Dorico SE 6 keeps switching back to Elements 6 on Windows 10

Shoobidoo · August 19, 2025, 7:29pm

I’ve had a trial of Dorico Elements 6 that I uninstalled today after deciding to wait with purchasing it, and run SE in the meantime (the trial has not run out yet, it expires on the 11th September). So, I uninstalled Dorico using its uninstaller in Apps and Features. Then I deleted all the downloaded files and related instruments in Steinberg Download Manager. Then I deactivated Dorico Elements in the Steinberg Activation Manager, and activated Dorico SE.

After downloading and installing Dorico again, it started up as Dorico SE. However, the next time I started it, it started up as Elements. So checked in the Steinberg Activation Manager, and Elements had magically been activated again, and SE was still activated. So then I deactivated Elements again, started Dorico, SE came up, closed Dorico, Elements came up, and on that goes… Also, the Dorico icon in the taskbar frequently turns into a blank icon. My Win 10 is a recent fresh install, so no other issues.

Any idea how I can fix this?

JuergenP · August 19, 2025, 7:51pm

Dorico has just one single executable, regardless what edition you have purchased. There is no need to uninstall and reinstall the software, it simply makes no difference.

What release you are running is just based on the license that you have activated in the Activation Manager. So if your trial is still active this will be the release that is starting.

Shoobidoo · August 19, 2025, 8:06pm

Thanks, yeah, I get that, I was just trying to do some kind of thorough uninstall. But that’s not the problem, it’s that Elements keeps reactivating itself, and then when I start Dorico, Elements starts up instead of SE, and this keeps happening over and over. I cannot for the life of me deactivate the Elements license and make it stick.

arco · August 19, 2025, 8:09pm

You can turn it off in in the Activation manager, top right, click on the human-outline icon (which is you) > Settings and you see this (I have mine off as I have Pro and Elements) so do not want it to activate between them.

Shoobidoo · August 19, 2025, 8:13pm

Ah, beautiful! That fixed it, many thanks!