For an overview of the Silhouette Studio Upgrade Editions and how to upgrade click here


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cannot Find License Key Code

If you are prompted for a license key code to upgrade the software to a higher edition, but cannot locate your previously purchased license key code, please review the information below to recover your upgrade purchase.

Purchased Directly from Silhouette


If you purchased your license key directly from SilhouetteAmerica.com, you should be able to locate your license key as follows.


NOTE: If you have multiple Silhouette accounts, you will need to access the account where your license key was originally applied.

  1. Go to your Silhouette account
  2. Sign in, if prompted
  3. Scroll down to the 'My License Keys' section

Purchased from Authorized Retailer


If your license key was purchased from somewhere other than SilhouetteAmerica.com, you will need to contact the original website or retailer for further assistance. They typically should have a record of your purchase and license key code.

Have Not Purchased Yet


If you have not actually purchased a license key already, you can purchase an upgrade from SilhouetteAmerica.com now. This will automatically apply the upgrade to your account upon purchase.

Additional Help


If you have already purchased a license key but still require assistance locating or applying your license key code to your account, contact support@silhouetteamerica.com with the following information:

  • License key code, if available
  • Alternate account email address where you may have applied this license key code previously
  • Proof of purchase of the license key

Silhouette Studio Reverted to Basic Edition

If you have previously purchased and applied a Silhouette Studio upgrade (i.e. Designer Edition, Designer Edition Plus, Business Edition) to your Silhouette account but are not seeing your upgrade applied, you can do the following to unlock your software upgrade now:


  1. Open Silhouette Studio
    IMPORTANT: You will need to update the Silhouette Studio software to V4.5 for these steps to work properly -- www.silhouetteamerica.com/software/ss
  2. Go to the 'Help' menu
  3. Click on "Apply Upgrade Edition"
  4. Enter your Silhouette account with your email address and password
  5. Click on the 'Activate' button

As long as you are running the current software version, you will not need to re-enter or reset your license key code when you need to use a new computer or reapply the upgrade for any reason. The current software version will automatically pull your license key from your Silhouette account. You can use your upgrade version on up to three personal devices concurrently. If you exceed the allowed concurrent usage on multiple devices, the system will automatically remove the upgrade from older devices on your account.


Let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.


License Key Application Errors

If you encounter an error when attempting to apply a license key to upgrade your software, please review the following information to resolve this issue.

Invalid License Key


This error is usually encountered when the license key code is typed incorrectly. Double-check your code and confirm each character as the license key code is entered.


This error can also indicate that you are trying to enter your license key into the wrong software program. For example, you may have a Silhouette Connect license key that you are trying to enter into the Silhouette Studio software program.

Maximum Devices Reached


If you encounter the error message 'maximum number of active devices for this account has been reached', this indicates you have reached the maximum number of available active devices for your account. 


To resolve this, you will need to manage your devices to free up a device space on your Silhouette account.

License Key Already in Use


If you encounter an error message stating that the license key is already in use, proceed to update your Silhouette Studio version. 

Could Not Create a License File (Mac Only)


This error message indicates that there is a permission error preventing the creation of the license key file in the correct folder.


  1. Run Terminal
    NOTE: To open Terminal, navigate to Applications > Utilities, and double-click on Terminal
  2. Type the following command:
    sudo chmod -R 777 "/Library/Application Support/com.aspexsoftware.Silhouette_Studio.license"
  3. Type in the computer password and press the Enter key
  4. Try the upgrade again

General License Key Application Error


If you encounter a non-specific general license key error (other than those listed above) when attempting to apply your software license key, this indicates one of the following:

1) A higher edition has already been applied

For example, you might encounter this error if you were running the Business Edition and you attempted to apply a Designer Edition license key, which is lower than the edition you are already running.


2) The same edition has already been applied

For example, you might encounter this error if you were already running the Designer Edition and you attempted to apply another Designer Edition license key, which is the same edition being run.

3) The lower required edition is not yet owned

For example, you might encounter this error if you were running the Basic Edition and you attempted to apply a special Designer Edition to the Business Edition upgrade. Since you do not already own Designer Edition, this interim upgrade would not work.


Additional information for which the error applies is displayed with the error message.


Click here for help identifying which software version you are running if needed.

Can't Update Software


If you can't update Silhouette Studio to the latest version, contact support@silhouetteamerica.com to confirm that you are unable to update your software version. Your license key will then be reset for use in older software versions.

NOTE: You must own the license key you are requesting to be reset. The license key must be applied to your account, or you must provide proof of purchase.