Enable users to manage their DxO software licenses

I’m furious at how frequently DxO products (I have bought almost all of them, Elite versions) which in generally I like using and appreciate, refuse to start up saying they cannot validate my activation (license) on that machine.

I have 3 PCs at different locations for various reasons, and this seems to happen randomly: on some PC but not others, despite all of them being updated pretty much at the same time, both OS and applications.

On the same PCs I also have Capture One and Photo Mechanic (and various other non-Photo software): this issue virtually only ever happens with DxO.

Sometime I plan to use a PC at a certain location, only to discover at the very last minute that I can’t use the software I paid for, because DxO apparently can’t figure out a way to reliably tell if they know the computer that’s connecting to them.

What makes it far more infuriating is the fact that the only remedy is to issue a ticket requesting re-activation with lots of details (so basically, they assume the user is a scammer), without allowing the user to deactivate a license by themselves. This for instance is possible with Capture One (perpetual license), even though the issue only ever happened once with it, on one PC, after a major HW and SW update.

The support reps on average take 24 hours to reply. So for a full day each time this annoyance happens, I’m unable to use the products I paid for. This is particulary infuriating when it happens on weekends, when I planned that little free time I have available to attend to my photography evolution.

This is almost a deal breaker, and I’m seriously considering never buying anything again from DxO for this reason.

How hard can it be to either use the HW (MAC) address of the network interface, or at the very least, allow the user to manage their activations?!?!

1 Like

This matter of managing activation comes up regularly. Here are two such examples:

If you search this forum yourself you will find other topics.

In summary, we, as fellow users, feel your pain.

2 Likes

In my last request for reactivation ticket I’ve also attached for them 2 screenshots showing how Capture One (perpetual license) does it.
I’ve deactivated one from their Web UI, then reactivated it from the relevant PC.
Took a total of 1 minute. No raising silly tickets, no waiting for 1 day on average for someone to have to do a trivial manual operation like we were in the 90s still.

Next time they send an email suggesting to upgrade and pay money again, this is the first thing I’ll look for in the feature list. Won’t pay a dime again until they do it.

Don’t think anyone here will disagree with you on that point.

1 Like

The NIC MAC address can be spoofed. NICs themselves can also be portable.

As others have, I agree with you on the second point - license activations can be user-managed to some extent, perhaps with the help of multi-factor authentication, provided users are not allowed to abuse this option.

However, I wonder why you’re running into this problem so frequently if you’re running DxO software on only three machines. That’s the root of the problem here, isn’t it?

User license management could be a feature request. We could vote on it.

1 Like

It already is, and voting is well underway:

I don’t understand what you’re trying to ask at the end, or what point you’re trying to make.

The point is, regardless of number of machines, this should not happen at all, except for major HW or SW changes (eg. when I upgraded from Win8.1 to Win10, or from Home to Pro, or changed the video card, etc). The fact I have only 3 machines makes it even worse. I can imagine studios or other commercial situations having many more.

It is also compounded by the fact it happens more or less for all the DxO software products: so when it’s not PL, it’s FP or VP or PR.

Their heuristic to detect licensed PCs needs to be more robust, or (better) they need to enable us to deactivate PCs autonomously. That’s the root of the problem here, isnt’t it?

1 Like

image

Now they’re also being difficult.

I’ve already provided this information in previous requests in the past weeks and months, and it doesn’t change relative to the PC: same OS, version, build. Moreover, it can’t possibly have anything to do with the deactivation, since none of these details changed, and this issue did not happen on the other 2 PCs (also same versions).

And do DxO systems really not even keep track (associated to computer name) of OS version? And what is a screenshot even needed for? That also is always the same.

So each time, patiently copy from System settings computer name, Win version (22H2) and build number, and take a screenshot of the error message (always the same), then patiently wait for one day (on average) for them to deactivate it.

Capture One generates a new Id for each activation (also of the same PC): just need to note it down in the same file where I keep the activation code, and it’s done in less than 1 minute.

I started using DxO products in view of stopping using Capture One. PureRAW is amazing and PL allowed me to very quickly generate “perfect” output images in a couple of occasions. I also like VP a lot. DxO software is much simpler (less overkill) than Capture One and can potentially get excellent (for me) results much quicker.
However some severe deficiencies in the software, plus this recurring serious deactivation annoyance, are now making me reconsider. Not that anyone should care, but I like to get value for our money.
And no, I had no idea about this unexpected license management limitation before buying.

