How licensing works
AFDIM needs a licence to run. A licence belongs to one computer. There are two ways to activate a licence in AutoCAD®:
- A licence key. After you buy, you receive a key by email,
AFDIM-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX. You type the key into AFDIM, and the licence arrives over the internet at once. Use this way when the computer is online. - An exchange of two files, for a computer without internet: a request from that computer, and a licence file issued for it.
The 7-day trial needs neither. Click Start 7-day trial in AFDIM, and the trial licence arrives over the internet at once.
A licence key
Section titled “A licence key”In AutoCAD, click Settings on the AFDIM ribbon tab to open the settings dialog. Open the About tab, click Enter licence key…, paste the key and click Activate. The first computer that activates a key is the computer the key is for. You can enter the key again on that computer at any time. Step by step: Activate a licence.
The exchange
Section titled “The exchange”- Request. In AutoCAD, click Settings on the AFDIM ribbon tab to open the settings dialog. Open the About tab and click Request licence. AFDIM shows a request code on one line and writes
request.afdimto your Desktop. Both contain the same data. - Send. Send via afdim.com opens the Licence page with the code filled in. You can also paste the code there yourself. Choose what you need: a trial, a purchase, a renewal, or a move to another computer. The page prepares an email for you to send.
- Receive. You receive a licence file,
license.json, that is issued for that computer. Licences are issued by hand. Delivery time: within 3 business days. - Load. While AutoCAD is open and online, AFDIM collects the licence by itself. Otherwise, click Load licence… on the same tab and select the file.
Step by step: Activate a licence.
AFDIM starts with a free 7-day trial, see Start a trial. After it, quarterly (3-month), yearly and perpetual licences are sold on Pricing through Paddle’s online checkout, see Buy a licence.
- Quarterly and yearly licences end on their expiry date, see Renew.
- A perpetual licence never expires. It runs every AFDIM version released in the 12 months after you buy, for good, and includes support for those 12 months. A version released after that date does not run with it until you renew its updates for another 12 months, see Renew.
What works without a licence
Section titled “What works without a licence”AFDIM does not run without a valid licence. The settings dialog still opens, from Settings on the AFDIM ribbon tab or from Activate in the AFDIM is not activated window. Its About tab lets you activate, update and ask for help. Dimensions already in your drawings are ordinary AutoCAD objects, and the licence does not affect them.
One computer
Section titled “One computer”A licence is issued for the computer that made the request, or that first activated the key.
- A licence file copied to another computer does not work there. Its status is Issued for another machine.
- A licence key activates one computer at a time. On a second computer, the key is refused until the old computer releases it with Move licence to another computer…, or until a move is approved. See Move to another computer.
- Reinstalling Windows or replacing hardware can make AFDIM report This machine has changed. You have not lost the licence. Request again, and the same licence is issued again. See Move to another computer.
- Several Windows accounts on the same computer can share one licence. When Windows allows it, AFDIM keeps a copy for all accounts on that computer, as well as the copy for your own account.
What the request contains
Section titled “What the request contains”The request code and request.afdim contain:
- the product name and the AFDIM version
- the time of the request
- salted one-way hashes of identifiers of this computer
They do not contain an email address, raw hardware serial numbers, drawing data, file names or your Windows user name. A hash cannot be turned back into the identifier it came from. The request is not secret, and you can send it by email or chat.
The licence file is signed. If you edit it, it becomes invalid.
Where the licence is stored
Section titled “Where the licence is stored”| Copy | Location |
|---|---|
| Your Windows account | %LOCALAPPDATA%\AFDIM\license\ |
| All accounts on this computer, when Windows allows it | %ProgramData%\AFDIM\license\ |
Uninstalling AFDIM never deletes these folders, even with the delete box ticked. Keep the license.json you received as a backup.
While AFDIM saves a licence, it needs exclusive use of the licence store for a moment. If another program, for example another CAD window, is using the store at that moment, AFDIM cannot save the licence. AFDIM then shows The licence could not be saved on this computer. Close the other CAD windows and try again. If this continues, contact support. Close the other CAD windows and try again.