I want to work offline!

For the moment it is not possible to work with BFD 3.4 offline.
This is a show stopper for me. If this is the way it is going to be, I won’t buy another BFD product ever!

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It’ll be addressed in the next build.

There is rumour however of a monthly on line check but hopefully it won’t happen.

Steve

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Maybe I´m the only one, but I´d prefer Ilok over any other available software protection since it allows for multiple installs that can be used as long I have my dongle plugged in.
For those that don´t like relying on a dongle there´s the cloudbased variant which seems to work pretty much like BFD/InMusic’s protection does for now - I´ve never used it though.

I also think that the users should have been informed about the online copy protection before migration assuming the Fxpansion versions of BFD/Licensemanager will continue to work. Info before the fact would have been nice anyway. :slightly_smiling_face:

Dongle: Absolutely not!

Things need to go back to using only a serial/key. The only people stopped by all this convoluted C/R crap are the legitimate owners/customers.

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No - I don’t like my Ilok as it is.

Only one thing I find unhelpful is the use of 0’s and O’s in the serial numbers.

As you get older and the Chinees make things smaller they become harder to see.

Neil

I absolutely agree. No Ilok for me, dongle or otherwise. Bring back the serial/key.

I also want to work offline as well, in fact I would prefer offline authorisation too. Also, once the I have been authorised I should be able to re-authorise at any time, whether it is because I had to re-install the OS, or if I got a new computer.

I recently resurected some old tracks and had to install old 32bit plugins to get them to work. Half the companies are now gone but I had all the serial numbers and keys so every one could be installed. Can’t say that about some of my more modern purchases.

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I’m using Cubase so I already have a dongle. I just put up with it. Steinberg announced they’re ditching the dongle in the future. That’s very good in my opinion.

When I’m looking at a new plug-in, the first thing I want to know is if it needs a dongle, a fancy protection system, an always online system etc. If it does, I pass. If 3 different plug-ins and DAWs use 3 different security methods, my system becomes a zoo. I wish to save my laptop’s usb ports for things that matter, switching off wi-fi to improve performance, etc etc. In short I wish to have control over my own hardware, and not be in a state of perpetual deciding on compromises.

Keep things simple, allow people to use your stuff with minimal fuss. Especially if you have an already established and popular product like BFD.

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I´d definitely prefer serial/key too, no argument there.
I´m just saying that between having to be online at all times (or even once a month) or having a dongle I prefer the dongle - based on my use which doesn´t mean it suits anyone else.

Sorry for replying to all your posts Steve - I’m not stalking, but I have to get this across!
The bfddrums website says that you do NOT need to be online to use the product. Indeed, you don’t ever need to be online - just have to transfer a file (once) from a PC that is online. Since we all purchased our BFD products with this in place, changing it would be a breach of contract and they can refund us all.

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BFD is in the trash here until this is fixed. Hey , I tried

You might be right about that although I guess inbrandmusic might argue that as it’s only a, ‘periodical’ on line check’ it can be overlooked.

I’ve seen a lot of posts on here from people who either haven’t seen Drews post or seem to have misinterpreted it somehow. All I’m trying to do is allay their fears and calm things down a little.

Steve

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I would sat that that’s Drew’s job to do and his comments were ambiguous so in fact I would suggest they’re not being misinterpreted at all given he has not elucidated on the original comment which I think was on Gearspace. Also your suggested time frames of phoning home every 3-4 months isn’t really helping: it’s the fact it’s doing it at all which is annoying people.

I just found my old the boxes for BFD1, 1.5 and 2 - I have been there since the beginning and do not want to be treated like a criminal. Checking up on me every few months? Who the f*** do inMusic think they are?

Found the quote from Gearspace by Drew (my bold):

"It is not expected behaviour that packs go unlicensed when you’re offline. That’s a bug.

But there IS currently an expectation that the user go online every so often which is something I am raising as a UX issue."

I’m guessing he’s busy doing other stuff but whether it’s his job or not I felt it needed to be said.

My point was that people seemed to have already decided that it was definitely going to happen or at least that’s how they were talking.

I don’t think Drews post was ambiguous, people were asking him for confirmation as to whether it was going to happen or not and he couldn’t say either way because no decision had been reached but he was trying to persuade them not to. I don’t think that’s ambiguous.

The 3 or 4 month thing whether helpful or not is just speculation, it’s not down to me.

I read Drews original comments thanks.

Steve

I think you misunderstood me. The online behaviour is as currently expected by BFD/inMusic - in that quote Drew is talking about expansions going offline as being the bug - people are talking about BFD3 app not launching/crashing because they are offline, that’s different.

This is, from all appearances, exactly how it was intended to work. Maybe BFD/inMusic thought they could sneak in a crafty check with no-one noticing - I didn’t notice because I’m always online. Call me a cynic.

I think it’s an ‘expectation’ for the future and not related to what’s happening now though? :thinking:

Hence Drew saying it’s currently being discussed.

The information I got was slightly different in that he said, "there is a bug currently where if you’re offline, the auths become inactive.

You can take auths to be just for expansion kits or for both BFD3 and libraries, I take it to be the latter but I could be wrong. I guess to test my theory I could remove all libraries from the BFD3 contents page, disconnect my Ethernet cable and see if BFD3 licence manager wants to go on line.

Steve

Yes, future expectations that we will be online. Thats the issue.

Honestly, pointing out a bug is one thing, but arguing with every post that says they dont like the concept isnt helping, adding yet more speculation to the proceedings isnt helping.

InMusic will have a PR department that deal with this stuff.

I am glad that you have pointed this out as I have asked repeatedly for the official explanation, policy and attitude to offline working. This lack of clarity only fuels the uncertainty and confusion. Come on BFD/inMusic level with us.

I am guessing that there are disagreements within their ranks about how to implement security.

I haven’t argued with one single post and if you’ve read my posts you should have noticed that I too am against the idea as I’ve stated on several occasions. Also that I have expressed that it’s pointless to speculate over something that may or may not happen.

Steve

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Just two posts of yours up, youre adding speculation to the mix and have done in a few responses.

You replied to me personally with ‘im against it, but is it really that hard to have to go online a few times a year?’, both trying to argue the point that its not a big deal and adding further speculation. Its not calming at all, but I wasnt irate in the first place thankfully, and obviously, how you deal with that knowledge is up to you :slight_smile:

Im just saying pointing out the bug and leaving it there might be more beneficial :slight_smile:

Hey all. I appreciate the confusion and annoyance at the offline situation and the lack of clarity.

So here’s the situation:

  • There’s a bug where expansion packs were not available when offline, when using 3.4.0.24. This needs to be fixed. I thought we had it in 3.4.1.11, but some users are reporting otherwise.Investigating.

  • To run BFD offline, users have to be logged into the BFD License Manager application, and BFD has to have been given consent by the inMusic website. Once you’ve done that, BFD3 should run offline, and all expansion packs should be available. If this isn’t the case, then it’s a bug.

  • The current implementation is - if you are online then BFD License Manager will check you still own a valid license every month. But everything should still work perfectly offline, you don’t have to be online the whole time. If you’re going offline and things become invalid, then that would be a bug and I need more details from you.

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