Hey, You, Get Off Of My Cloud...

A couple of SolidWorks releases ago, the company implemented a new way of licensing software called "Activation". This will require SolidWorks and Simulation software to be activated each time the software is installed. You can think of an activated license of SolidWorks as a water molecule that is pulled from a central "cloud" in the sky of SolidWorks.

When you install SolidWorks for the first time, it will ask you to activate the software. This will send encryped computer information to the SolidWorks cloud and the SolidWorks will send you back an activation.

If you change your hard drive out or install SolidWorks on a new computer, you should transfer your license. This will send your currently activation out to the SolidWorks cloud. Then when you install the software on another computer, and activate it again, it will pull an available activation back from the cloud. This is pretty simple to do. Just go to the help menu and choose transfer license and follow the instructions.

If you do no do this, you cannot activate SolidWorks again, EVER! Just kidding... You just need to get ahold of us at the hotline and we can change which computer is granted activation rights.