Creative Cloud / Enterprise License issue

[jdertinger]

This just happened to me this morning. I'm on an Enterprise License on multiple machines. I use a free Creative Cloud account just so I can sync my preferences and project files to the cloud. I've done this for the past 3 years without any issues. Even if the Creative Cloud Desktop app says the installed apps are trials the enterprise license overrides that and the apps open and run fine. Until this morning, for whatever reason, one of my machines wont let me open the apps because the trials ran out. I haven't installed or changed anything in the past month so not sure whats going on. Please advise!

[alisterblack]

Is your Enterprise License a serial number or are you signing in?

If you sign in with an Adobe ID that has no entitlement then I would expect it to go to a trial version.

Either sign in with the ID that has entitlement or re-apply the serial number.

Creative Adobe Creative Cloud license file

[flipphillips]

I'm having a similar issue here.

• Our college has an enterprise license. It is licensed under an Adobe ID for one of the IT folks (can, of course, supply info off-line, but here -- IT@COLLEGE).
• I have my own 'sub-license' I suppose one would call it where I am entitled to two active installs, based on our college's enterprise license. My account uses my Adobe ID, my school email address (ME@COLLEGE). The idea here is to allow faculty to handle their own installs rather than deploying the entire CC across all machines across campus. I have a machine in my office and a laptop - so I use up my installs / activations with those.
• The 3 machines in my laboratory (2 macOS and 1 PC) have CC apps on them, and they have been serialized w/ the Adobe serializer. The serializer was, apparently, generated using IT@COLLEGE Apple ID. (I can see that in the .XML of the serializer)
• This way, the students in the laboratory can easily use the various tools we need across multiple machines, etc.
• I too can use them BUT ...
• If I log into the CC app so I can sync my CC Libraries (pretty much the whole reason I'm doing this, so I can work on laptop / office machine and, when necessary, come back to the lab and use CC Library there) it destroys the Enterprise (IT@COLLEGE) license and subsequently insists that I deactivate my license on my other two machines so I can use the ME@COLLEGE ID.
• Subsequent runs of any CC apps ask for a license.

I've tried a few clever/annoying things like changing the permissions on the SLXXX directories (love it when commercial software creates directories on your system, in system-reserved areas, that are GLOBALLY +rw like Adobe. DEFINITELY not a security issue, cough), the one thing that 'sort of works' is to

1. log in to CC via ME@COLLEGE
2. Run Serializer

The problem here is that, it would seem that after a few minutes, something happens in the CC App that reverts everything back to wanting to be running under ME@COLLEGE. If I quit/start Photoshop, Illustrator, etc, it asks for ME@COLLEGE to turn off logins on other machines, I've exceeded my 2, lord help us, etc. I'm guessing if I turn off the syncing in CC maybe this won't happen (but then defeats the purpose of having CC?)

Obviously this takes administrator privileges on the lab machines, which I have, and my student's don't - so it's not a terrible generic risk, but, we're a little concerned around here that anyone with an Adobe ID other than the one that CC is serialized under can screw up the serialized lab installs (if they have admin).

So- our question is- what is best practice here? I want my students / lab workers to be able to use CC in the lab w/o getting a THEM@COLLEGE CC account (our IT is not interested in setting up that potential s-show) but I want to use it too, with my CC library, etc.

[alisterblack · Accepted solution]

To use services such as CC libraries, you need to be using 'Named User' login with an Adobe ID (or Enterprise/Federated ID).

These services cannot be used with a serialised install.

Unfortunately the behaviour you report is exactly what I would expect to see. There is no way to easily switch back and forth between the two means of entitlement.

If you are concerned about ensuring that students cannot sign-in then I would make sure the CC Desktop App is removed, or not included in the package when deployed.

Uninstall the Adobe Creative Cloud desktop application

[flip_phillips]

OK, thank you. That's what I was afraid of.

So- what is the proper alternative here? It seems like I can't use CC to the full extent of our license / what we pay for, since I don't have access to those services on my lab machines. The restriction of only two installs per Adobe ID, in this case, is limiting this I suppose.

Am I simply 'up a creek' here?

[alisterblack]

I'm afraid it is an either/or situation. Either you use Named User sign in with access to services or the serial number. Very often serial number is used to block access to services.