Installation & Licensing
Your Free Trial will last for 7 days and it begins as soon as you install any of the premium plugins.
Continuing to use the plugins after the trial has ended
When your trial ends, you will retain access to the 4 free plugins. If you wish to continue using all premium plugins, you will now need to purchase the subscription. To purchase, please log in to your account and click on Subscribe now (or here if you are a business requiring Team Licensing).
You’re under no obligation to automatically renew when your subscription is nearing an end. In the Billing section of your account you can opt to either pause the subscription renewal until you choose to renew again, or cancel altogether so that your subscription will cease to exist entirely.
On your subscription, you receive ALL plugins and all plugins are automatically updated and upgraded to newer versions during your subscription period. When your subscription ends, it will be necessary to renew it to continue using the plugins.
Once you have paid for your subscription, simply click on the Install All button in Astute Manager. See How do I install for further advice.
Uninstalling
If you wish to uninstall the plugins, please see our step-by-step guidance on uninstalling.
The subscription only requires one account which contains all plugins, this account is then useable on 2 computers owned by you.
If you are a business with employees using our subscription then you will require multiple accounts. This can be done through our Team Licensing system.
We allow installation and activation on up to two computers used exclusively by the same person. For example: If you have a machine only you work on in your office, and your own machine at home, you can install and activate on both machines.
This applies to both Windows and/or Mac OS computers, be they desktop, laptop, tablet, etc.
If you wish to use the products on more than 2 machines, or for further colleagues to also use the products, additional licenses will need to be purchased, as the volume of licenses required will reflect the number of users. For Team Licensing please ensure that you contact us and request to be made a Team Owner before purchasing.
When you sign up for the Free Trial and download the Astute Manager, you will receive 4 plugins for free; MirrorMe, DirectPrefs, AstuteBuddy and Autosaviour.
Your 7 day trial begins as soon as you download any premium plugin, but you can use the free plugins before you begin your trial and keep them after the trial has ended. Simply quit Illustrator then download the installer from the Downloads page of your account to get started.
If you decide to purchase the subscription after the 7 day trial has ended, you can do so in the safe knowledge that you have a further 7 days to request and receive a refund, no questions asked.
We're proud to say that our plugins pay for themselves after 3 days and we're certain you won't be disappointed, but whatever your decision, you get to keep those 4 free plugins.
Please quit illustrator and download the Astute Manager (this can also be downloaded from the "Astute Manager" tab/page of your Customer Account).
If you're beginning a Free Trial, click the Menu button near the top right of the Astute Manager and select "Install all plugins" (if you prefer to install the plugins individually, you can click on the individual install button beside each plugin). The trial will begin as soon as you install any premium plugin.
If you're moving from a Trial then click "Subscribe" on your account dashboard. to purchase your subscription.
Now depending on your computer follow:
Further information
With an Astute Graphics subscription, every plugin release is guaranteed for the current version of Illustrator. If a plugin has been upgraded the Astute Manager will automatically offer you the chance to install the major new release.
Internet
You will need direct internet access to purchase, download, activate, operate and regularly maintain activation status for the plugins. It is highly recommended to have the Astute Manager loaded in the menu bar/task bar to ensure that you are not inconvenienced with temporary license inactivity.
Changing your computer
If you intend to change the computer on which you already have any of the Astute Graphics products activated, ensure that you first de-activate the license before making the change. Failure to do so may result in abuse of your license and subsequent blocking of future activations (see below for further information).
Trial and licensing introduction
You can download and install our plugins, then trial them for 7 days free of charge. During those 7 days, the plugins will provide you with full functionality just as the paid versions would. This will ensure a complete experience of the plugins before purchasing. Once the Trial period has ended, you will no longer have access to the tools until a purchase has been made. However, you will still have full access to any files created, even after the trial period has ended. You will also still have access to the free plugins.
How many computers can I install on?
The number of licenses bought indicates the number of eligible users at any one time. We allow installation and activation on up to two computers used exclusively by the same person. For example: If you have a machine only youwork on in your office, and your own machine at home, you can install and activate on both machines (this applies to both Windows and/or Mac OS computers, be they desktop, laptop, tablet, etc). If you have multiple versions of Adobe Illustrator on a single machine, there is no need to buy multiple versions of our plugins. During the installation process you will be asked to specify which versions of Illustrator should get your new plugin. You can choose them all, or specify individual versions. Your License can be applied to Windows or MAC as they are OS agnostic.
Please note that it is not possible to use a license across two system user accounts. We are also not compatible with simultaneous multi user virtual machines such as Azure Virtual Desktop.
If you wish to purchase more than one license, please refer to our Team Licensing and ensure that you contact us with the request to be made a Team Owner before purchasing.
