Why Does Adobe Require Reactivation of CS2 after a System Crash and Recovery?

Several times in the last 6 months my C drive crashes (for a variety of reasons not at issue here, although usually because WIN2000 becomes unbootable) requiring me to do a bare metal recovery by reloading the disk from the full system backup I create periodically using Acronis True Image backup software. After reload, everything but CS2 and Bridge work as usual. However, the CS2 msg requires me to click on a box that says something like Reregester or Reactivate. I do not have to rekey any license numbers or anything, just click the box and the rest was done automatically. The last time this happened the msg said something like I had run out of reactivations and I had to call Adobe to "reactivate" CS2. This is a real pain in the neck, particularly since system crashes do happen from time to time, where time to time is usually late on a Friday or Saturday night.

CS2 and its predecessor CS have been loaded on the same physical computer the entire time and they have only been installed on the one computer. I have never deactivated the software to move it to another computer.

I only have the problem after a crash and recovery from my backup disk image.

Since after a full restore, everything including the registry (WIN2000) are the same as before the crash, I have no idea why CS2 would even think there was a problem.

Regardless, is there something else I can do to ensure that CS2 does not think there is a problem? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

"JOHNCHAP2" wrote in message

Several times in the last 6 months my C drive crashes (for a variety of reasons not at issue here, although usually because WIN2000 becomes unbootable) requiring me to do a bare metal recovery by reloading the disk from the full system backup I create periodically using Acronis True Image backup software. After reload, everything but CS2 and Bridge work as usual. However, the CS2 msg requires me to click on a box that says something like Reregester or Reactivate. I do not have to rekey any license numbers or anything, just click the box and the rest was done automatically. The last time this happened the msg said something like I had run out of reactivations and I had to call Adobe to "reactivate" CS2. This is a real pain in the neck, particularly since system crashes do happen from time to time, where time to time is usually late on a Friday or Saturday night.

CS2 and its predecessor CS have been loaded on the same physical computer the entire time and they have only been installed on the one computer. I have never deactivated the software to move it to another computer.

I only have the problem after a crash and recovery from my backup disk image.

Since after a full restore, everything including the registry (WIN2000) are the same as before the crash, I have no idea why CS2 would even think there was a problem.

Regardless, is there something else I can do to ensure that CS2 does not think there is a problem? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Yes Adobe requires their paying customers to jump through hoops to protect their software
which of course, it does not
cracked versions also require reactivation after system restores but unlimited

"JOHNCHAP2" wrote in message

Since after a full restore, everything including the registry (WIN2000) are the same as before the crash, I have no idea why CS2 would even think there was a problem.

To make their license protection thing work, Adobe writes to an inaccessible part of the disc which is not backed up.

On Jan 31, 3:13 pm, "pico" <pico.pico.pico> wrote:

Adobe writes to an inaccessible
part of the disc which is not backed up.

I have not worked with Acronis True Image before but it is my understanding that imaging software works at a level below Adobe, below the OS and even below format and partition. I think an image means a bit for bit copy of the HD platter - bad tracks and all if you choose. I think it's more likely that Adobe is keying off of a time or bios change. It could detect a change in the boot ini but that should only change if the drive dimensions or location changed and it sounds like the OP is using the same drive each time.

On Jan 31, 4:13 pm, "pico" <pico.pico.pico> wrote:

"JOHNCHAP2" wrote in message

 

Since after a full restore, everything including the registry (WIN2000) are the same as before the crash, I have no idea why CS2 would even think there was a problem.

To make their license protection thing work, Adobe writes to an inaccessible part of the disc which is not backed up.

Very plausible. Do you know this for a fact or is it your speculation, however well supported? I vaguely remember in the distant past there was at least one product that did such a thing.

However, I thought that each machine or CPU had an ID that was accessible to the BIOS and OS, and that it was that ID that Adobe was using as a trigger. It could, of course be both methods combined. However, if it were the former, then simply moving the hard drive over to another machine would bypass their stupid protection.

On Jan 31, 4:38 pm, "" wrote:

On Jan 31, 3:13 pm, "pico" <pico.pico.pico> wrote:

Adobe writes to an inaccessible
part of the disc which is not backed up.

I have not worked with Acronis True Image before but it is my understanding that imaging software works at a level below Adobe, below the OS and even below format and partition. I think an image means a bit for bit copy of the HD platter - bad tracks and all if you choose. I think it's more likely that Adobe is keying off of a time or bios change. It could detect a change in the boot ini but that should only change if the drive dimensions or location changed and it sounds like the OP is using the same drive each time.

Actually no. When I have a crash such as the two I just had, I usually use a different hard disk since I can normally retrieve data, new since the last backup, off the old hard drive even if it won't boot. This approach only does not work if there has been a physical drive failure and not simply a boot failure, the latter of which is what happens most of the time. Frequently the sizes of the replacement disks might be different than the one being replaced, depending on what hard drives I have available at the time.

The responses so far have been informative. It is really ashame that the producers of a viable product such as CS2 could be so petty and amateurish when it comes to software licensing security.

JOHNCHAP2 wrote:

The responses so far have been informative. It is really ashame that the producers of a viable product such as CS2 could be so petty and amateurish when it comes to software licensing security.

Maybe this is a dumb idea, but could Photoshop run from a non-boot data drive? Boot drive crashes & gets swapped out, but Photoshop is still on same drive it was on, unchanged.

Pudentame wrote:

Maybe this is a dumb idea, but could Photoshop run from a non-boot data drive? Boot drive crashes & gets swapped out, but Photoshop is still on same drive it was on, unchanged.

You'd still have to re-install PS to get the registry entries (for example file associations) set. A re-install /might not/ be required on a Mac, but you wouldn't want any unfortunate surprises later on with a deadline looming.

(You can change the default program installation directory on Windows.)

Andrew