In this article we explain why the license for your USB dongle may be missing and how to resolve this problem.

Before You Start

• A dongle is a serialized hardware key attached to a USB port on a computer. 
• A dongle is used to limit or lock software access to whomever has the dongle attached to their system through the associated license file.
• Use of a dongle based license require three components:
  • The physical dongle attached to a USB port.
  • The proper dongle driver installed on the computer.
  • A license file that matches the host ID on the dongle.
• When the computer successfully recognizes the dongle, a red light will illuminate on the key.
  
• If the key is not illuminated, refer to the article:
  Problem - USB License Dongle Not Recognized
• If your key is recognized but the license isn't found, continue reading.

Cause

• GeoStudio cannot locate the matching license file for your dongle.
• The license file you have has expired and needs replacing.

Steps to Resolve

• When GeoStudio recognizes a host ID, it looks for an accompanying license file.
• Even if a GeoStudio license is perpetual, the data in the license file expires annually as a security measure. 
• New license files are generated 60 days before a license is set to expire. 
• If your computer has an internet connection, GeoStudio will automatically check for updated license files.

If your dongle is attached to the computer and the red light is illuminated, but GeoStudio still cannot find a license:

1. Ensure you have GeoStudio in the correct license mode.
2. Check the location where the license files are stored.
   1. Launch GeoStudio.
   2. Go to the 'Help' | 'License Management' menu option.
   3. From the pane on the left, select 'Local Settings'.
   4. You should now see the following dialog box:
      
   5. The license path is specified at the top. 
   6. Ensure that this is a valid location on your hard drive. 
   7. If you need to modify the path, click on the 'Edit Settings' button and then make any necessary modification.
   8. Once you have verified the path, click on the 'Update' button. 
   9. This will attempt to download the latest license file for your license dongle.
   10. If the automatic update doesn't work, or your computer does not have an active internet connection, you may need to manually download the license file and place it in the license path folder. 
   11. To download your license file, go to the 'Find My License' page on our website:
       https://secure.geoslope.com/licenseupdate.aspx
   12. Enter in your serial number(s) or host ID(s). 
   13. The page will return a list of the licenses associated with the serial numbers or host IDs you provided. 
   14. That list will also include a link to download the latest license file.
   15. After downloading the license file(s), put it(them) in the folder indicated by your license path and re-start GeoStudio. 
   16. Your license(s) should now be available for use.