De-activating your computer
If you intend to change computer or discard your existing licensed computer, it is essential that you first de-activate your license. Failure to do so may result in abuse of your license key which will result in the license being blocked for future use. Please refer to How do I Deactivate or Uninstall my plugins?
If you were to break a computer or if it crashes on you, the licensing system is able to cater for this situation in that so long as users are not able to access the originally activated machine, the license can be reused on the new computer. Accordingly there should be no issues when you reinstall on a new system however, if there is a problem do not hesitate to let us know and we will resolve this for you.
Requirements:
You need to be a current (paid) subscriber of the Astute Graphics service in order to access beta releases.
Access to the Astute Graphics Slack community (free): http://bit.ly/ag-slack
Astute Graphics subscribers have the opportunity to access forthcoming releases early, allowing not only quicker access to more efficient and creative workflows, but also provide feedback to influence the direction of the new features.
All beta releases have already passed through internal testing, so are true "beta" and not "alpha" releases. Therefore, whereas we can't assure that these beta releases will be perfect - and we do ask for feedback in relation to issues discovered - they can be considered for integration into commercial workflows.
How to access beta releases
Quit Adobe Illustrator and open the Astute Manager
Navigate to your "My account" page via the user menu:
Join Astute Graphics Beta Programme step 1
Scroll down the "My account" page and click on the Become a plugin beta tester button:
Join Astute Graphics Beta Programme step 2
If you agree with the text, click on the Enable beta access button:
Join Astute Graphics Beta Programme step 3
Your user icon should now indicate you are a beta tester:
Join Astute Graphics Beta Programme step 4
You can now navigate to the plugins and plugin updates pages. Any beta releases will be listed as normal. Updating your plugins to these are via the normal process.
Information about the latest beta updates will not be stated in the plugins update page within the Astute Manager or website. For information, overviews, training and more, please visit the Astute Graphics Slack community and navigate to the #beta channel.
We as beta testers to provide as much feedback as possible, which really helps ensure solutions that really help our customers.
If you wish to leave beta access
Quit Adobe Illustrator and open the Astute Manager
[Recommended] Uninstall all plugins
Navigate to the "My account" page
Scroll down and click on the Leave the beta plugin channel button and follow instructions:
Join Astute Graphics Beta Programme step 5
Re-install the plugins you require
Troubleshooting
If, after enabling or disabling beta access, upon running Illustrator any of the tools are not licensed (you may see a warning in a panel such as "ID:8"), uninstall all plugins and reinstall.
This method is only applicable if you are a legacy customer who hasn't yet moved to our subscription. Legacy licenses are licenses purchased before 12 September 2019.
For installation of the last available versions of our plugins on Adobe Illustrator CS6 to Illustrator 2019 (for both Windows 7 / 8.1 / 10 and macOS 10.10+) please see the Unified Installer Installation Method.
For installation of older plugins purchased pre June 2017, please see the Legacy Unified Installers.
Please note that if you have tried the subscription with the Astute Manager then before you revert to older plugins using the Unified Installer, ensure that you use the Astute Manager to first uninstall all subscription versions of the plugins.
Your legacy license keys can be found within the email/s received from us upon purchase of your legacy license/s.
Check your compatibility.
Go to the Free Trial registration page and enter your details.
Choose a password of at least 6 characters and accept the terms of service.
You will then be sent straight to the account system page where you will be able to download Astute Manager and get started immediately.
You will also receive a Free Trial welcome email with a link to the Astute Manager. If you don't find the email immediately, you can continue from the website.
Please note that (particularly if you are a gmail or Hotmail customer) the email(s) may go into your Promotions/Other or Junk folder, so please check there if you don’t see it in your inbox.
Please follow the guidance for installing on macOS or installing on Windows.
You will receive 4 free plugins which you can use before the trial begins and keep after the trial has ended.
Installing any premium plugin will automatically start your free 7 day trial. No payment details are taken.
You will need uninterrupted internet connection to successfully install, if you have slow internet access this may take a little while.
For plugins that have finished installing, you should see a green tick next to each one.
Please see the following support articles for further guidance:
- Plugin management options in Astute Manager
- I'm having problems installing, what should I do?
The act of signing up to our Free 7 Day Trial will create your customer account if you don’t already have one. Your account is then already created if you decide to sign up for a subscription (your card details will only be taken if you decide to purchase). Please refer to our Privacy Policy for details of how to edit/request account deletion.
To get your free packs, you need to have purchased the subscription.
Once you have signed up, simply login to your Customer Account or Astute Manager and navigate to Texture Packs where you can download each pack.
The packs are:
Concrete and Cement
Grunge
Paper Textures
Samples
San Francisco
Shadows and Highlights
Textiles
Walls
Wood
Want to learn more? Let Chris Spooner demonstrate show how to quickly add texture to a vintage logo in Illustrator using the Texturino plugin.