Graphisoft Server Connection Issues – Support site

Issue description

You are unable to connect to Graphisoft services from Archicad. This may appear as a sign-in failure, licensing issue, or an error indicating that Archicad cannot reach Graphisoft servers.

This article walks through a series of troubleshooting steps to help identify and resolve common system, network, or security-related issues that can prevent a successful connection.

Solution

Step 1 - Reinstall Archicad and apply the latest update

Perform a clean uninstall and reinstall of Archicad using the guide below.
Uninstall and reinstall Archicad
After completing the guide, check whether the issue is resolved. If not, proceed to Step 2.

Step 2 - Clear out the web browser cache

Clear the cache for the web browser you normally use:
After clearing the cache, restart your browser and check whether the connection issue is resolved. If the problem persists, continue to Step 3.

Step 3 - Check the operating system firewall

In some cases, the operating system firewall may block communication required to connect to Graphisoft services.

As a troubleshooting step, temporarily disable the operating system firewall, then test the connection again.
- macOS
- Windows
If the problem persists, proceed to Step 4

Step 4 - Check Graphisoft server service connections

Access to Graphisoft services requires outbound network connectivity to specific service endpoints.

Review the Service connections section of the article below and confirm that your network allows connections to all listed services:
- Secure communication via Graphisoft products
After confirming access, test the connection again. If the problem persists, continue to Step 5.

Step 5 - Check and reset the system's hosts file

In some cases, connectivity or licensing issues can be caused by custom entries in the system’s hosts file that override normal DNS resolution.

Follow the steps below to check whether your system’s hosts file contains entries related to Graphisoft services, and reset it if necessary.

Windows

Open File Explorer and navigate to: C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\Etc
Right-click the hosts file and select Copy.
Paste the copied hosts file to your Desktop.
Open the copied hosts file on your Desktop using Notepad.
Review the file and check whether it contains any of the following entries:
- activity-api.graphisoft.com
- licensemanager.graphisoft.com
- bimx-api.graphisoft.com
- ruleservice-api.graphisoft.com
- graphisoftid.graphisoft.com
If none of the entries above are present, close the file without making changes and proceed to Step 6.
If one or more of the entries above are present, reset the hosts file by replacing it with a version in its default state.
Download the default hosts file provided here.
Move the downloaded file to %WinDir%\System32\Drivers\Etc and overwrite the existing hosts file.
If prompted, enter an administrator password and select Continue.
Restart your computer.
After restarting, check whether the issue is resolved. If the problem persists, continue to Step 6.

For reference, Microsoft also provides general guidance on resetting the hosts file here: How to reset the hosts file back to the default

macOS

Open Finder on your Mac.
In the menu bar, click Go > Go to Folder...
Paste the following path /private/etc/hosts
Select the item from the list and press Enter.
Drag a copy of the hosts file to your Desktop.
Open the copied hosts file on your Desktop using TextEdit.
Review the file and check whether it contains any of the following entries:
- activity-api.graphisoft.com
- licensemanager.graphisoft.com
- bimx-api.graphisoft.com
- ruleservice-api.graphisoft.com
- graphisoftid.graphisoft.com
If none of the entries above are present, close the file without making changes and proceed to the next step.
If one or more of the entries above are present, reset the hosts file by replacing it with a version in its default state.
Download the default hosts file provided here.
Move the downloaded file to the /private/etc folder and overwrite the existing hosts file.
When prompted, select Replace and enter your administrator password.
Restart your computer.
After restarting, check whether the issue is resolved. If the problem persists, continue to Step 6.

Step 6 - Check if a third-party application is blocking the connection

In some cases, third-party security or network-monitoring applications can block the connections required to access Graphisoft services.

Examples of such applications include, but are not limited to:

macOS: network monitoring or firewall tools such as Little Snitch
Windows: network filtering or privacy tools such as Portmaster

As a troubleshooting step, temporarily disable or uninstall any such applications and test the connection again.

If the issue is resolved, review the application’s settings and configure appropriate exceptions before re-enabling it.