1 Like

You don’t seem to have responded to Greg’s question, here:

Can you explain more clearly your set up / what you are doing because DxO software activated on three machines should be allowed and once activated on each machine should run without activation problems.

However, if you are:

  1. installing at a location
  2. activating the software
  3. using the software
  4. UNinstalling the software (because you’re not going to be back at that location for a while)
  5. reinstalling when you return to that location

then you will fall foul of the three activation limit, because the activation of your reinstallation will be a fourth activation request.

1 Like

Thanks, @stuck. Yes, this is the point I was trying to make. @marcoecc: Three installations should be stable and not require reactivation of the licenses, so why is this failing on any one of the computers? If, as you say, DxO’s heuristic to detect licensed workstations needs to be more robust, what’s it presently not able to handle? Perhaps if we can figure that out we can stop the problem from happening.

For example: are you using VPN tunneling or isolating your PCs behind a firewall when you run DxO software?

I did not uninstall and reinstall the software at all. This was only necessary a long time with PureRAW for unrelated issues, and it is not the issue.

My scenario: I have these programs installed on 3 PC which are at separate locations. One is for home, one is for travel and work, and one is mostly a backup, because most of these programs (not only and not especially DxO) have very complex setups and configs which I hate to have to replicate from scratch when a HDD or SDD goes bad, so I can just export/import/compare them between computers and ensure the workflow I’ve refined over the years remain consistent.

They all run Win 10 Pro, with more or less the same programs, and every one is kept updated to the same versions of OS and programs.
Ever now and then, one of the DxO programs stops working claiming I’ve run out of actrivations. That’s all that happens. No un/re installations, at least right now not in a very long time).

However I think I’m done with DxO. Very busy with work, I didn’t check for 2 days only to now find this:


They’re now doing this on purpose, playing a petty power game.

The request, like all the others, was clearly “re-activate”, “re-enable” and of course it was on the same computer I mentioned in the ticket (where else?) and I did mention WIn10 Pro, 22h2, build number. It’s also plainly ridiculuous they don’t have this information from the activation process, or what are they doing with it, since they request it? also, all 3 PCs are identical for all the info they requested (and they would look so to them in their system), and I did provide the name (the only identifying factor) from the very start. The many previous requests went “smooth” after waiting the customary 1 day or so and being unable to use my workflow during a holiday or weekend.
This time I got annoyed and this is the petty treatment I get.

I can’t use their software until they re-activate it (work around their abysmal license control system) and they know it. And the rep is being just petty in her requests.

For what it is worth, I’ll never again buy anything from DxO.
This, and other episodes (not related to me) I read in the forums have alienated me from this snotty company who doesn’t actually do “exceptional” software (very good no doubt though). Others do the same things (including noise reduction) without certain important functionality limitations, and this treatment, and randomly being unable to use what I paid for, is not good enough for me. It may be ok for others.

Dear Dxo clowns, feel free to contact me to refund my last payments of your programs, then I’ll uninstall them, deactivate all of them, and bye bye.

2 Likes

I’ve voted the feature request


which has been opened 5 years ago.
It’s clear what are their priorities, and customer support is not one of them.
Frankly, they also should not put customer reps in the trivial and menial role of reactivation clerks. Just implement this “feature” (more of a requirement, given your defective license control system) already!

Useful to remember: this NEVER happened with Photo Mechanic, Fast Raw Viewer and several others programs (also and mostly non-photography related). It did happen at least once (or twice perhapt) with Capture One in about maybe 5 years, when they changed their license management a couple of times.
I’ve been using all of these programs for much longer than DxO… I’d say about 8 years compared to about 3-4. The others never do this, DxO does it a few times per year.

Moreover, as mentioned earlier, Capture One allows me to de/re activate my PCs in less than one minute. Another consideration for Capture One: it does occasionally (it seems maybe once per month) require a browser login, and it does otherwise work fine even without network connection (unless that “refresh” is needed when I have no network for any reason). Not so with DxO: your PC or laptop must be online at all times for it to start. Except when DxO “forgets” the PC is activated, that is, of course.

