# Strategies for moving all your software and libraries to a new computer?



## krops (Oct 31, 2020)

Not sure if this is the most appropriate forum for this, but my PC is beginning to show its age, and I need to make sure I’m prepared when the time comes. The one thing I’m most concerned about is moving all my software (apps, vsts) and libraries to the new computer. It seems like every single manufacturer now has their own authorisation manager, and I shudder at the thought of going through all that. Sure, might be a good opportunity to strip down your bloated collections, but I don’t want all the money I’ve spent over the years to be a complete waste just because I haven’t had the time to put certain libraries to use.

So is this a situation where there simply aren’t any shortcuts, or are there measures that can be taken to at least speed things up a little bit?

Cheers


----------



## Henrik B. Jensen (Oct 31, 2020)

I don't think it needs to involve more than just switching your old hard drives to the new PC.

Edit:
With all dongles, use "Safely Remove Hardware And Eject Media" in the lower left right (!) corner of Windows 10. Before unplugging the dongles, that's what I mean.


----------



## ed buller (Oct 31, 2020)

I've just done it. It's ok. If you can move the drives to your new machine...this will help. Also try and beorginsed. Have all the purchase details and log in info handy. Most companies now feel your pain and will have a fairly easy system. This is true of ilok's too

good luck

e


----------



## jcrosby (Oct 31, 2020)

krops said:


> Not sure if this is the most appropriate forum for this, but my PC is beginning to show its age, and I need to make sure I’m prepared when the time comes. The one thing I’m most concerned about is moving all my software (apps, vsts) and libraries to the new computer. It seems like every single manufacturer now has their own authorisation manager, and I shudder at the thought of going through all that. Sure, might be a good opportunity to strip down your bloated collections, but I don’t want all the money I’ve spent over the years to be a complete waste just because I haven’t had the time to put certain libraries to use.
> 
> So is this a situation where there simply aren’t any shortcuts, or are there measures that can be taken to at least speed things up a little bit?
> 
> Cheers


I also depends on the developer. Some plugins use you mobo serial... (Plugin Alliance, Spectrasonics, Izotope [if you don't use ilok or their product manager], IK, etc...) I'd figure out which plugins have a machine based authorization and reach out about to them and ask if they have steps for de-authorizing an old machine... (Many don't and you just have to wait until you reach an authorization limit before reaching out.) 

And, If you don't have all of your serial numbers in a spread sheet now's a good time!


----------



## premjj (Nov 1, 2020)

This might help:





__





How to get rid of the plugins and samples on my old computer


How should I get rid of the plugins and samples on my old computer as it won’t be used for music anymore? Should I desactivate and uninstall each plugin or sample library according to some specific procedure related to each individual developer? Or can I simply reset the entire computer without...




vi-control.net





Edit: Do scan the whole thread. It has more inputs from other users on deauthorization of licenses when shifting your software to a different PC.


----------



## stixman (Nov 1, 2020)

Backup your most important files before adding old drives to new computer...while migrating 2 drives started acting up and are now bricks.


----------



## krops (Nov 3, 2020)

Thanks for the replies. I did use to keep a download archive with all kinds of installers and stuff, but so many developers now use proprietary download/installation managers, so I guess a lot of stuff needs to be handled that way now. I hope Kontakt libraries will play ball, so that all I need to do is install Native Access on the new machine and point it to the right location. That way I can definitely cut down on the time spent downloading huge files (and instead use it trying to track down serials in receipt emails or retrieving passwords for websites and stuff  ) Definitely making backups; I've got copies of my libraries on three external drives, but it's been a while since my last backup, so thanks for the reminder


----------



## krops (May 15, 2021)

Bumping this. I've now moved on to a new computer, and what's got me a little confused is that some Kontakt libraries allow me to simply click "locate" in Native Access, while on others, that button isn't there. Does anyone know why that might be? I should mention that I did not bring the old hard drive over; instead, I copied all the libraries onto the new one.


----------



## kitekrazy (May 17, 2021)

krops said:


> Bumping this. I've now moved on to a new computer, and what's got me a little confused is that some Kontakt libraries allow me to simply click "locate" in Native Access, while on others, that button isn't there. Does anyone know why that might be? I should mention that I did not bring the old hard drive over; instead, I copied all the libraries onto the new one.


That's only for Kontakt player libraries or ones requiring authorization.


----------



## krops (May 18, 2021)

kitekrazy said:


> That's only for Kontakt player libraries or ones requiring authorization.


But aren’t all libraries that are activated via Native Access by definition Kontakt Player libraries? Cause the libraries do show up in Native Access, but the only option is Install; there’s no Locate button, like on other libraries. Could it be that some libraries require Kontakt 5 for activation?

Edit: Ah, I didn't see that there were two other options, "install" and "add library", the latter being almost the same as "locate".


----------

