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October 14, 2026
Answered

Adobe Creative Suite 5 activation limit reached after deactivation and uninstallation

Hello everyone,

I have a legitimate license for Adobe Creative Suite 5, and I would like to transfer the software to another computer.

Before uninstalling CS5 from my old computer, I used the Help → Deactivate option in Photoshop and possibly in some of the other applications included in the suite. However, I am not sure whether I needed to deactivate only one application or each application individually.

I then uninstalled the software from the old computer. Now, when I try to install and activate CS5 on another computer, I receive a message stating that the activation limit has been reached and that the software is already activated on two computers.

I understand that uninstalling the software does not automatically deactivate the license. However, I believe I performed the deactivation before uninstalling it.

My questions are:

  1. Does deactivating Photoshop deactivate the entire Creative Suite 5 package, or must each application be deactivated separately?

  2. Is there any way to check or reset the activation status after the software has been uninstalled from the old computer?

  3. Is it still possible to transfer a legitimate CS5 license to a new computer, or is there another workaround for this activation issue?

I would appreciate any advice from someone who has experienced the same problem or successfully resolved it.

One additional detail: On the old Windows 10 computer, I clicked the Deactivate option in Photoshop. The button then became greyed out, but I do not remember seeing an explicit confirmation that the deactivation had completed successfully. I subsequently uninstalled the entire CS5 suite.

The installer accepts my serial number, but after installation, Photoshop reports that the activation limit has been reached. I still have access to the old computer and the original installation files, so I could try reinstalling CS5 there if necessary.

Is there a way to verify whether the previous deactivation was successful, or to release the activation without affecting my working installation on the other computer?

Thank you in advance for your help.

    kglad
    kgladCorrect answer
    Community Expert
    October 14, 2026

    regarding q1: deactivatimg ps was sufficent to deactivate the suite.

     

    re q2;  no

     

    re q3:  there’s no way to reset an activation count other than using a computer that has a current activation.

     

    bottomline:  see q3.  there’s no work-around and we see lots of people having a computer that fails to convey the local deactivation to adobe’s servers.

    3 replies

    kglad
    Community Expert
    kgladCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
    Community Expert
    October 14, 2026

    regarding q1: deactivatimg ps was sufficent to deactivate the suite.

     

    re q2;  no

     

    re q3:  there’s no way to reset an activation count other than using a computer that has a current activation.

     

    bottomline:  see q3.  there’s no work-around and we see lots of people having a computer that fails to convey the local deactivation to adobe’s servers.

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    leo.r
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    October 14, 2026
    Is there any way to check or reset the activation status after the software has been uninstalled from the old computer?


    I don’t think so. If you haven’t already uninstalled the software, you could try to run it on the old machine and see if it’s still activated.

    Regardless, you seemed to make all the correct steps. But knowing that status wouldn’t make any difference anyway. ​@Manan Joshi has already provided a link with the official info from Adobe.

    If you truly wanted to keep using CS5, you had to keep using it on the old machine where it was already successfully runnning.

    Other than that, CS5 reached its end of life years ago and its activation servers are not maintained. If you can’t activate it then it’s unlikely that anything can be done.

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    Community Expert
    October 14, 2026

    Check out the post linked below. If that does not resolve your problem then I am afraid there is not other way out of this. Adobe has pulled down the licensing servers so the Adobe Support also won’t be able to help

    https://community.adobe.com/announcements%2D616/activation%2Dlimit%2Dreached%2Dfor%2Dnon%2Dsubscription%2Dadobe%2Ddesktop%2Dapplications%2D565112

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    -Manan