Short answer: Premiere Pro Installation Error 146 is a licensing subsystem failure — the message usually reads “The licensing subsystem has failed catastrophically.” It happens when the FLEXnet Licensing Service is stopped or corrupted, or when leftover licensing files from a previous installation conflict with the new install attempt. It keeps repeating because a standard uninstall does not remove those leftover files — so every reinstall starts from the same broken state unless the licensing data is cleaned first.
If you have tried installing Premiere Pro more than once and keep landing on the same Error 146 message, the repetition itself is telling you something important: this isn’t a one-time glitch, and reinstalling alone will not fix it. The installer is failing at the exact same point every time because the same underlying condition is still present on your system after each attempt.
Error 146 occurs in Adobe’s licensing subsystem — the layer that runs beneath the actual installation process and manages license verification for Premiere Pro and other Creative Cloud applications. When that subsystem cannot initialize properly, the installation halts and reports Error 146, regardless of how many times you retry it. The installer files themselves are rarely the problem. What usually is the problem is the licensing infrastructure on your system — a background service, a folder full of corrupted data, or both.
This guide explains exactly why the error keeps coming back, then walks through a complete, ordered set of fixes designed to break the cycle rather than just patch it temporarily.
Why This Error Keeps Coming Back After Every Reinstall
This is the part that confuses most people, so it’s worth explaining clearly. When you uninstall Premiere Pro — even through the Creative Cloud desktop app — the uninstaller removes the application files, but it does not touch the shared licensing folders that Adobe applications rely on. Those folders are intentionally left in place because other Adobe apps on your system may still need them.
The problem is that if those folders contain corrupted data, or if the FLEXnet Licensing Service was already broken, none of that gets cleaned up by the uninstall. The next installation attempt reads from the exact same broken licensing environment — so it fails in the exact same way, every time.
with Error 146
Premiere Pro
remain untouched
same broken data
returns
Breaking this cycle requires addressing the licensing data directly — which is exactly what the fixes below are organized around.
What’s Actually Causing It
FLEXnet Licensing Service stopped
The Windows background service Adobe uses to manage license checks may be stopped, disabled, or not properly installed, blocking the installer’s verification step.
Leftover licensing files from a previous install
Corrupted or incomplete data in the SLStore or FLEXnet folders from an earlier installation attempt is read by every subsequent install and causes the same failure.
Restricted folder permissions
If the licensing folders don’t have the correct read/write access, the installer cannot write the licensing data it needs to complete setup.
Security software interference
Antivirus tools may quarantine FLEXnet files during installation because their system-level write behavior can resemble suspicious activity.
Conflicting Creative Cloud processes
If Creative Cloud or another Adobe app is actively running or mid-update during the Premiere Pro install, the licensing service can be locked or partially in use.
Incomplete previous uninstall
A standard uninstall does not clear shared licensing folders, so any corruption present before the uninstall is still there for the next install attempt.
How to Fix Premiere Pro Error 146 — Step by Step
These fixes are sequenced to break the repeating cycle, not just patch a single attempt. Complete each one fully before moving to the next, and do not skip the cleanup steps even if you’re eager to get straight to reinstalling — skipping them is the most common reason the error returns yet again.
Close All Adobe Applications and Background Processes
Before touching any licensing files, make sure nothing Adobe-related is running. An active Creative Cloud process or another open Adobe app can lock the licensing service mid-installation, which produces Error 146 even when the underlying licensing data is otherwise fine.
Close Premiere Pro, the Creative Cloud desktop app, and any other open Adobe applications.
On Windows: open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and end any processes beginning with “Adobe” or “Creative Cloud.”
On Mac: open Activity Monitor and quit any processes with “Adobe” or “Creative Cloud” in the name.
Restart the FLEXnet Licensing Service (Windows)
This is the most common fix for Error 146 and is worth checking before doing anything more involved. If the FLEXnet Licensing Service is not running, the installer cannot complete the license check it performs partway through setup.
Press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
Find FLEXnet Licensing Service in the list. Check the Status column.
If it is not running, right-click it and select Start.
Double-click the service, set Startup type to Automatic, click Apply, then OK.
Try the Premiere Pro installation again before proceeding to the next fix.
Clear Leftover Licensing Files — This Breaks the Repeat Cycle
This is the fix that addresses why the error keeps coming back. If a previous installation attempt left corrupted or incomplete licensing data behind, every new install attempt will read that same broken data and fail in the same way. Clearing these files gives the next installation a genuinely clean starting point.
On Windows:
Press Win + R, type C:\ProgramData\FLEXnet, and press Enter.
Delete the files inside this folder — leave the folder itself in place.
Navigate to C:\ProgramData\Adobe\SLStore and repeat — delete the files inside, keep the folder.
Restart your computer before attempting to install Premiere Pro again.
