Avid Media Composer for Student Personal Machines - Installation Instructions

As of Summer 2023, Avid is providing Avid Media Composer for free for students while enrolled at Emerson.

How to Get a License

1. If you are in a video/film editing course, your professor will provide IT with your username to assign you a license, or

2. If you would like to request a license, simply email helpdesk@emerson.edu with your Emerson email address.

How long will I be licensed?

After 365 days, your license will automatically be revoked and you will have to renew your license with the instructions above.

How to Install (macOS)

1. Once you've been assigned a license, you will receive this email. Click Get Started.

2. Enter your email address, confirm that you are 16 years of age or older, and confirm you are not a robot.

3. Complete the form, set a password, and click Continue to verify EDU status.

4. Click Federation under "Sign in with your Student Account."

5. Search for Emerson College and select that.

6. Sign in with Duo.

7. Click Get Media Composer. 

8. Click Software Download Links & Product Details. If you're trying to download Media Composer immediately after logging in for the first time, you might get green text at the top saying you're still being validated. After a few minutes, refresh and you will see the downloads available.

9. Install Avid Media Composer.

10. Follow the prompts, and allow the application to have access to your desktop/background processes/etc. as prompted. Click Closed when done.

11. Click the spotlight icon (the magnifying glass) in the top right of your Mac and search for AvidLink and launch. Sign in with the Avid account you created at the beginning of the instructions.

10. Under Products, expand the drop down next to Avid Media Composer that says Open and click License.

11. Expand License Status and click Use License and wait until you see "Activated" in green.

12. Now search for Avid Media Composer with Spotlight and launch it. Leave I want to activate my software using Avid Link and click Continue. Media Composer should now launch!

Troubleshooting: License Assigned or Renewed, But Media Composer Won't Launch

If your Avid Media Composer license has been recently assigned or renewed, or is currently showing as "Activated" in Avid Link, but the application still fails to launch, gives an error, or asks for an activation code, the application is likely out of sync with the local license manager.

This "Quick Reset" process forces the application to re-read your valid license status from Avid Link, solving most synchronization issues.

Force a License Refresh in Avid Link

1. Ensure Avid Media Composer is completely QUIT (do not just close the window).
2. Open Avid Link.
3. Navigate to the Products tab.
4. Find Avid Media Composer in your list of products.
5. Click the dropdown arrow next to "Open" and select License. This forces a check and local file refresh.

Launch Media Composer Correctly

1. Restart your computer completely (this clears any temporary license states).
2. Launch Avid Media Composer again.
3. When the activation screen pops up, you must choose the option: "I want to activate my software using Avid Link."
4. Click Continue.

Since your license is valid, this action will force Media Composer to synchronize with Avid Link and should allow the application to launch directly to the project chooser.

Troubleshooting: Avid Link Stuck on "Synchronizing Account"

If Avid Link displays "Synchronizing Account" or "Syncing Account..." indefinitely and never completes, your license will not activate and Media Composer will either fail to launch, show a "no active license" message, or prompt you for a System ID and Activation ID.

Do NOT enter anything on the System ID / Activation ID screen. That is not how Emerson student licenses work. If you see that screen, click the back arrow (<) at the top-left to return to the Products list.

Step 1: Check Your macOS Version

This is a known Avid issue that occurs on macOS 13 (Ventura) and earlier. The sync will never complete on these older versions.

To check your macOS version:

1. Click the Apple menu (top-left corner of your screen) → About This Mac.
2. Look for your macOS version (e.g., "macOS 13 Ventura," "macOS 14 Sonoma," "macOS 15 Sequoia," "macOS 26 Tahoe").
3. If you are on macOS 13 or earlier, you must update before Avid Link will work. Go to Apple menu → System Settings → General → Software Update and install the latest available version. Make sure your laptop is plugged into power and connected to WiFi — the update may take 30–60 minutes.
4. After the update completes and your Mac restarts, open Avid Link, sign in, and try activating your license again.

Step 2: Make Sure Avid Link Is Up to Date

Your Avid Link version and Media Composer version should match or be close together (e.g., both 2025.12). If Avid Link is significantly older than Media Composer, the sync may fail.

To update Avid Link, sign in at my.avid.com and download the latest version, or check for updates within Avid Link itself.

Step 3: Verify You're Signed In with the Correct Account

In Avid Link, click the Profile icon (top-left, the person icon) and confirm the email address shown matches the Emerson email your license was assigned to (e.g., your_username@emerson.edu). If it shows a different email, sign out and sign back in with your Emerson email.

Step 4: Clean Reinstall (Clear Cached License Data)

If the sync issue persists after updating macOS and Avid Link, perform a clean reinstall that removes Avid's cached license data:

1. Completely quit Avid Link and Media Composer.
2. Uninstall Media Composer: Open Finder → Go to Applications → find Media Composer → drag it to the Trash.
3. Uninstall Avid Link: In the same Applications folder → find Avid Link → drag it to the Trash.
4. Delete Avid's cached data (this is the important part). There are two folders to remove:
   • System-level folder: Open Finder → in the menu bar, click Go → Go to Folder… → type exactly: /Library/Application Support/Avid/ → press Enter. If a folder opens, select everything inside and delete it (move to Trash). If it says the folder can't be found, that's fine — skip to the next one.
   • User-level folder: Open Finder → click Go → Go to Folder… → type exactly: ~/Library/Application Support/Avid/ → press Enter. If a folder opens, select everything inside and delete it (move to Trash). If it says not found, that's okay.
5. Empty the Trash (right-click the Trash icon in your Dock → Empty Trash).
6. Restart your computer.
7. Reinstall everything from scratch using the installation instructions above.
8. When you sign into Avid Link, make sure you use your Emerson email address.

Step 5: Contact Avid Support

If none of the above resolves the issue, you can contact Avid Support directly:

1. Go to the Avid Support Center.
2. Sign in with your Avid account (your Emerson email).
3. Submit a case describing the issue. Include your macOS version, Avid Link version, Media Composer version, and mention that you have a valid Media Composer (Annual) license assigned through Emerson College.
4. Reference this Avid KB article: Avid Link "Synchronizing Account" issue.

Complete Reinstall

If the issue persists, perform a full uninstall:

• Uninstall Media Composer on Windows
• Uninstall Media Composer on macOS

Also, uninstall Avid Link:

• Uninstall Avid Link on Windows
• Uninstall Avid Link on macOS

Once complete, restart your computer and install the application from scratch using the instructions in this guide.

Using Avid Media Composer on Campus

If you need to use Avid Media Composer while troubleshooting issues on your personal machine, fully licensed machines are available on campus in the following locations:

• DFL (Digital Film Lab)
• DPL (Digital Post-Production Lab)
• Editing Suites
• VEL (Video Editing Lab)

Check with your professor or lab staff for availability and hours.

Avid Support

Please contact your Professor or the Post Production team for help with Avid Media Composer. You can also reach Avid directly through the Avid Support Center.