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Houdini Installed Licenses Don't Match SideFX Account

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Workaround available Windows, macOS, Linux Updated November 14, 2026How we research

Quick answer

An upgrade or extension shows in your SideFX account but not on the machine. Sync licenses from the License Administrator, run sesictrl sync-licenses, or import the .hlic file.

Most likely fix: Sync from the License Administrator

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

  1. 1. Sync from the License Administrator

    1. Open the License Administrator on the affected machine
    2. Use the option to synchronize licenses (recent versions)
    Did this fix it?

  2. 2. Sync from the command line

    1. Set up the Houdini command line environment
    2. Run: sesictrl sync-licenses
    3. If the option is not recognized, upgrade Houdini and retry
    Did this fix it?

  3. 3. Import the .hlic file manually

    1. Download the .hlic license file from your SideFX account
    2. Import it on the machine
    3. Check the upgrade now shows in the License Administrator
    Did this fix it?

Symptoms

Upgrade or extension appears in your account but is missing in the License Administrator.

Why it happens

  • Licenses were not written correctly to the machine's local licenses file

This guide also covers

  • houdini license not matching account
  • houdini sync licenses
  • sesictrl sync-licenses

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