On Mac:
Open Finder, press Cmd + Shift + G, and navigate to: /Library/Application Support/Adobe/SLStore
Delete the files inside this folder, keeping the folder itself intact.
Restart your Mac and attempt the installation again.
Run the Adobe Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool
If Error 146 has returned after more than one reinstall attempt, the Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool is the most thorough way to break the cycle. It is built by Adobe specifically to remove leftover installation and licensing data that a standard uninstall does not touch — exactly the kind of residue that causes this error to repeat.
Uninstall Premiere Pro through the Creative Cloud desktop app or Windows’ Add/Remove Programs first, if it is currently partially installed.
Download the Adobe Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool from Adobe’s official support site (linked at the end of this article).
Run the tool and select Premiere Pro from the list of applications it can clean. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the cleanup.
Restart your computer after the cleaner finishes.
Reinstall Premiere Pro through the Creative Cloud desktop app, starting fresh.
Check Antivirus Quarantine for Blocked Licensing Files
Some security software flags FLEXnet or Adobe licensing files during installation because their behavior — writing to protected system folders — can resemble the activity patterns of unwanted software. If those files are quarantined mid-install, the licensing subsystem cannot complete its setup and Error 146 appears.
Open your antivirus or security software and check its Quarantine or Threat History section.
Look for items referencing FLEXnet, Adobe, or file paths containing ProgramData\FLEXnet or ProgramData\Adobe.
Restore any quarantined Adobe or FLEXnet items, then add those folders to your security software’s exclusion list to prevent it from happening again on the next install attempt.
Restart your computer and attempt the Premiere Pro installation again.
Fix Folder Permissions on Licensing Directories
If the licensing folders have restricted permissions — which can happen after a Windows or macOS update — the installer won’t be able to write the data it needs, even with the FLEXnet service running and the files cleared.
On Windows:
Right-click C:\ProgramData\FLEXnet and select Properties → Security → Advanced.
Click Change permissions, check “Replace all child object permission entries with inheritable permission entries from this object,” and confirm SYSTEM and Administrators have Full control.
Click Apply → OK, then repeat the same steps for C:\ProgramData\Adobe\SLStore.
On Mac:
Open Terminal and run:sudo chmod 777 /Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/SLStore
Then run:sudo chown -R root:wheel /Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/SLStore
Restart your Mac and attempt the installation again.
Quick Reference — Match Your Situation to the Right Fix
| What You’re Seeing | Most Likely Cause | Start With |
|---|---|---|
| Error 146 on the very first install attempt | FLEXnet Licensing Service stopped or never started | Fix 1, then Fix 2 |
| Error returns after uninstalling and reinstalling | Leftover licensing data from the previous install | Fix 3 (clear licensing files) |
| Error has returned after two or more reinstall attempts | Deep residual files a standard uninstall didn’t remove | Fix 4 (Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool) |
| Error appeared right after installing new security software | Licensing files quarantined during install | Fix 5 (check antivirus quarantine) |
| Error 146 on Mac after macOS update or system migration | Folder permissions reset on licensing directories | Fix 6 (Mac permissions) |
| Other Adobe apps also failing to open, not just Premiere Pro | Shared FLEXnet/licensing issue affecting all Adobe apps | Fix 2, then Fix 3 |
Common Variations
Error 146 only happens with Premiere Pro — other Adobe apps install fine
This suggests the issue may be specific to Premiere Pro’s installation files rather than the shared licensing infrastructure. Try downloading a fresh installer through the Creative Cloud desktop app rather than reusing an older download, and confirm no partial Premiere Pro files remain from a previous attempt before reinstalling.
Error 146 affects every Adobe app you try to install, not just Premiere Pro
This points clearly to the shared FLEXnet Licensing Service or the SLStore folder rather than anything Premiere Pro–specific. Focus on Fix 2 (restart the service) and Fix 3 (clear licensing files) — resolving the shared licensing layer typically clears the error for every Adobe app at once.
You’ve run the Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool and the error still returns
If the cleaner tool didn’t resolve it, check that the FLEXnet Licensing Service is genuinely running and set to Automatic (Fix 2) immediately before the next install attempt — sometimes the service needs to be manually restarted again even after the cleaner tool has run, since the cleanup process itself can stop the service temporarily.
Error 146 appears on a managed or company-issued laptop
On managed devices, IT policies may restrict service configuration changes or folder permission edits, both of which are central to fixing this error. In this scenario, contact your IT administrator — they may need to apply the FLEXnet service fix and the Cleaner Tool through an administrative account or your organization’s software deployment system.
Error appeared after switching from a perpetual license to a subscription, or vice versa
Switching license types can leave behind licensing data tied to the previous arrangement, which conflicts with the new license type during installation. Running the Creative Cloud Cleaner Tool (Fix 4) is particularly effective in this scenario, since it is designed to remove license-type-specific residue that a standard uninstall does not address.
