Author Topic: Dongle Fiasco (Read 8499 times)

m@l0cch10 · « **on:** August 26, 2007, 06:47:24 pm »

Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 5:10 pm Post subject: Dongle Fiasco

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Did you know that if you transfer your Brass license to another Syncrosoft key, you won't be able to get the software up and running on a new computer? Arturia doesn't document that very well, but I finally figured out what happended when I found this one reference on the Syncrosoft page:

If the customer already has a Syncrosoft key for other products, and if he wants to get all his Licenses on the same key, he can do it thanks to the Syncrosoft License Center. This would be the case for someone who wants to use Cubase, PROPHET V and Miroslaw in the same time but only has one USB port available. If he transfers his PROPHET V license from the Syncrosoft key we provide to another Syncrosoft key, this customer will no longer be able to use our key to get PROPHET V working any more.

This applies to Jupiter 8 and Brass as well.

If you have already transferred your key the software will work on that computer ONLY!

Vincent T · « **Reply #1 on:** August 27, 2007, 10:26:33 am »

please m@l0cch10, stop the flood and send me a mail with the details of your problem. I'm trying to figure out how to solve it.

m@l0cch10 · « **Reply #2 on:** August 28, 2007, 12:03:00 am »

Vincent,

I've sent an e-mail to technical support. I'll be happy to deal directly with you by e-mail if you provide an address. As a registered user, you should already have mine.

OpenMind · « **Reply #3 on:** August 29, 2007, 01:47:37 am »

Nonsense!!

I transfered the Brass and Jupiter licenses to another dongle and back... and to another dongle again and back again! No problem at all!! You just don't know what you are talking about!! :roll:

The license only works on one dongle at a time... The dongle it was last transfered to. Therefore it won't be available on the previous dongle anymore. Seems very logical to me as the license is not copied, but transfered.
You can easily transfer it back from the last used dongle to the original one, and use that dongle again.

m@l0cch10 · « **Reply #4 on:** August 29, 2007, 03:15:58 am »

Not nonsense. You can no longer install your software on a NEW computer. If you authorize a computer with the original dongle you can transfer the license to a new one and continue to run THAT computer. What you cannot do is authorize a new computer to work with the dongle. You are done dude. Hope you like that computer, because unless Arturia changes this, you will not be able to use it on another one.

I don't think everybody in support knows that it is true. But I believe Vincent has had the time to find out that it is.

Here is what you need to do to see if I am right:

1) install your software on a computer that you have not authorized previous to transferring the license.

2) plug the dongle with the transferred license into the computer.

3) See if you can authorize the software using the syncrosoft licensing software. I'll bet you cannot,.

Here is what the Arturia site says at http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/support/syncrosoft.html:

If the customer already has a Syncrosoft key for other products, and if he wants to get all his Licenses on the same key, he can do it thanks to the Syncrosoft License Center. This would be the case for someone who wants to use Cubase, PROPHET V and Miroslaw in the same time but only has one USB port available. If he transfers his PROPHET V license from the Syncrosoft key we provide to another Syncrosoft key, this customer will no longer be able to use our key to get PROPHET V working any more.

Read the second sentence carefully. It fliesin the face of all the other pages that state that you can transfer the licenses.

Besides, the e-mail I received from tech support today basically confirms that this is the case. I get the idea they weren't all aware of this disadvantage, but they are trying to work it out.

VINCENT: Don't you think you ought to warn Prophet v, Brass and Jupiter 8 users not to perform this experiment. I think you have already confirmed for yourself.

m@l0cch10 · « **Reply #5 on:** August 29, 2007, 03:24:52 am »

Also, other users don't need to give me a hard time. I've been designing multimedia products for close to twenty years, and one of the FUNDAMENTALS of both software and hardware design (since the early days) has been to incorporate forgiveness into every step (i.e.: receiving a question asking if you REALLY want to format your hard drive and warning you that it will erase all the data).

Besides, any of you that already transferred your licenses are misplacing any anger at me. You got screwed too. And any of you that haven't will think better of it before you do, right? It's in all our better interests that this is fixed fast. I recommended that they contact syncrosoft to find out if the licenses can be made transferrable on the back end. Unless there is a physical reason why not, they should be able to just ask that it be changed. That is, unless syncrosoft has developed a really poorly designed product.

It would be one thing if this was well documented - still unnacceptable, but many user problems could have been avoided.

Thanks for letting me know you transferred the licenses as well, though. It underscores how easy it is to make that mistake, based on the poor documentation.

Vincent T · « **Reply #6 on:** August 29, 2007, 09:09:38 am »

m@l0cch10,
I had some talks with some people here who already tried to transfer their licenses, and nothing wrong happened, so for the moment I won't warn anyone about anything.
I'm just trying to figure out the manipulation you did to lose your licenses ; but something tells me that you didn't understand everything yet about the synchrosoft protection :

Quote

Here is what you need to do to see if I am right:

1) install your software on a computer that you have not authorized previous to transferring the license.

you don't transfer your licenses on a computer. Don't forget that you have to have the key plugged to run the softwares, so you can use the plugins on only one computer at the same time.
and why do you want/talking about authorizing something on a computer?
I used my key on a dozain of different computers, and never had any problem..you just have to install the synchrosoft license control center on your new computer.

