"Protection Key is Not Responding" (Unable to open

[Anonymous]

When I try to open any of my files a dialog box pops up which says "protection key is not responding". It gives me the options of 'Quit and Don't Save ' or 'Save and Quit'. I am unable to open any of my files without this box popping up. What is this protection key and how do I repair this? The only thing that I did differently when working on the files was I closed the program when I was still in 3D mode. Could this action be related to my problem?

[Karl Ottenstein]

The 'protection key' is your USB key plug (dongle). Could it be that you have a damaged USB port or that the keyplug itself is damaged? (A friend stepped on his and the metal connector was loose and only worked if you pushed on it. He has since replaced it.)

ArchiCAD checks for the keyplug during startup and periodically while running.

Karl