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3 Year License Questions and Answers 

3 Year License Questions and Answers

Here are the answers to frequently asked questions about the three-year license now available to members of the Autodesk Education Community site.

1. What is a three-year license?
2. Which products are available for the three-year license?
3. Who is eligible for the three-year license?
4. Prior to the three-year license, what was the previous license term?
5. Must I switch to a three-year license if I already have a product installed, registered, and activated?
6. Is there a charge for a three-year license?
7. Will I need a new serial number for the three-year license term?
8. Will I need to re-download my product?
9. How can I determine my license end or expiration date?
10. How do I switch to a three-year license?
11. Do I need to do anything special if I am downloading a product for the first time?
12. What versions are supported with the three-year licenses?


1. What is a three-year license?
This license entitles users to a longer-term license than in previous years. The goal is to allow students and educators to use products for multiple years without the hassle of updating the license several times while in school. By doing so Autodesk helps to ensure that the users can use the product throughout the course of their university studies. Note that this license is available for students and educators worldwide and is available only via the Education Community website at www.autodesk.com/edcommunity. Per policy of the Education Community, this is a free license; however, it is subject to the terms and conditions of the student version end-user license agreement. As such it is intended for education use only.


2. Which products are available for the three-year license?
All products offered on the Education Community site have a three-year license entitlement.


3. Who is eligible for the three-year license?
The three-year license is available for free* to any member of the Education Community and therefore includes students and educators.


4. Prior to the three-year license, what was the previous license term?
The previous term was a 13-month license.


5. Must I switch to a three-year license if I already have a product installed, registered, and activated?
No, you can continue to use your product as is and let the license reach the expiration date.


6. Is there a charge for a three-year license?
No, there is no charge for those who download from Education Community. It is free just like the 13-month license. A perpetual license is available; however, this type of license is not available through the Education Community. If you require a perpetual license, contact your local academic reseller.

To find a local academic reseller, visit www.autodesk.com/education


7. Will I need a new serial number for the three-year license term?
Any product downloaded after August 16, 2010, will have the three-year license entitlement.

If you downloaded a product before August 19, 2010, you can request a new serial number for the three-year license. You will then need to update your product registration and activation.


8. Will I need to re-download my product?
You should not need to re-download your product if the existing 13-month license is not yet expired.


9. How can I determine my license end or expiration date?
The Product License Information screen of your product includes a field labeled “License Expiration Date.”


10. How do I switch to a three-year license?
If you are an existing product user with a valid license, you will need to request a new serial number from the Education Community.

To request a new serial number and activate it, follow these steps:

  1. Open your product and validate your existing license expiration date. Go to the Product License Information screen.
    1. Click the down arrow next to Help (Fig. 1) or the Help button directly (Fig. 2), and click About Autodesk XYZ.

      Figure 1



      Figure 2



    2. Click the Product Information button, which will open the Product License Information screen. The license expiration date will be displayed there (Fig. 3).

      Figure 3



  2. Log into the Education Community (www.autodesk.com/edcommunity).
  3. Click Get Software and look for the product you have downloaded.
    1. Click the drop-down menu to find the appropriate version you have downloaded.
    2. Click Get Serial (write down the serial number or store it in Notepad).
  4. Go back to your product.
  5. Go through Step 1 to get to the Product Information screen (if you closed your product).
  6. At the Product Information Screen, click Update.

    Figure 4



  7. Input serial number in the Update Serial Number field (see Fig. 4).
  8. Click OK.
  9. Follow the standard license activation process from here.


11. Do I need to do anything special if I am downloading a product for the first time?
No. After August 16, 2010, all licenses offered to students and educators from the Education Community are three-year licenses. You should follow the standard installation and activation procedures.


12. What versions are supported with the three-year licenses?
The three-year licenses support 2010 and 2011 versions of Autodesk® software products.


*Free products are subject to the terms and conditions of the end-user license agreement that accompanies download of the software. The software is for personal use for education purposes and is not intended for classroom or lab use.

Autodesk, Algor, Autodesk Inventor, and Inventor arei registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and services offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.