AutoCAD licence activation not working: what to do?

AutoCAD licence activation usually fails because of a blocked sign-in, a stopped licensing service or an unassigned subscription.

Since AutoCAD 2020, the single-user licence (named user) runs entirely through your Autodesk account. When you start the software you sign in, after which the Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service (ADLS) retrieves the licence and stores it locally. If that goes wrong, you see messages such as "A licensing error occurred" or "Unable to connect with Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service", or the sign-in window remains blank.

The cause almost always sits in one of four places: the internet connection and sign-in, the licensing service on your PC, the firewall or proxy, or the subscription assignment in your account. This guide walks through them in the right order, from simple checks to a full licence reset. Work through the steps in order and test whether AutoCAD starts after each change, so you know exactly which step solved the problem and avoid unnecessary extra work.

Start with the basic checks: internet, sign-in, system clock and your subscription assignment.

Before you start on services and resets, rule out the most common causes. Check these four points:

1. Internet connection. First-time activation requires internet. Check that you can open a browser and that you are not behind a captive portal.
2. Sign-in. Sign in with the same account that the licence is assigned to. If in doubt, log in at accounts.autodesk.com and check whether AutoCAD appears under your products.
3. Subscription assignment. An administrator must add you as a user to the subscription. Without an assignment you can access the account, but you will not get a working licence.
4. Date and time. An incorrect system clock causes the security token to fail. Set date, time and time zone in Windows to automatic.

If these four are correct, restart AutoCAD fully once. A one-off "Connection Lost" message is sometimes resolved by simply closing and restarting.

When signing in, pay attention to the difference between a personal Autodesk account and the business account the licence is attached to. If you accidentally sign in with a second email address, you see a valid account but no assigned product. If your organisation uses two-step verification, complete that step fully; a blocked verification code leaves activation stuck halfway.

Update Autodesk Access and the identity components, because a blank sign-in window is often caused by an outdated component.

If the sign-in window stays blank or a spinning circle keeps hanging (known as Error 110), an outdated or damaged sign-in component is the cause. Update the following:

• Open Autodesk Access (the successor to the Autodesk desktop app) and install all available updates, including those for Identity Manager and the licensing service.
• Repair or install the Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime. The sign-in window is drawn with it; if that component is missing or faulty, the window stays blank.
• Restart the PC after the updates so the refreshed services load correctly.

After updating, sign-in works again in many cases because the new components handle the token exchange with Autodesk correctly.

Which component you need depends on your version. For AutoCAD 2020 through 2023 it is the Autodesk Single Sign On component; for 2024 and newer it is Identity Manager. Autodesk Access updates both, but you can also repair them separately via Windows Settings, Apps, where you select the relevant Autodesk component and click Modify or Repair.

Restart the Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service if AutoCAD cannot connect to the licensing service.

The message "Unable to connect with Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service" means the local service is not running. Restart it manually:

1. Close AutoCAD completely.
2. Press Windows key + R, type services.msc and press Enter.
3. In the list, find Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service.
4. Right-click and choose Restart. If the service shows Stopped, choose Start.
5. Check that the startup type is set to Automatic.

Windows key + R  ->  services.msc  ->  Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service  ->  Restart

Then start AutoCAD again. If the service keeps stopping or is missing from the list, the service is damaged and you should reinstall it in the next step.

If you see the message "The License manager is not functioning or is improperly installed", check whether the service FlexNet Licensing Service 64 also exists in services.msc and is not disabled. It belongs to the network licence component and can play a role if the licence type is configured incorrectly. With a subscription, always set AutoCAD to single-user, because a network-configured installation looks in vain for a licence server.

Reset the licence by signing out, deleting LoginState.xml and reinstalling the licensing service.

If restarting does not help, reset the full sign-in state. Do this in the following order:

1. Sign out of AutoCAD via the user profile at the top right, option Sign Out. Also sign out of Autodesk Access.
2. Close all Autodesk programs.
3. Delete the file LoginState.xml, which stores the sign-in state.