Now, I have some real questions which could help me solve your problem :
- were both keys the same type of keys ? (demos, NFR, normal)
- didn't you erase your license ?
- which licence did you try to put in which key ?
- did you install the latest version of the synchrosoft license control center on all your computers?

m@l0cch10 · « **Reply #7 on:** August 29, 2007, 05:51:00 pm »

Vincent that is wrong.

The key allows you to do two things. One is to license the computer. The second is to run the software itself on an authorized computer as long as the key is plugged in.

I did not erase the license. The license for all three pieces of software appear on one of my syncrosoft keys. Try to understand what I am saying.

On computer 1, authorized by the license on the original key, I can run my software even after I have transferred the license to a second key as long as that second key (now the license bearer) is plugged in.

What I am not allowed to do with a key holding an Arturia license transferred to it is authorize another computer to run the software while the key is plugged in.

When you first install the software you have to input four sets of numbers into the license control center to get the software running. That essentially authorizes the computer. To run your software you need two things: a licensed syncrosoft key plugged in at runtime and an authorization that has been placed somewhere on your hard drive.

You need to check with technical support before replying to my messages.

m@l0cch10 · « **Reply #8 on:** August 29, 2007, 05:55:03 pm »

I'm sorry:

The key allows you to do two things. One is to license the computer. The second is to run the software itself on an authorized computer as long as the key is plugged in.

Should have been:

The key allows you to do two things. One is to ***authorize *** the computer. The second is to run the software itself on an authorized computer as long as the key is plugged in.

Both of these conditions are required to run the software. If I am wrong, why does the support page at http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/support/syncrosoft.html
say that this is the case?

To wit:

"If the customer already has a Syncrosoft key for other products, and if he wants to get all his Licenses on the same key, he can do it thanks to the Syncrosoft License Center. This would be the case for someone who wants to use Cubase, PROPHET V and Miroslaw in the same time but only has one USB port available. *****If he transfers his PROPHET V license from the Syncrosoft key we provide to another Syncrosoft key, this customer will no longer be able to use our key to get PROPHET V working any more. *****"

WHY DOES IT SAY THAT?!

Martin Hines · « **Reply #9 on:** September 12, 2007, 05:03:48 am »

m@l0cch10,

I think you misunderstand how Syncrosoft licenses work. The Arturia text you quote IS confusing, but I assume it is because Arturia is a French company and English is not their native language.

The important idea to understand regarding the Syncrosoft USB key protection system is that licenses must be physically residing in the USB key. These licenses are either put there by the manufacturer (e.g. Arturia pre-installs the Analog Factory license onto a Syncrosoft USB Key they ship in the box) or one uses an "Activation Code" to download a license onto the Syncrosoft key.

Once that physical/electronic product license resides on the Syncrosoft key, you can install the software on any computer you desire. The software will only work when the Syncrosoft key (with license) is physically connnected to the computer.

There really isn't any "authorization of the computer". When the software is launched on a particular computer, the software looks for a physically connected Syncrosoft USB key with a valid license residing on it.

To see what product licenses are residing on a physical Syncrosoft key, connect the key to a USB port then run the "Syncrosoft License Control Center" application.

Finally, let me clarify what Arturia is saying in the text you quoted:
-- the Prophet V license physically resides on the Arturia-branded Syncrosoft USB Key that ships with the product
-- if you want to physically transfer your Prophet V license to a different Syncrosoft USB key (e.g. a different key that contains Cubase) you can do this via the Syncrosoft License Control Center application
-- Once you transfer the Prophet V license from the Arturia-branded Syncrosoft key to a different key, the Arturia-branded key can't be used to run Prophet V anymore. This is because the Arturia-branded key would at this point be "empty" -- i.e. no licenses present.
-- If you want to use the Arturia-branded key again, you would need to physically transfer the Prophet V license BACK to this key using the Syncrosoft License Control Center application.

What you NEVER really want to do is DELETE a license using the License Control Center. This function is primarily provided to allow people to remove demo/temporary licenses from a Syncrosoft USB Key.

Bottom line, you can freely transfer product licenses between Syncrosoft USB Keys.

Martin Hines · « **Reply #10 on:** September 12, 2007, 05:10:45 am »

Another Syncrosoft tip...

On my Windows XP PC, I have a desktop shortcut for the Syncrosoft License Control Center (LCC) application, which I use anytime I want to make sure that Syncrosoft "sees" the USB dongle correctly.

Sometimes for whatever reason, if I reboot my computer sometimes the LCC does NOT see the licenses on my Syncrosoft USB key. When this happens I simply pull out the Syncrosoft key and then reinsert it.

If you can get the LCC to "see" all of your product licenses, the associated applications will see them too.