Activating Sonar

What is activation?

Activation is the process by which Sonar validates that you are running genuine Cakewalk software obtained from our servers and that you have a currently supported version. Running an updated version ensures a better user experience, by getting the latest features and fixes to the software. It also guarantees that your software stays activated, because you get a fresh activation lease every time you install an update.

Saving and exporting are disabled until Sonar is activated. Sonar can be activated by an online or offline process.

To activate Sonar

Sonar must be activated by using in-app activation or via Offline activation (see LINK).

If your computer is online, activation is an automatic process that typically only takes a second if you are signed in to your BandLab account from within the application. You must sign in to BandLab using the same credentials that you used to create your BandLab account. Once you sign in successfully, Sonar will be automatically activated. The activation process links the software to your BandLab account, and unlocks full use of the software. As long as you stay logged in to BandLab within Sonar, and use Sonar occasionally, it will automatically stay activated with no further user intervention required.

Sign in is prompted automatically only when needed, such as when the application is in a deactivated state, if the activation lease has expired and you are not signed in, or when you try to use feature that requires access to BandLab services.

You may also use any one of the alternate sign-in mechanisms such as using your Google, Apple, Facebook account info as long as you have associated those with your BandLab account. Occasionally, saved sign-in credentials may expire requiring you to sign in again. This happens very infrequently (every few weeks) and is a normal part of the single sign on security process.

If you are not prompted to sign in via a notification, you may also choose to sign in manually by selecting Help > Sign In to BandLab.

Offline activation

If Sonar is installed on a computer that is not connected to the internet, you can use offline activation as long as you have access to another computer that is connected to the internet. To use offline activation, follow these steps:

1.	In Sonar, go to Help > Offline Activation > Export Activation Request to open the Save activation request dialog box.

2.	Select the folder you want to save the activation request file to, then click Save.

Sonar saves a Activation request.crq file. This file is encrypted and machine-specific, and can only be used to activate Sonar on the machine that was originally used to create the Activation request.crq file.

By default, Sonar appends a timestamp to the file name, using the following format: <Month><Day><Year>_<Hour><Minute>. For example: 032823_1157Activation request.crq.

3.	Copy the Activation request.crq file to removable media, such as a USB flash drive, that you can transfer to another computer that is connected to the internet.

4.	On the online computer, launch Cakewalk Product Center (see Cakewalk Product Center) and sign in with your BandLab ID and password, then click Offline Activation.

5.	Select the Activation request.crq file.

6.	The app will process the request and return a Activation response.dat file if successful.

7.	Copy the Activation response.dat file to removable media that you can transfer back to your offline computer.

8.	On the offline computer, open Sonar and go to Help > Offline Activation > Import Activation Response.

9.	Select the Activation response.dat file and click Open.

If the response file is valid, the app is activated.

How long does activation last?

If you are signed in to BandLab and your computer is online, the application will stay activated without any user intervention. If your system is offline, however, the activation lease can last from 1 - 3 months, after which you will need to reactivate to continue using it. When this happens, an activation required notification will be displayed.

Activation may occasionally be required if you make major changes to your system such as installing a new OS, changing the motherboard, etc. Reactivation normally occurs automatically and seamlessly when you launch Sonar if it's needed. However, if you don't have an active internet connection, you will need to enable it or follow the offline activation steps.

Do I always need to be online for Sonar to work?

No. You only need to be online in order to update the software to the latest version or when activating it. If you choose the in-app activation method, under normal circumstances, activation will require no manual user intervention beyond the initial sign-in to BandLab. An internet connection is required to activate as described above but is not necessary for general Sonar usage.

Does signing in to BandLab or reactivating Sonar transmit information about my usage to BandLab?

The only purpose of activating Sonar is to register the software with BandLab and verify validity of the program. No other user data is transmitted during this process. The sign-in data is used to verify your BandLab user account identity during operations such as refreshing activation, or when using BandLab specific features to upload or download BandLab projects. No other data is transmitted.