Like many others, I’ve been very seriously considering leaving Capture One (and will definitely do if they ever become subscription-only), when they started ramping up costs and pushing for subscriptions, and DxO was my alternative choice to it. But CO does all that DxO programs do (in one package), including noise reduction, especially after noticing that sometimes PR “invents” detail that wasn’t there (not acceptable in my book esp. for nature photograpy). It’s just quite complex being so powerful and feature rich. I also use sessions and catalogs a lot (also in Photo Mechanic), a feature totally missing in DxO PL, where “projects” are a useless joke and PL is also by far the slowest to open folders: the very same folders are opened by CO (in “session” mode) many times faster than PL. Always wondering what on earth it’s doing to take that much time to open… and sometimes it just gets stuck and I need to move photos elsewhere to only have relatively few in each folder, so that it can cope.

Nonetheless, I was looking to simplify my (otherwise excellent) workflow a bit – in “session” (folder) mode only, etc. The cataloging can be done by Photo Mechanic or others.

I had some excellent results in a very short time with PL on some photo sessions, and I was very impressed.

But now I’m reconsidering. And definitely I won’t upgrade every again until they add this feature.

2 Likes

The message is

and the “reason” is

Plus a lot of adjectives, comparisons with other software and dumps of OP state of mind, emotional of course. No real details. No drive to fix the problem in the next posts, which maybe only a few others have. Sounds familiar?
I won’t ask for any details to try to help, as it looks hopeless – the “message” is there.
Wait for amplification…
Sadly, some have connected the initial post with the known (re)activation problem, which is NOT there in OP.

I agree with @marcoecc. My interactions with DxO support personnel about licensing have been awful. Due to the customer alienation policy of only supporting the latest two versions of the OS, I have to have a lot of PhotoLabs installs semi-active on different versions of the OS, but it’s just me using it myself.

If DxO wants to treat its paying users like this, they will just anger us and force us to use cracked versions. How stupid.

It’s a petty power game with DxO support. I amost never do outreach for PhotoLab any more. These customer alienation policies have cost them about $20,000/year in unpaid social promotion (in peak years, less as my ardour faded).

Why does DxO want its users to hate them? The short answer is DxO is a French company. The French have been famous for centuries for imperious arrogance. For a Parisian company, DxO’s arrogance is middle-of-the-road.

FilmPack Elite, ViewPoint, PureRAW this morning on my HOME PC all refused to start. All are their latest versions, on a PC that doesn’t move or change apart from the usual Windows Updates, of which there have been very few and small (I keep all my PCs on Win10 Pro 22H2 until I decide about extending them or upgrading to Win11), and which in any case have not disrupted any other software I use on them.

ViewPoint accepted the activation code and started working again, so while still an annoyance, just a minor inconvenience.

For the other two, I’ll need to wait the usual about 1 day to use software I paid for. Which means that once again, on a Sunday (at home finally today) I can’t use FilmPack and PureRAW on a session of photos I wanted to process with them.

PhotoLab Elite worked without issue (on this machine, not so on my work/travel machine, the subject of my original diatribe with DxO), and I’ve just installed its update. I’ve not had a chance to test the reactivation on my work/travel pc yet.

Nik Collection (also on HOME PC) gives a different kind of error:


“unknown server error” on their activation server – or the person is having a coffee.
Either way I guess I’ll need to raise a ticket for this one too, and skip any JPG work I planned to do on this Sunday as well, until next time, if DxO software will cooperate.

There are no excuses for this lack of understanding of customer satisfaction and customer support on DxO side.

For any usual “useful i…”, the kind who’re never absent from these black/white issue discussions and have the gift of completely missing the point, never ceasing to split hairs in 4, and unnecessarily confuse easy matters: this is my HOME PC. Always on the same network (WAN IP changes periodically based on ISP, as for nearly everyone else), always on Win10Pro 22H2 with latest Windows Updates, always with the same hardware, with all other licensed software unaffected and always working when needed.

Software you paid for must work, or it should be easy for you to make it work again, without being forced periodically to raise tickets with lots of details and wait 1 day each time. It’s as simple as that. VPN or any other considerations are moot and just excuses for bad software engineering and resolution process.

Would you accept any excuse for your car periodically not starting and the company demanding you to each time fill a form and wait for one day?

keep it simple: if you can’t fix the activation checks, give us a way to manage our activations so at least we can remove a no-longer-recognized machine and add it back without inconveniencing both your customer support (?) reps and ourselves.

1 Like