%LocalAppData%\Autodesk\Web Services\LoginState.xml

If that does not work either, reinstall the licensing service. First stop the service in services.msc, then rename the service folder and reinstall the service using the installer file Autodesk provides:

Stop:     Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service (services.msc)
Rename:   C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\AdskLicensingService  ->  ...AdskLicensingService.old
Reinstall and start AutoCAD

Deleting LoginState.xml forces AutoCAD to obtain a fresh sign-in and a new token. In practice this resolves many cases where the software holds on to an outdated or invalid sign-in state, for example after you switched accounts or your subscription was renewed. After the reset, sign in again calmly and give the software a moment to retrieve the licence before concluding that it does not work.

For advanced users, Autodesk offers the utility AdskLicensingInstHelper, which lets you reset the licence type via the command prompt (as administrator). You can find it in the shared Autodesk folder under AdskLicensing. Use this only if the regular reset fails, and follow the official Autodesk instructions on licence errors for the exact parameters for your version.

Unblock the firewall, proxy and required Autodesk addresses so the licence can be retrieved.

On corporate networks, a firewall or proxy often blocks activation. AutoCAD must connect to Autodesk services over port 443 (HTTPS). Arrange the following with your network administrator:

• Allow outbound traffic to the Autodesk domains, including addresses on autodesk.com and the sign-in and licensing services.
• Put AutoCAD and Autodesk Access through the proxy or add them as exceptions.
• Check whether antivirus or endpoint security is blocking the licensing service.

If you cannot open any Autodesk page in the browser on that PC, the network block is the core of the problem and resetting only makes sense after the traffic has been unblocked.

If you work through a corporate VPN, test whether activation works with the VPN off. Some VPN configurations route licence traffic incorrectly or intercept the certificate. If it works without the VPN, the network administrator immediately knows where the block sits. On a PC that permanently sits behind a strict proxy, an exception rule for the Autodesk services is the long-term solution.

Each activation message points to a specific cause and matching solution.

Use this table to match the message you see to the right first step:

If someone else on the same licence can activate successfully, the problem almost certainly lies with the local PC or the account, not the licence itself.

Write down the exact message before you click it away. Two messages that look alike, for example an expired subscription versus an unassigned seat, require a different solution. The precise text and any error number also help you search with focus instead of blindly running through all the steps.

With a network licence, the cause lies on the licence server, not the workstation.

If you use a multi-user (network) licence instead of single-user, AutoCAD obtains its entitlement from a licence server running the Network License Manager. Activation problems are then solved differently:

• Check that the licence server is running and that the service lmgrd and the Autodesk component adskflex are active.
• Verify that the client knows the correct server address, usually in the form port@servername.
• Check whether there are still free seats; if the maximum has been reached, the next user will not get a licence until someone exits.
• Check that the firewall on the server opens the licence ports for both lmgrd and adskflex.

If you regularly work without a connection to the licence server, for example on a construction site, the administrator can enable licence borrowing. You then temporarily reserve a seat on your laptop, which automatically returns to the server after the set period. This prevents you from being left without a working activation while on the move.

Do not confuse the two types: a single-user problem is solved on the workstation; a multi-user problem is solved on the server.

If no step works, fully remove the licence components and perform a clean reinstall.

If the reset, service reinstall and network check all produce nothing, a clean reinstall of the licensing layer remains. Do this carefully:

1. Close all Autodesk programs and sign out everywhere.
2. Remove the Autodesk Desktop Licensing Service via Windows Settings, Apps.
3. Remove the remaining licence folders under ProgramData and the shared Autodesk folder.
4. Reinstall the licensing service using the Autodesk installation file and restart the PC.
5. Start AutoCAD and sign in again.

If it still goes wrong after that, collect the exact error message, your version number and the product type (single-user or network) and present them to your administrator or to Autodesk. With that information the cause can be traced much faster than with a general description that activation is not working.

Once AutoCAD is running again, you can get on with your work, for example exporting a DWG to PDF.