Administering a Network License

Note: If you've purchased a SketchUp Subscription, there is no license information to administer. When you sign into SketchUp it will automatically sync with our servers and authorize SketchUp for use. The information below will only apply to older versions of SketchUp, or SketchUp 2019 using a Classic License. Administration for SketchUp subscriptions will be handed in the Trimble Account Manager.

For your SketchUp Pro network license to work, ports 5053 and 50530 must be open. You also need to authorize SketchUp Pro on the computers that will use it.

If you're distributing SketchUp across a larger network, you may wish to use the MSI file (Windows 64-bit installer) or to use a disk imaging package, such as Norton Ghost or Deep Freeze.

Tip: In either distributed-installation strategy, you can simplify the licensing process by including a file that pre-populates the serial number and authorization code for users so they don’t need to enter it themselves.

To fill in the serial number and authorization code for users, follow these steps:

  1. Ensure that the appropriate version of SketchUp Pro is installed on all computers.
  2. Create a file named activation_info.txt.
  3. In that file, add your network serial number and authorization code in the following format:
    {
    "serial_number":"YOUR SERIAL NUMBER",
    "auth_code":"YOUR AUTHORIZATION CODE"
    }
    Tip: Be sure to include the quotation marks in the file as well as the commas. For example, the activation_info.txt file could look something like this:
    {
    "serial_number":"QA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    {
    "serial_number":"RA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    {
    "serial_number":"SA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    {
    "serial_number":"TA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    {
    "serial_number":"UA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    {
    "serial_number":"VA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh"
    }
    Tip: If you have an expiring (single-user) Enterprise license and you plan on renewing your upgrade, maintenance, and support plan, you can further modify the activation_info.txt file to maintain the license and extend the expiration date without any further changes to the license. To do so, add a third line with this flag: "allow_reactivation":"true". With the third line, the full contents of the activation_info.txt file look like this:
    {
    "serial_number":"RA-99999999-ALR",
    "auth_code":"ab3de21fgh",
    "allow_reactivation":"true"
    }
  4. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2015. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2015.
  5. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2016. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2016.
  6. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2017. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2017.
  7. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2018. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2018.
  8. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2019. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2019.
  9. Save the file and distribute it to each machine. On Microsoft Windows, distribute the file to C:\ProgramData\SketchUp\SketchUp 2020. On Mac OS X, distribute the file to /Library/Application Support/SketchUp 2020.
  10. Launch SketchUp on each machine or ask your users to open SketchUp Pro. In the Welcome to SketchUp dialog box that appears, click the Add License button at the top and then click Add License in the License area that appears.
  Alert: If "allow_reactivation":"true" is added later, you will need to remove and re-add the license with the adjusted activation_info.txt file.
Need to perform an Silent Installation? Check out our article on how to do it.
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