Computer Appears as Disconnected Device in Waves Central

Nov 23, 2022

If you cannot manage your licenses in Waves Central because your computer appears under the Disconnected Devices tab in the Licenses page, these are the possible reasons and solutions.

Possible Reasons

Waves Central recognizes computers by their Network Interface Cards (NIC) MAC address. Hardware MAC addresses are assigned by the manufacturer and cannot be changed.

In light of the above, it may be that:

You are using a different computer.
The network adapter (NIC) or motherboard was replaced, in which case Waves Central is "seeing" your computer as a different machine.
You were using a network adapter (NIC) which is now disabled.
You were using VPN software which is now disabled or has changed its settings.
You were using some adapter (e.g. Thunderbolt to Ethernet, USB wireless adapter, etc.) which is now disconnected.
‘Random Hardware Address’ is enabled (Windows only).

Possible Solutions

If you are using a different computer but still have access to the first computer, please follow the instructions in the Move Licenses article. In case you don't have access to the first computer, use the Recover Licenses option from within Central.
If you are using the same computer and simply changed the way you are connected to the internet, revert to the way it was before. In case reverting doesn’t work, try the following:
- Disable all network adapters except for one:
  Windows: Control Panel > Device Manager
  Mac: System Preferences > Network
- In the top right corner of the Waves Central interface, click the Refresh icon next to your login name.
- Repeat the above steps, enabling a different adapter each time until your computer appears in the “Connected Devices" tab.
- Once done, you can re-enable all network adapters.

How to Turn Off ‘Random Hardware Address’ on Windows.

Find solutions to more Waves Central errors and issues here.

None of the above has worked? Please contact Waves Tech Support.