Installation and Updating - Cinderella Documentation
Description: The user's guide to the Interactive Geometry Software Cinderella

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# Installation and Updating

Cinderella is written in the Java programming language. On most computers the environment to run Java based software is pre-installed. This includes Mac OS X and most versions of Windows. On other operating systems, for example Linux, you might have to install a so-called Java Virtual Machine that is available for most platforms at http://www.java.com as a free download.

The Cinderella software itself is available as a free download from the Cinderella homepage. Depending on your platform you either download an installer or the application itself.

### Entering a License

Without further intervention, Cinderella will run in a mode that is prepared for the user that wants to have "just" a geometry program. All tools that are essential for doing geometry are unlocked. However, some of the advanced features like the script editor or the physics simulation and very few geometry modes are not enabled. By installing a valid license you can unlock the complete feature set (this means updating to the Pro version). A license can for instance be purchased at the Cinderella homepage at "Buy a License". The license comes as a simple Cinderella file. Once the license file is opened, the personalized license is installed automatically. Licenses will be renewed automatically before they expire (no additional purchase necessary).

As the license is stored in the user preferences (the file cinderella2-user.properties that is located either in the installation folder or, on Mac OS X, in the Library/Preferences folder, you can safely install a newer version of Cinderella whenever it is available without having to enter the license again.

### Network licenses

For network environments it is not convenient to have every user enter the license himself. Instead, it is possible to apply a license to the Cinderella installation as a whole, by copying the license key into a file called cinderella2-global.properties. This should be located in the same folder as the file cinderella2.properties, which contains the software's defaults. Usually, this is in the installation folder. On Mac OS X it is inside the application bundle: You can open the right location by ctrl-clicking on the application in Finder, selecting "Show Package Contents" and navigating to Contents/Resources.

### Updating Cinderella

We are continuously updating Cinderella.2 with new features and, if necessary, bug fixes. Please make sure to always use the latest version, which is available from the Download Cinderella.2 page.