That is not "OK" to me, nor should it be to the masses of people who seem these days to just accept whatever loss of rights, privacy, etc. they are handed.

Now let me ask you a question. Do you think it's OK that software is now assumed to have a limited life of perhaps 10 years or so, whereas in the past it could run for as long as the older machine was kept alive? You think it's OK that the burden for securing the company's rights must fall entirely on the paying users? I would say no, that's all. I think we need to look for a better way, and Steinberg won't bother to do that unless we complain.

I agree that the eLicenser works well. Today. But I think it, like all other paying-user-pays-twice schemes, is far from perfect. I want Steinberg to continue looking for better protection methods that give users permanent licenses that last as long as we can keep the hardware going, and that don't disable your setup because of a glitch.

[glasgene]

nevermind

[chk071]

Gonga, that's a general question regarding the copy protection eLicenser/USB-eLicenser. It really has nothing to do with this thread. This thread is about a unnormal issue the OP had with eLicenser which was fixed with the repair function of the eLicenser software. That's just what i wanted to say. If you want to discuss about eLicenser, there's dozens of threads on this forum.

[UltraJv]

I've made countless changes to this machine, too - particularly regarding hard drives and video cards

THIS. Its not one change that triggered the need to re authorise. The last HDD was the final one that tripped the count. FWIW - Windows does this too.

[chk071]

THIS. Its not one change that triggered the need to re authorise. The last HDD was the final one that tripped the count. FWIW - Windows does this too.

Yeah, i had a massive problem when i updates the Bios of my machine... Windows thought there was a hardware change, and prompted me to re-authorise it by typing in the license key again. Unfortunately there was a bug in the system, so i had to re-authorise it again and again and again, somtimes 4 or 5 times a day... until i finally called the MS support, and the guy fixed it via remote control of my system, typing some stuff in the console. Quite scary to see someone a hundred kilometres away, operating your mouse and keyboard.

Anyway, unlike other people i don't start to cry "Uuuh! Bad Microsoft, so evil!" and switch to Linux or MacOS, but accept that software can be buggy, and copy protection is software too which can be buggy, the more complicated it is, the more space for bugs will be there. And the more warez there will be, the more complicated the copy protection systems have to be. That's life.

[kelldammit]

[edit: removed OT reply, with apologies]

Glad you got your problem sorted!

[Jace-BeOS]

Anyway, unlike other people i don't start to cry "Uuuh! Bad Microsoft, so evil!" and switch to Linux or MacOS, but accept that software can be buggy, and copy protection is software too which can be buggy, the more complicated it is, the more space for bugs will be there. And the more warez there will be, the more complicated the copy protection systems have to be. That's life.

And this is why nothing gets better, and things keep getting worse (and more complicated). They have successfully convinced you that computer industry product is exempt from basic functionality expectations. The special pleading of "complexity" is a nonsense brain meme to excuse bad software behavior and consumer abuse, which is far too common. Stop giving them license to abuse us. Demand accountability.