iPad License Keeps Logging Out

You've activated an iPad license, used it successfully at one event, and the next time you open FMX (iPadOS) the license is asking you to log in again or showing as "in use elsewhere". In almost every case this comes down to how the license heartbeat sees the device, and it can be cleared in a few quick steps.

This article walks through what is happening behind the scenes, the immediate fix you can run yourself, and the longer-term steps that keep it from coming back.

Quick Diagnostics

Before contacting support, check these:

1. In Cloud > Account > Licenses, what does the Activated column say for the affected license? "Yes" means the system thinks the license is in use somewhere.
2. How many iPad licenses do you own, and have you ever used the same key on more than one iPad? Even briefly testing on a second device can leave the license "stuck" as activated there.
3. Did you switch Wi-Fi networks or change Apple IDs on the iPad recently? These can interrupt the license heartbeat that tells the Cloud "I'm still in use here".
4. Did you receive a password reset email that you did not request? This is sometimes related and you should not reset if you did not initiate it.

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Common Issues

Problem: My iPad license self-logs out, and I can't log back in -- it shows "error" or "in use"

Cause: The license session on the Cloud side did not close cleanly the previous time you used it. The Cloud still thinks the license is logged in to a software session somewhere, so it refuses to start a new one. This can happen if FMX was force-closed, the iPad was put to sleep mid-session, or the network dropped while the heartbeat was being sent.

Solution (immediate workaround):

1. Open cloud.fotomaster.com on any device (phone or laptop is easiest).

2. Go to Licenses in the left sidebar.

3. Find the affected key (in the Cloud, you'll see the key prefix or the last 4 characters -- match it against your records).

4. If the Activated column shows Yes for the license you're locked out of, that's the bug. Contact support@fotomaster.com or use the chat widget and say:

   "Please deactivate license [last 4 characters] on your end -- it's stuck as activated but I'm logged out of the iPad."

5. Once support deactivates it (usually within minutes during business hours), reopen FMX on the iPad and log in normally. It will work.

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Problem: This keeps happening to the same license over and over

Cause: Usually the license heartbeat does not get a clean "session ended" signal -- for example when the app closes during a network drop -- so the Cloud still treats the iPad as active the next time you sign in. Our R&D team is working on making the heartbeat self-recover, and in the meantime the steps below clear it quickly.

Solution:

1. Reach out to support whenever it happens -- we will unblock you and log the details, which also feeds directly into the fix our R&D team is working on.
2. Try this prevention pattern: at the end of every event, open FMX > Settings > Account > Log Out explicitly. Just closing the app or shutting down the iPad does not always send a clean session-end signal to the Cloud.
3. Try to stay on one network during an event. The license heartbeat checks in best on a stable connection.
4. Keep iPadOS and FMX up to date. Newer FMX versions handle the license session lifecycle more smoothly on iPad. Note that FMX for iPadOS 1.1.8+ requires iPadOS 18 or higher -- see iPad System Requirements.
5. If you have multiple licenses and only one is affected, ask support to swap the affected license key for a new one. This sometimes resolves it permanently.

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Problem: I got a password reset email I did not request, and now my license won't work

Cause: Sometimes the Cloud login flow (especially on iPad) ends up triggering a password reset prompt instead of the normal login. If you ignore the reset email and try to log in normally, you may see a license error.

Solution:

1. Do not reset your password if you didn't initiate it. Just close the email.
2. Go to Cloud Dashboard > Licenses in a browser to confirm your license is still listed and to check the Activated status.
3. If Activated shows Yes but you can't log in, follow the immediate workaround above (ask support to deactivate the license on our end).
4. If your password genuinely was changed without your knowledge, contact support immediately -- this could indicate someone else has accessed your account.

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Problem: I have multiple iPad licenses and they're getting confused

Cause: When you have several FMX (iPadOS) licenses on the same Cloud account, it is easy to log in to the wrong one on the wrong iPad, leaving the original device unable to authenticate.

Solution:

1. Label your iPads physically (e.g., "iPad 1", "iPad 2", "iPad 3") and assign each one to a specific license key. Write the last 4 characters of the key on the back of each iPad.
2. In Cloud > Licenses, name your licenses descriptively (you can usually rename them) so you know which is which.
3. When you set up a new event, double-check in the event's General > License field that the correct license is selected for the iPad that will run that event.
4. If two iPads end up logged in with the same key, only the most recent will work -- log out of the unwanted one immediately.

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If None of This Works

If your iPad license keeps self-logging-out despite trying the steps above, contact us at support@fotomaster.com or via the chat widget at fotomaster.com. Tell us:

• The license key (or last 4 characters)
• How many iPad licenses you own in total
• Whether the same license is the one that always fails, or if it's intermittent across all of them
• When it last happened and what you were doing immediately before
• Any upcoming events so we can prioritize

We can deactivate the license from our end in minutes. For the few licenses that have this problem repeatedly, our R&D team is actively working on a root-cause fix and your reports help us reproduce it.