AutoCAD 2011 Not all Previous Version licenses are available after activating an Autodesk Design Suite

Issue

You have purchased and activated one of the Autodesk Design Suites or a product that is also available in an Autodesk Design Suite, e.g., AutoCAD 2011, AutoCAD Architecture 2011, etc.  Later, you purchase and activate a different Autodesk Design Suite and notice that you do not have access to all the licenses you expect for the previous versions of the products that are common between those suites.
Example #1:
You purchased and activated five licenses of Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2011 and, on another day, you purchased and activated two licenses of Autodesk Design Suite Advanced 2011.  Because you are on Subscription and have previous version support, you expect to have access to seven licenses of AutoCAD 2010-2008 (a common product between the two Suites) however only two licenses are available for these product versions.
Example #2:
You purchased and activated five licenses of AutoCAD 2011 and, on another day, you purchased and activated two licenses of Autodesk Design Suite Advanced 2011.  Again, because you are on Subscription, you expect to have access to seven licenses of AutoCAD 2010-2008 (a product that is available in the Suite and as a separately installed product) however only two licenses are available for these product versions.
Note: Previous Version Support is a Subscription benefit that allows you to run the current version of a product plus the three previous versions (if they exist). For more information, see the following:

• Autodesk Subscription: Use of Previous Version FAQ
• How Previous Version support affects license usage in Autodesk 2012 Suite products

Solution

There is a known issue when combining Autodesk Design Suite licenses where the license manager will evaluate the previous product versions that are common between an Autodesk Design Suite and a previously installed product or Suite and provides only the number of licenses for the last Suite that was activated.  Using the first example from above, you would have access to all seven licenses of AutoCAD 2011 but only two licenses of AutoCAD 2010-2008.  This is because the Suite with two licenses was added at a later date than the Suite with five licenses.  If both Suites had been activated on the same day, all seven licenses would be available for the previous product versions.
To resolve this issue you need to obtain a new package license file containing all the licenses (old and new) in a single file, issued on the same day. The issue date can be determined by inspecting your license file and looking for the ISSUED= section in each increment.  For example:
PACKAGE 64300ACD_F adskflex 2.000 COMPONENTS="71200ACD_2010_0F \
             57600ACD_2009_0F 54600ACD_2008_0F 51200ACD_2007_0F" \
             OPTIONS=SUITE SUPERSEDE ISSUED=25-May-2010 SIGN="1242 937A \
Please contact Customer Service Assistance to submit a service request for a new, consolidated, package license file.

Note: This issue does not affect the current version of products that are common between the Autodesk Design Suites (or between an Autodesk Design Suite and an installed product that is common to both); it only affects the previous versions of products that are common between the product installations.

AutoCAD Civil 2011 Object Enabler

The Civil Object Enabler is a freeware application that you can use to access AutoCAD Civil 3D drawing files. This release allows object data created in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011 to be accessed outside the AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011 environment.
Note: Save the Readme to a local drive to view the contents.
Attempting to open the .chm Readme directly from the website may result in an Action Cancelled error. If you are opening the Readme on Windows Vista, you may need to unblock the file. Right-click on the file and select Properties. On the General tab, select Unblock, then OK. Once you have unblocked the file, you will be able to double-click and open the file.
If you are installing on 32-bit OS such as Windows XP Pro 32-bit, Windows Vista 32-bit or Windows 7 32-bit, please download the file Civil_2011_OE_32Bit.exe, and download the file Civil_2011_OE_64Bit.exe if you are installing on 64-bit OS such as Windows XP Pro 64-bit, Windows Vista 64-bit or Windows 7 64-bit.
Attention Autodesk Storm and Sanitary Analysis 2011 Extension users: The AutoCAD Civil 2011 Object Enabler can also be applied to the latest release of this extension. Autodesk Storm and Sanitary Analysis is a 32 bit application, so you will need to install the 32 bit OE, regardless of your OS.

Top Four Reasons Why You May Receive a Serial Number Error During Activation

1. Typos are made during activation

Take care entering these values as you registering and activating your products, so that you don’t inadvertently transpose or skip numbers or letters.

• Serial Number
• Host Name (only valid for Network Licenses)
• MAC or Physical Address (only valid for Network Licenses)
• Host ID (only valid for Network Licenses)

2. The serial number you are attempting to use does not match the product

There are several scenarios in which this mismatch can occur. Before registering and activating your license, please be sure the Serial Number you are using matches the product and release of the product and the type of license you have purchased.

• The serial number is valid, but is associated with a different product (e.g., AutoCAD LT 2010 versus AutoCAD)
• The serial number is valid, but is associated with a different version of AutoCAD (e.g., AutoCAD 2009 versus AutoCAD 2011)
• The serial number is valid for a network deployment, but you are trying to activate the product as a standalone license (and vice versa)

3. The serial number you are attempting to use is truly not valid anymore

There are a couple of scenarios in which a serial number can be made obsolete. Before registering and activating your product, please be sure the Serial Number you are using matches the product and release of the product and the type of license you have purchased.

• The serial number is associated with a product or a release of a product that you are not licensed to use
• The serial number is obsolete and has been replaced with another serial number, in an effort to simplify a Subscription contract

4. The contact information you are using does not match what is already associated with the Serial Number when the product was registered

This usually occurs when there is a change to your name, the name of your company, or your address after the product was registered. Be sure to keep your contact information up to date in Register Once. There, you can add an account with your current information, register products to that account, and delete your old accounts, or those with outdated information.

