Before you can use the Professional functions of On-Screen Takeoff (such as: creating Conditions, drawing/editing Takeoff, using Areas, etc.), you must activate a license.
If you open an "interactive" Bid while On-Screen Takeoff or Quick Bid is unlicensed, you will break the interactive connection. Please see Quick Bid - 06.03.03 Connecting and Disconnecting Interactive Bids for instructions on reconnecting bids.
If you have any problems activating your software, please contact Support. Please have your customer information and login credentials handy.
Launching and Licensing
How you license the application depends on when your company purchased On-Screen Takeoff:
Purchased After April 24, 2026
This version requires users to log into the application for licensing.
- Check your e-mail for an invitation to join your company’s ConstructConnect platform organization
- Follow the instructions to accept the invitation and register for your account
- Download the installer from the On-Screen Takeoff® (GCIP) Product Information and Download page
- Install On-Screen Takeoff on your computer
- Launch and log into the application
Purchased Before April 24, 2026
This version requires a user to activate a License Key or Server Code for licensing.
Before you can dive-in and start using On-Screen Takeoff, there’s a little housekeeping you’ll need to do:
- Contact your manager for your License Key or Server Code, they will retrieve this from the MyAccount portal
- Download the installer from the On-Screen Takeoff® (Flexera) Product Information and Download page
- Install On-Screen Takeoff on your computer
- Launch the application and activate your license
Logging Into On-Screen Takeoff Using Your Email
Assuming you have activated your account and downloaded and installed On-Screen Takeoff, the next step is just logging into the application.
Your organization’s admin should have invited you to use On-Screen Takeoff.
Below, we’ll walk you through the process of accepting the invite and then registering your account.
Logging in applies your current license to On-Screen Takeoff..
Before you can log in, your Company Admin must invite you to register for an account and assign you an On-Screen Takeoff license. Check your e-mail for a message from ConstructConnect with the subject line “Get Started with On-Screen Takeoff”. In that e-mail, there is a link to Activate your platform account.
See the article How to Log Into the ConstructConnect Platform to Accept or Decline an Invitation
Once you accept the invitation, you will be taken to the ConstructConnect Platform website where you will fill out a very short profile. Once that’s completed, you can return to On-Screen Takeoff and log in.
If you have not received an invitation from your company administrator, or are using a version of On-Screen Takeoff that prompts you to Activate a license, see Activate your License Key or Server Code.
Log In to Access On-Screen Takeoff
- Locate the shortcut on your desktop or in your Start menu
- At the login screen, enter your e-mail address and the the password you set up when you activated your account
- Click Log in
You remain logged in until you manually log out.
Several features, such as Takeoff Boost and Auto Name, are only accessible while you are connected to the internet. Also, important application updates can only be installed while connected to the internet (and you’ll only receive notification about them while connected).
Although your login token is stored for up to 15 days, we recommend you remain connected to the internet as often as possible.
Log Out
If you want to use On-Screen Takeoff on a different machine, you’ll need to log out first.
To log out and remove all licenses from On-Screen Takeoff,
- Click Help
- Then click Logout
Common Reasons for Authorization Failure
- Account not activated (check your e-mail for your invitation to join your organization)
- Wrong user name or password
- No Internet connection (an internet connection is required to activate License Keys or Server Codes)
- Firewall blocking network communication (see Related Articles for more information on configuring your firewall)
- Your admin has not assigned you a seat
Using a License Key or Server Code
You can find your current license in the Customer Portal (MyAccount) (this is a shared portal for On Center and PlanSwift customers), see: What is MyAccount? for more information.
If you don't have access to the Customer Portal (MyAccount), contact your manager or your company's accounting or IT department.
Review Licensing for more details on activating your license.
If you need assistance with licensing your software, please contact Support.
There are two ways for your company to distribute the product licenses it owns:
- A License Key looks like this: "OST+a0fe3-d4848-3840b-6a6c8-fe068" (25 characters, separated by hyphens, with a Product Prefix and a plus sign (+)). License Keys can be single-seat (one Key per person) or multi-count (one Key for multiple people). Each Product/Feature you own would have a separate License Key issued (if you own 10 On-Screen Takeoff, 10 Quick Bid, and 10 Digital Production Control PM licenses, you may be issued three keys, or thirty, depending on how you choose to setup your licenses).
- A Server Code looks like this: "OST@98A8PGZA493Z" (shorter, no spaces or hyphens, with a Product prefix and an "@" symbol). A Server Code is a cloud-based license manager for a single product. All your licenses for a single Product/Feature are set up under one Server Code - so if you own three products, we issue your company three Server Codes so you can control who is able to license which Products/Features.
When On-Screen Takeoff is not authorized, a message in the bottom right corner of the program shows "no license". After activating a license, this area shows which licenses have been applied (OST, DPC_FM, DPC_PM, or any combination thereof).
Your company is issued a separate License Key or Server Code for each Product/Feature/Service you own. Each Key/Code must be activated separately to license that feature/product in your installation.
How to Activate Your License
See On-Screen Takeoff, Quick Bid, and Digital Production Control: Activating a License for detailed instructions.
Common Reasons for Authorization Failure
- Incorrect License Key or Server Code (we recommend you copy/paste - rather than trying to type these in - if possible)
- No Internet connection (an internet connection is required to activate License Keys or Server Codes)
- Firewall blocking network communication (see Related articles for more information on configuring your firewall)
- Attempting to activate a License Key for a different product (you cannot activate a Quick Bid license through On-Screen Takeoff and vice versa)
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