Generate New Computer ID for NI Software Activation

Your Computer ID is tied to unique hardware pieces from your computer, the Computer ID of a desktop computer is typically obtained from the computer's MAC address and the Computer ID of a laptop is commonly obtained from the hard drive's disk volume serial number. 
 
NI Product Activation will use the Computer ID by default. However, there are cases where it is useful to generate a new Computer ID based on a different piece of your computer's hardware. For example, if you are including licensing when creating a computer image, if you have multiple computers with the same computer IDs, or when using a Mac Bootcamp partition.
 
A new Computer ID can be generated based on either:

• The Ethernet card's MAC address.
• The hard drive’s disk volume serial number.

 
Generating a new Computer ID for activation is handled on a case-by-case basis and must be requested through NI. To inquire about eligibility, contact NI Support with your organization name, your serial number, the product(s) to activate, and their version(s).
 
Follow the steps below to obtain your MAC Address or disk volume serial number for activation and the best way to contact NI Support to create a new computer ID. If instead, you are looking for steps to find your current computer ID, visit Finding Unique NI Computer ID for Activation and Licensing.
 
Note:  This activation method will not work if you specify a disk volume serial number or MAC address associated with hardware from a different computer. Your Computer ID cannot be changed arbitrarily because it is tied to one of the unique hardware resources in your computer.​​​​

Option 1: Obtain a MAC address for a Network Card

1. Open a command prompt. Press Windows logo key + R and type cmd, then press Enter.
2. In the command prompt, type ipconfig /all and press Enter.
3. Your MAC Address will be listed under Physical Address with the syntax XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-XX.

 

 

Option 2: Obtain a Disk Volume Serial Number

1. Open a command prompt. Press Windows logo key + R and type cmd, then press Enter.
2. If you do not want to change the current hard drive, ignore this step and continue to step 3.
   1. In the command prompt, change the active directory to the drive of interest by typing the letter followed by a colon. For example, "C:". Then press Enter.
3. Type vol and press Enter. 

 

 

Contact NI to generate a New Computer ID

Once you have obtained your MAC address or disk volume serial number, contact NI to request a new computer ID for activation. Note that generating a new Computer ID for activation is handled on a case-by-case basis, and reaching out to NI does not mean that you will be eligible to utilize this method. 
 
 Contact NI Support with the following information:

• Organization Name and Department.
• NI product(s) to activate.
• Product version(s).
• Serial Number(s).
• Your MAC address or disk volume serial number.

 

Activate Your Software

After receiving a new computer ID, activate the software using Activation Codes. Visit Activate NI Software Without Internet Connection to find steps on using Activation Codes.