Autocad 2008 and windows 11 (2025)

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i don't think so, see here

https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/autocad/troubleshooting/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/Will-A...

Remember : without the difficult times in your LIFE, you wouldn't be who you are today. Be grateful for the good and the bad. ANGER doesn't solve anything. It builds nothing, but it can destroy everything...
Please mark this response as "Accept as Solution" if it answers your question. Kudos gladly accepted.

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Autodesk stopped authorizing AutoCAD2010 and older (that includes your old R2008) a couple of years ago" all you will get, if you get it to work, is a 30-day trial then it goes away forever.

And yes, it does not matter what you think you bought for a license type back in the day, sorry. Their software, their rules, they decided to move on.

Good luck.

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Thank you for the link. However, I did not find anything regarding AutoCAD
2008. I realize it's a very old version.

Again, thanks.

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The older the software, the less likely it is to work on newer operating systems. Third party software might help with emulating the older OS.

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you wrote

Thank you for the link. However, I did not find anything regarding AutoCAD
2008. I realize it's a very old version.

yes. your autocad 2008 will not work on windows 11.

Remember : without the difficult times in your LIFE, you wouldn't be who you are today. Be grateful for the good and the bad. ANGER doesn't solve anything. It builds nothing, but it can destroy everything...
Please mark this response as "Accept as Solution" if it answers your question. Kudos gladly accepted.

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Yes, as long as you still have access to a previous installation:

If you have access to your original installation, you can use the Portable License Utility.

1. Install AutoCAD on Windows 11 (Updated Workaround instructions for 64 Bit OS Install using Orca can be found on this forum)
2. Open the Portable License Utility (installed with AutoCAD), click on the 'Computers' tab and make note of your Windows 11 Computer Name and Identification Code
3. On the PC with the original installation:
   1. Open the Portable License Utility and click on the 'Computers' tab
   2. Click 'Add Computer' and enter the Computer Name and Identification Code retrieved in step 2
   3. Click the 'Licenses' tab and select the license to be exported
   4. Click the 'Export License...' button
   5. Select the Windows 11 computer added in step 3
   6. Click the 'Transfer file' radio button, browse to a location that will be accessible from the Windows 11 PC, and click the 'Transfer License' button to save the transfer file
4. Open the Portable LicenseUtility onthe Windows 11 PC:
   1. Select AutoCAD from the 'Product' select menu
   2. Click the 'Import License...' button
   3. Click the 'Use transfer file' radio button
   4. Click the 'Browse...' button, navigate to the file created in step 3 and click the 'Import' button
   5. Click the 'Close' button
   6. If your original license is valid, you should be all set

This method worked for AutoCAD Architecture 2008, 3DS Max 2008 and Inventor 9.

*****UPDATE*****

I am now a happy ProgeCAD user.

A week or so after posting the message above my AutoCAD license became corrupt and could not be reactivated, even following this method. Having begun my journey with AutoCAD starting with versions 1 and 2 back in 1985, I have spent thousands of hours using the software. I have also invested tens of thousands of dollars in the software as a representative of other businesses, and for my own. Being put in the position of having to find an alternative and being forced to learn a new system and abandon the near 40 years of experience I have with AutoCAD was infuriating. The option of being forced into purchasing a new license (the one I already own is perpetual) was also infuriating and wasn’t a realistic option in any case considering the now obscene prices they charge. Then I became aware of a software package named ProgeCAD, which uses all of the same commands I have spent years learning! Awesome! And, best of all, they use the same pricing structure that AutoCAD used to use – meaning it is AFFORDABLE! And even though the older version of AutoCAD I was using fulfilled my needs, I can now work with all of the newer file formats! Thank you ProgeCAD!

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I share you pain. Its like buying a car outright, and the manufacturer disables the ignition, stating simply that you need to now lease a vehicle from them. Been using AutoCAD for almost 30 years. I Do like the idea of ProgeCAD.

thanks.

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@carvellassociateswrote:

...I Do like the idea of ProgeCAD.

Other options if you are still on the fence

https://all3dp.com/2/best-autocad-alternatives/
https://beebom.com/free-cad-software/
https://www.google.com/search?q=alternates+to+autocad

@carvellassociateswrote:

...Its like buying a car outright, and the manufacturer disables the ignition,....

Not quite: learn more about software licenses here, it is quite enlightening how the laws are literally against the user:
https://www.webopedia.com/insights/owningsoftware/
https://www.allbusiness.com/the-difference-between-buying-and-licensing-software-928-1.html
and... well, there is so much out there to explain how software works in plain language, help yourself
https://www.google.com/search?q=do+you+own+a+software+license

Now you know.

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