cs2

September 6, 2006 4:26 PM

Ok , i need to get photoshop cs2 running again.....

it was on my hard drive , it still is , i got a new hard drive , motherboard etc and installed a different type of xp than i had , i went from pro to home edition , i now have two hard drives - the previous one being the slave - when cs2 fires up it cant find any code no's and wont proceed - is there a way to find these files and copy them to my new windows on my new hard drive ? i would reinstall it , but i cant find my copy at all , my house can be very shambolic at times.

posted by sgt.serenity to computers & internet (12 comments total)

Might be in the registry. Look through the Adobe keys & copy those over.
posted by devilsbrigade at 4:42 PM on September 6, 2006

And it is. For PS7 (I'm cheap) the path is HKLM/SOFTWARE/Adobe/Photoshop/7.0/Registration/SERIAL.
posted by devilsbrigade at 4:44 PM on September 6, 2006 [1 favorite has favorites]

With, you know. Backslashes instead of forward slashes, because Windows is ass-backwards.
posted by devilsbrigade at 4:45 PM on September 6, 2006

er , how do you get to the hklm bit ? i'm no too smart : (
posted by sgt.serenity at 4:47 PM on September 6, 2006

Try to import your old programs and settings from the old XP install using the Windows Migration wizard thing.
posted by mathowie at 4:50 PM on September 6, 2006

HKLM = HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
posted by devilsbrigade at 4:51 PM on September 6, 2006

er...how do you get to that ?
posted by sgt.serenity at 4:51 PM on September 6, 2006

You need to fire up 'regedit' from the 'Run' menu. Then you'll see a tree structure on the left and a pane on the right, like Windows Explorer. Navigate through the tree to the path for CS2. Once you drill down to HKLM/SOFTWARE/Adobe/Photoshop you should be able to find it assuming it's there.

'HKLM' means 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE'.
posted by Dipsomaniac at 4:52 PM on September 6, 2006

er , cant seem to use the migration wizard , it asks for to start up the previous version of xp which cant start due to the total upgrade....
posted by sgt.serenity at 5:04 PM on September 6, 2006

I doubt you can. CS2 requires activation and I'm sure its more than some registry keys.

Either find that install disc or call Adobe and see if their tech support can help you transfer the activation to your new hard drive.
posted by mphuie at 5:12 PM on September 6, 2006

You need to reinstall it. There is no practical way to do what you're trying to do with a large and complex app like Photoshop, especially one that has activation whose explicit purpose is to tie it to one machine so that it can't be just casually copied around.
posted by Rhomboid at 5:49 PM on September 6, 2006

Without your install disk you're going to have to throw yourself on Adobe's mercy, give 'em a call and explain. Btw, you licence allows for two activations so with the disk it should be a simple matter of reinstalling and activating, then call Adobe and tell em the first machine is no longer in use, and they'll probably go ahead and free that activation up so you'll still have your second one available.
posted by scheptech at 6:43 PM on September 6, 2006