Frequently Asked Questions

Our plugins are protected by iLok, which means that you must own an iLok account (or iLok ID), that you can create at www.ilok.com. You will also need to install the free “iLok License Manager” application, which can be downloaded from the same site.

To use our plugins, whether with a purchased license or a demo license, you must do one of the following:

• Deposit the licenses on a physical iLok USB dongle
• Open an iLok Cloud session, which requires a stable internet connection while you use the plugin.
• or activate the license on the local computer, which enables offline use of the plug-in once activated.

Here is a step-by-step guide for installing and activating your free trial.

1. Make sure you have an ilok.com account
2. Download the plugin installer from the “Downloads” section of the product page
3. Install the plugin
4. Start your DAW.
5. The following screen should appear, either during the plugins scan or when adding the plugin to a track. Click on the Try button.

   

6. If the following screen appears, enter the user name and password for your iLok account and hit Next, otherwise skip this step.

   

7. At this point, the license for your plugin is deposited on your iLok account. This license must still be activated (either on an iLok USB dongle, in an opened iLok Cloud session, or on the computer). If you don’t own an iLok dongle and you have a stable internet connection when you use the plug-in, then hit OK. Otherwise, click No.

   

8. If you own an iLok dongle and want to put your license on it, select the dongle in the list and hit Next.

   

9. Otherwise, select the computer icon and hit Next. This will allow you to use the plug-in offline and without an iLok dongle. Warning: in this case, please disable the license before making any changes to your computer hardware or operating system, otherwise you may lose your license.
   
10. This is it, you’re done !

Note that you can always open the iLok License Manager application to transfer your license between your iLok account, your iLok dongles, your iLok Cloud session, and your computer. All license transfers temporarily require an internet connection.

The Cloud sessions can also be opened or closed from the File menu of the iLok License Manager.

When you buy a product on our website you will receive a confirmation email with the subject “Your Pulsar Order is now complete”. This email will contain an activation code, as in the following image:

After downloading and installing the plugin (and the iLok License Manager if it is not already installed), start your DAW. You should see a screen like this appear:

Click on the Activate button

Enter your code (you can copy-paste it) and hit Next. Now if you’re not already logged in your iLok account, the following screen will appear. In this case, enter the user name and password for your iLok account and hit Next.

At this point, the license for your plugin is deposited on your iLok account. This license must still be activated (either on an iLok USB dongle, in an opened iLok Cloud session, or on the computer):

Warning: You may not be able to use Cloud Activation if you got a Pulsar plug-in for free.

If you don’t own an iLok dongle and you have a stable internet connection when you use the plug-in, then hit OK and you’re done! Otherwise, click No, and you’ll see the following window:

If you own an iLok dongle, plug it and it will show on the list. Then you can select it and then click Next. Otherwise you can activate on the computer by selecting the computer icon and clicking Next. This will allow you to use the plug-in offline and without an iLok dongle. Warning: in this case, please disable the license before making any changes to your computer hardware or operating system, otherwise you may lose your license.

Note that you can always open the iLok License Manager application to transfer your license between your iLok account, your iLok dongles, your iLok Cloud session, and your computer. All license transfers temporarily require an internet connection.

The Cloud sessions can also be opened or closed from the File menu of the iLok License Manager.

Once you activate a trial license, the license is only deposited on your iLok account.

Before you can use the plugin, the license must be activated either on an iLok USB dongle, in an opened iLok Cloud session, or on the computer. This also applies to paid licenses.

The following steps show you how to activate a license on the computer.

• Open the iLok License Manager application and login to your iLok account
• Click on the large button at the top left to display the licenses available in your iLok account
• Drag your Pulsar license from the list in the right panel to the computer icon in the left panel

The following steps show you how to activate a license on a Cloud session.

• Open the iLok License Manager application and login to your iLok account
• Check if you have an open Cloud session (a cloud icon should appear in the left panel)

• If no Cloud session is open, open the “File” menu and hit “Open Cloud Session”

• Click on the large button at the top left to display the licenses available in your iLok account
• Drag your Pulsar license from the list in the right panel to the Cloud icon in the left panel

This message can appear if you have already entered an activation code but did not activate it on a dongle or in iLok Cloud immediately afterwards.

You don’t need another activation code ! Your license is safely stored in your iLok account, and must simply be activated in order to use the plug-in. The possible activation locations are an iLok USB dongle, an opened iLok Cloud session, or the computer.

Here’s how to activate a license on a Cloud session:

• Open the iLok License Manager application and login to your iLok account
• Check if you have an open Cloud session (a cloud icon should appear in the left panel)

• If no Cloud session is open, open the “File” menu and hit “Open Cloud Session”

• Go to the “Available” tab at the top, and find your license in the list.

⚠️ If you don’t see the tabs at the top, make sure you are logged in and that the application window is large enough, and click on the button marked with your username.

• Drag your Pulsar license from the list in the right panel to the Cloud icon in the left panel

Here’s how to activate a license on physical iLok:

• Open the iLok License Manager application and login to your iLok account
• Go to the “Available” tab at the top, and find your license in the list.

⚠️ If you don’t see the tabs at the top, make sure you are logged in and that the application window is large enough, and click on the button marked with your username.

• Connect your iLok dongle, and wait for the corresponding icon to activate in the left panel
• Drag your license from the list to the icon corresponding to your iLok

Here’s how to activate a license on the computer:

• Open the iLok License Manager application and login to your iLok account
• Go to the “Available” tab at the top, and find your license in the list in the right panel.

⚠️ If you don’t see the tabs at the top, make sure you are logged in and that the application window is large enough, and click on the button marked with your username.

• Drag your license from the list to the computer icon in the left panel.
• It’s done ! Just remember to deactivate the license before any changes are made to the computer hardware or operating system, otherwise you could lose it permanently.

You get 3 activations per purchased license.

This means you can use our plugins on two computers simultaneously with a single license. However, since you can’t open an iLok Cloud session on two computers at the same time, you’ll have to use an iLok dongle or a computer activation for at least one of them.

• The iLok dongle is the solution generally recommended for professionals. It enables you to use the plugins without an internet connection during use, and to effortlessly move the licenses from one computer to another. Moreover, since the licenses are stored on the key, you don’t risk losing them in case of a problem with the computer.
• If you have a stable internet connection while using the plugins, iLok Cloud is a good solution, because moving the license from a computer to another is as simple as opening a Cloud session on the new computer (it will automatically close it on the old one). There’s no risk you lose the license, because it is safely stored on the Cloud.
• If you don’t have an iLok key, and want to use the plugins offline, you can use computer activation. This solution is convenient, but it will be more complicated to move the license from one computer to another, and you have to be very careful to deactivate the license before any changes are made to the computer hardware or operating system, otherwise the license could be irretrievably lost.

Remember that we allow two activations per license, which allows the plug-in to be used on two computers simultaneously. You can therefore combine several of the activation solutions described above. For example you can have one activation on the computer and one on the iLok Cloud, or one on an iLok dongle and one on the computer. The only thing that is not possible is to have two activations on iLok Cloud (because only one iLok Cloud session can be open at the same time).