Troubleshoot errors during activation

You activate CleanMyMac X with an activation code or the email you used to purchase the app but get a message about some error. Most commonly, it's "CleanMyMac X could not check its license and has been deactivated," "The network connection has been lost," or "The request timed out," though there may be other errors as well. Such errors usually occur because of minor issues with some settings on your Mac or connection problems.

Try the solutions on this page one by one till successful activation. But if you see a message reading, "There's been an unexpected error," go to this troubleshooting article first.

• Solution 1: Check Date & Time settings
• Solution 2: Check Firewall settings
• Solution 3: Choose a different network or reset your connection
• Solution 4: Use safe mode
• Solution 5: Clear browser history, cache, and cookies
• Solution 6: Collect logs and contact our Support

Solution 1: Check Date & Time settings

Inaccurate date and time on your Mac may cause issues authenticating your account when you activate CleanMyMac X. To make sure your Date & Time settings are correct, do this:

1. Click the Apple menu  in the upper-left corner of your screen and choose System Settings > General > Date & Time.
2. If the "Set date and time automatically" setting is off, turn it on. Alternatively, specify your time zone manually. The point here is to set the actual date and time on your Mac.
3. Try to activate CleanMyMac X again.

If this doesn't help or the date and time were initially accurate, proceed to Solution 2.

Solution 2: Check Firewall settings

The firewall may sometimes block even secure connections to your Mac and not let you install or activate trusted apps. To make sure the firewall is not interfering with CleanMyMac X activation, do this:

1. Click the Apple menu  in the upper-left corner of your screen and choose System Settings > Network > Firewall.
2. If Firewall is on, turn it off and try to activate CleanMyMac X again.
   After you activate the app, don't forget to turn Firewall back on, if that's your preferred setting.

If you still cannot activate CleanMyMac X or the Firewall setting was off initially, go to Solution 3.

Solution 3: Choose a different network or reset your connection

Your Wi-Fi network might be insecure, or some of its settings might not be correct. Such issues can prevent CleanMyMac X activation. To get around them, do the following:

1. Click the Wi-Fi status icon in the menu bar. Or, click the Control Center in the menu bar, then click the Wi-Fi icon.
2. Switch from your current network to any other secure Wi-Fi or hotspot connection.
   If you don't have an alternative network to connect to, reset your current connection (see how you can do that in our FAQ) or use a VPN.
3. Try to activate CleanMyMac X again.

Not fixed? Proceed to Solution 4.

Solution 4: Use safe mode

Looks like some caches or third-party extensions on your Mac may hinder CleanMyMac X activation. To fix this potential issue, do this:

1. Start up your Mac in safe mode. See detailed steps for Apple silicon and Intel-based Mac computers in the macOS user guide.
2. Activate CleanMyMac X in safe mode.
   In this mode, your Mac runs only essential system processes, so it's less likely that anything blocks the app's activation.
3. If the activation is successful, restart your Mac to leave safe mode.

If errors still occur, try Solution 5.

Solution 5: Clear browser history, cache, and cookies

Old cache and cookies in your browser may cause issues connecting to our server when you activate CleanMyMac X. Follow these steps:

1. Go to your browser settings and clear history, cache, and cookies. See detailed instructions on how to do that in Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.
2. Try to Activate CleanMyMac X again.

Didn't work? Then, move on to Solution 6.

Solution 6: Collect logs and contact our Support

If none of the above solutions helped, the cause of the error might be a little tricky. Our Support Team needs to step in. Please do the following:

1. Turn on extended logs in CleanMyMac X and retry activation.
2. Collect CleanMyMac X logs.
3. Create a help request and attach the logs to it. In your request, also briefly explain the issue and let the Support Team know which troubleshooting steps you tried.

Thank you! One of our Support Engineers will get back to you in no time.