As a best practice (and general rule of thumb) I always try to keep digital copies of software applications and their respective product keys in a repository on my local computer, an external backup drive, or if providing services for a client, on their local server. Not only does this provide an easy-to-access source for pertinent information and apps, but also complements the hard copies usually stored on removable media and printed invoices with serial numbers.

Mac product key finder will scan your Mac for installed software and show you your serials numbers. The list can be saved to HTML, CSV, XML, PDF or TXT file or can be printed. Mac product key finder might be very useful for backup purposes to save all your serial numbers before it is too late. Adobe Product Key Finder for Mac & Windows. APKF allows recovering and finding product keys for Adobe CS6, CS5, CS4, CS3. How do I find which serial I used for Photoshop CS5 on my computer? Ask Question. A Mac option that worked for (my old but highly functional) Photoshop CS 5.1, just opened a terminal and ran. Browse other questions tagged adobe-photoshop product-key photoshop-cs5 or ask your own question. 5 years, 8 months ago.

But in over 15 years in IT, I've learned that every location has their system for organization — sometimes this system is no system whatsoever! So what do you do in a case like this, when a product key is needed to reinstall software for a lab full of computers and there is no paperwork indicating what the key might be? A key finder of course!

Key finders have been around for many years through different iterations. They're usually very small apps that serve one purpose — to crawl the local system (or registry if you're on Windows) and decode the encrypted serial number/product keys for installed software, then report it back to the end-user. It doesn't get much more straightforward than that!

Windows users (for those in mixed or heterogeneous networks) have many apps to choose from. However, Mac users have only one reliable choice, Mac Product Key Finder.

Figure A

Opening the .DMG file from the download link on the site reveals two versions of the app, Free and Pro. (Figure B) The free version works pretty well at retrieving lost serials, yet little else.

Figure B

Using the Pro version will cost a one-time fee of $24.95, but offers the following:

• Expanded database of detectable apps by 250%. (Figure C)
• Includes hooks for terminal use (meaning it's scriptable)
• Allows deep searching of not only the local workstation, but also remote searching on nodes within the network just to name a few. (Figure D)

Figure C

Figure D

As with any application, it's not foolproof. Unfortunately, finding keys through this method is sometimes impossible due to the encryption utilized by certain software vendors barring recovery of the serial numbers. This is understandable, as in the wrong hands, this app could be used to recover 100's of keys to software protected by volume licensing, potentially wrecking havoc on daily business functions in your organization. However, in the correct hands and with proper use, this piece of code could become part of your network/system administration toolbox, alongside password reset and data recovery software.

While you're hopefully not finding this out the hard way, you need a serial number if you plan on reinstalling your Adobe CS suite or a component of that suite.

Install Adobe With Product Key

Adobe requires a unique product key during installation or setup won't be able to continue. Depending on the version of Adobe CS we're talking about, you may get a 30 or 90-day trial, but that's certainly not what you paid for originally.

Fortunately, so long as your Adobe CS program or suite of programs is still installed on your working computer, you might be in luck.

Find the Serial Numbers to Adobe CS Programs

A key finder program is the quickest, and overall the easiest, way to figure out what serial number was used to install your copy of Adobe CS or one of the member programs.

We've compiled an extensive list of free key finder programs for a number of completely free tools that will do all the hard work for you, surfacing the Adobe CS serial number you need so you can reinstall your copy of Adobe CS6 Master Collection or Adobe Photoshop CS5, etc.

We highly recommend working your way from the top to the bottom in that list of recommended key finders. Unfortunately, considering the long history of Adobe CS programs, one of those key finder tools may find the serial for one CS version, while another may find a different if you've had multiple versions of CS.

Find Adobe Product Key Mac

Will a Key Finder Tool Find the Serial Number for Any Adobe CS Program?

As mentioned above, the answer to this question is yes and no. One of our favorite serial number finder tools is Belarc Advisor, and we rarely come across a program that it won't find the serial number or product key for.

This program has a particularly strong track-record with digging up the serial numbers used for Adobe CS programs.

Specifically, we'd expect Belarc Advisor, and better keyfinder tools in our list, to find the serial numbers for both the suites and/or the individual programs for Adobe CS6, Adobe CS5, Adobe CS4, and Adobe CS3.

That includes the serial numbers for Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Flash, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Audition, and all those other wonderful Adobe design and production tools.

Other Ways of Finding a Lost Adobe CS Serial Number

There are other ways to find a lost serial number, but be sure to give the keyfinder method a try first. Some of those programs will find the serial number for your Adobe CS products without you even having to install the tool. Those are portable programs that you can even run from places like a CD or flash drive — we mention which are made that way in our reviews.

Find Adobe Product Key

To the question, however, yes — Adobe stores their CS serial numbers in the Windows Registry, inside a particular registry key. Unfortunately, that key contains your Adobe CS serial number in an encrypted format, meaning it's useless without some complex decrypting.

Find Product Key For Adobe Mac Update

If a keyfinder tool is just out of the question, we recommend contacting Adobe directly. Your best bet is to start with their tutorial on how to find your serial number.

Adobe CS Serial Number Generators

Find Adobe Photoshop Product Key

Honestly, you might be able to generate a working free Adobe CS serial number using one of those serial number generators that are out there.

There are many different kinds that seem to work just fine for lots of Adobe products. Some will create a free product key and others will pair a key with a hacked DLL file, usually amtlib.dll, that lets you convert a trial version to a full version for free.

Unfortunately, as appealing as that may be, these programs are often full of malware, and the Adobe CS serials they create are not legalsince they weren't actually purchased. Under no circumstances should you go this route!

Find Product Key For Adobe Acrobat On Mac

The only legal method you have at your disposal, assuming you don't want to or can't use one of the find-it methods we've mentioned above, is to buy a brand new copy of Adobe CS.