An activation represents a working installation of ShareGate Migrate for a specific Microsoft user on a specific machine.
Activations are pooled at the Workspace level. When you sign in to ShareGate Migrate, an activation is automatically drawn from the available pool, so manual assignment is not required.
For example, with 5 activations in your Workspace, you can have 5 different Microsoft users running ShareGate Migrate on their own computers, or one user running it on 5 different machines.
Before you start
You need a ShareGate account and access to a Workspace that has available activations.
Create a ShareGate account
You can get a ShareGate account in two ways:
Trial registration: Go to home.sharegate.com and register. A Workspace is created automatically with your trial.
Workspace invitation: Accept an invitation email from a Workspace owner. If you don't have an account, you'll be prompted to create one during the process.
To learn how a workspace admin can send an invitation to the workspace, see ShareGate Workspace admin settings.
Note: A business email address is required. Personal email domains such as Hotmail and Gmail, as well as disposable email services, are not accepted.
Tip: Use a regular business account to invite someone to your workspace or to create your ShareGate account. It will be easier to remember the login information and receive ShareGate account-related emails.
Workspace members do not have to use that same account to connect to their Microsoft 365 tenant in the app after activation.
Accept a Workspace invitation
Open the invitation email from your Workspace admin.
Click the link in the email.
Create your ShareGate account or sign in if you already have one.
You are now a member of the Workspace and can activate ShareGate Migrate.
Activate ShareGate Migrate
Install and open ShareGate Migrate. If you don't have it, download it here.
When prompted, click Log in.
If your machine is offline or can't access the ShareGate services, see Offline activation.
Enter your email and password in the browser window that opens.
Click Open ShareGate Migrate to return to the app.
If your account is associated with multiple Workspaces, select which one to use.
ShareGate Migrate automatically uses an available activation from your Workspace pool. You're ready to use the app.
Note: If you encounter any issues activating ShareGate Migrate, ensure you have the latest version installed, then try again.
If the issue persists, ask a Workspace admin to verify that you have access to ShareGate Migrate and that an activation is available on the Members page in the Workspace section of ShareGate Home.
Manage and transfer your ShareGate Migrate activations
To review and manage your activations in ShareGate Home:
Sign in to ShareGate Home.
Click on your Workspace's name in the top-right corner of the screen.
Select Workspace overview from the dropdown.
In the Workspace overview, you can deactivate and release a ShareGate Migrate activation tied to your account by clicking the trash can icon next to it.
You can also deactivate ShareGate Migrate directly in the app to release that activation for use by another user or on a different machine.
To transfer your activation, deactivate ShareGate Migrate on the machine where it's currently installed or in ShareGate Home, then activate it on another machine.
Note: Since an activation is tied to your account and machine, changing your machine or Windows domain name invalidates it. If that happens, deactivate the activation in ShareGate Home so you can use it to activate ShareGate Migrate in the changed environment.
Activation limit
If activation limits are exceeded, ShareGate Migrate displays an Activation Limit Reached message.
If all activations in your Workspace are in use, you can free one by transferring an existing activation (see above).
A Workspace admin can also remove other members' activations or upgrade the ShareGate subscription to get more ShareGate Migrate activations.
Workspace admins can get the following activation limit email notifications:
80% warning: sent when 80% of activations are in use.
Limit reached: sent when all activations are in use, and no more are available.
Workspace admins will have an additional Admin option in the sidebar menu of ShareGate home to manage access to ShareGate Migrate and activations for other members.
To learn to manage activations and Workspace membership as a Workspace admin, see ShareGate workspace admin settings.