Autocad2011: Error installing SP1 for Autodesk Navisworks

When attempting to install SP1 for your Autodesk Navisworks 2011 product you receive the error:
"Error 1402. Could not open key"

Solution

The cause of this issue is related to a key held by the Navisworks exporters.  To resolve this issue, a temporary removal of the exporters should help. Here are the steps:

1. Access the Add/Remove Programs option from your Control Panel.
2. Click on 'Autodesk Navisworks 2011 32/64 bit Exporter Plug-ins' (NOT the Language Pack option).
3. Click the 'Uninstall/Change' button.
4. Click 'Add or Remove Features' option.
5. UNCHECK ALL of the checked options.
6. Click 'Next' and follow the prompts to remove the exporters.
7. Once the exporters are removed, install Service Pack 1 for your Autodesk Navisworks 2011 product.
8. After the Service Pack is installed, access the Add/Remove Programs option from your Control Panel.
9. Click on 'Autodesk Navisworks 2011 32/64 bit Exporter Plug-ins' (NOT the Language Pack option).
10. Click the ' Uninstall/Change' button.
11. Click 'Add or Remove Features' option.
12. Click 'Restore Defaults' to automatically check the appropriate options.
13. Click 'Next' and follow the prompts to install the exporters.

If this process does not correct the issue, remove the exporters completely. This process requires you to have the original installation files or to download the installers from the Autodesk website. 
Here are the steps:

1. Access the Add/Remove Programs option from your Control Panel.
2. Click on 'Autodesk Navisworks 2011 32/64 bit Exporter Plug-ins' (NOT the Language Pack option).
3. Click the ' Uninstall/Change ' button.
4. Click 'Uninstall' and follow the prompts to uninstall the exporters.
5. Once the exporters are removed, install Service Pack 1 for your Autodesk Navisworks 2011 product.
6. After the Service Pack is installed, install the exporters.

How to perform an automated uninstallation of AutoCAD

Issue

You want an automated method for completely removing AutoCAD 2011 and related plug-ins from a system.

Solution

The provided VBScript will detect and uninstall 32-bit or 64-bit versions of English AutoCAD 2011 and language pack.  It will also provide the option to uninstall the following plug-ins (if found):

• AutoCAD 2011 Subscription Advantage Pack
• AutoCAD WS plug-in for AutoCAD 2011
• AutoCAD 2011 VBA Enabler

If you have multiple AutoCAD 2011-based products installed, these modules may be in use by more than just AutoCAD 2011.  Do not uninstall them if they could be in use elsewhere.
The VBScript will then remove folders and registry keys related to the uninstalled product and plug-ins.

http://images.autodesk.com/adsk/files/Uninstall_ACAD_2011.zip.

Warning!

• Although this script has been tested on multiple operating systems and environments without issue, it is provided "as-is" and with no implied warranty or guarantee. Please read the disclaimer at the top of the script and use at your own discretion.
• This script only uninstalls the English version of AutoCAD 2011. No other products or languages (including AutoCAD-based verticals) will be removed.
• We strongly recommend backing up any custom files before proceeding.
• Disable any Anti-virus that may be running on your machine before running the script.
• Ensure you are a Administrator on your machine before running this script.
• The above script does not remove the Autodesk Material Libraries as these may be shared with other Autodesk 2011 products. If you wish to uninstall the Material Libraries, please use the standard uninstall methods.
• After the script is finished, it is a good idea to reboot your system to help ensure complete cleanup.

How to add multiple updates to a deployment of an AutoCAD 2011 product

Issue

You need to create or modify a deployment of an AutoCAD 2011 product such that it includes the latest update plus all previous updates.

Solution

Unlike previous releases, Update 2 for AutoCAD 2011 products do not include the fixes from the previous 2011 updates. This means that you must install the previous update before installing Update 2. It also presents a new workflow when creating deployments where you now have to include multiple updates in a deployment at the same time.
Note: AutoCAD 2011 Update 1 was subsequently replaced by Update 1.1. For simplicity, when this solution specifies Update 1, it is referring to Update 1.1 for AutoCAD 2011 and Update 1 for all other AutoCAD 2011 products.

1. Using the table above, download both Update 1 and Update 2 for your AutoCAD product from the Autodesk website.
2. Open a Windows command prompt and navigate to the folder where you downloaded the update files.
3. Extract the MSP files from the executables by entering the update file name followed by the /e switch and a target file name. For example:
   
   AutoCAD2011Update2.exe /e .\AutoCAD2011Update2.msp
   AutoCAD2011Update1.1.exe /e .\AutoCAD2011Update1.1.msp
   
   or
   
   ACM2011Update2.exe /e .\ACM2011Update2.msp
   ACM2011Update1.exe /e .\ ACM2011Update1.msp
   
4. Launch the AutoCAD 2011 product installer and click “Create Deployments”.
5. Enter all of the information as you would for a typical deployment.
6. On the “Create Deployment” page, click the “Configure” button.
7. Click the “Next” button to get to the “Include Service Pack” page.
   
   Warning: If you are modifying an existing deployment and the “Merge the Service Packs into the administration image MSI file” is selected and grayed out, the Administrative image was creating using the “Merge Service Packs” option. You cannot add updates to this deployment and have new updates installed with the deployment. You must create a new Administrative image in a different folder.
   
8. Select the option for “Include Service Pack(s) from local drive or local network”.
9. Click the “Add...” button, and select the Update 1 MSP file you extracted.
10. Repeat, using the “Add...” button to select the Update 2 MSP file (Update 2 cannot be added without Update 1).
11. If you are creating a new deployment, you may use either of these options:
    
    
12. Click “Next” when you are done adding the Service Packs.

Continue to create or modify the deployment as described in the documentation.