With a free slot you can skip the first two steps and activate the new Mac straight away.
Macs and devices
One license covers 2 Macs. See where it's active, move it to a new Mac, and free a slot from a Mac you no longer have.
- Slots
- 2 Macs per license
- Where
- Settings → Account → Devices
- On
- Mac
How slots work
A license activates on up to 2 Macs at once. Settings → Account lists them under Devices, with “This Mac” on the current one and a footer like “1 of 2 device slots used”.
iPhone and iPad never take a slot; they have no license. Deactivating a Mac frees its slot right away.
Move to a new Mac
On the Mac you're leaving, open Settings → Account.
Under Devices, click Deactivate on This Mac and confirm. That Mac drops to the free plan; nothing in its library changes.
On the new Mac, activate your key in Settings → Account.
Free a slot from a Mac you no longer have
On any Mac with your license, open Settings → Account → Devices and click Deactivate on the other Mac. It drops to limited access the next time it checks in.
Or sign in at resurf.so/license/manage and deactivate it from the Devices list there.
Questions
Activation says I've used all my device slots.
Deactivate a Mac you no longer use, from Settings → Account → Devices on a licensed Mac or at resurf.so/license/manage, then activate again.
Can my partner use my license on their Mac?
A license is for one person. Each person needs their own; the 2 Macs are for your own machines.
I wiped a Mac without deactivating first.
Its slot is still taken. Free it from Devices on another licensed Mac, or at resurf.so/license/manage.