Why is there a watermark on my perpetual/serial Red Giant license?

This FAQ is for users who have a perpetual license/serial number.

If you own a subscription license (e.g. Red Giant Complete, Maxon One, Universe) consult this FAQ.

The majority of perpetual/serial watermarks are resolved by following either of these sets of steps below:

1. Download and install the latest version of the Maxon App.
2. Sign into the Maxon App with the same email you'd used to purchase your perpetual license.
   • Even your license was purchased through redgiant.com, sign in (or create an account) using the same email you'd used before.
   • You can check if the email you're using has a Maxon or Red Giant perpetual license associated with its Maxon account after you're signed in on the Licenses tab of my.maxon.net, with Legacy Licenses toward the bottom.
     • Only purchases through redgiant.com or maxon.net directly will be reflected here; not perpetuals from resellers (e.g. ToolFarm, B&H, etc.)
3. Uninstall whatever versions of plugins you have installed.
   • Since the majority of watermarks on perpetual licenses occur because the wrong version of the product is installed, and because installing some versions does not overwrite others, make sure you've uninstalled whatever you currently have installed.
   • To uninstall through the Maxon App, select the Uninstall option in the menu alongside of the "Red Giant" section the "Products" tab. 
     
4. From here, there are two activation options:
   • Option 1: If you purchased your perpetual license through Maxon.net (after 2020), check that the perpetual license now says it's activated within the Maxon App.
     • If the perpetual license hasn't activated already after you signed in, use the "Licenses" tab in the Maxon App to the assign your license.
       
   • Option 2: If you purchased your perpetual license through redgiant.com and received a serial number, consult this FAQ.
     
     • If you purchased your serial from elsewhere, Red Giant and Maxon do not track purchases through resellers; you will need consult with whatever vendor you'd acquired your serial from to retrieve it.
5. Once all of the above steps are complete, reinstall your purchased product.
   • • Note that all Red Giant Legacy users will need to contact support to acquire installers for older purchases. You can open a support ticket here. Please include the OS that you are using in your inquiry so that we can send you the correct installers.