Maya asks me to enter a serial number
Maya won't start - an error about contacting license servers

Your licensing is not working properly. We're using Floating Licensing, so you should never have to enter any code or something.

Please check the following:

• Make sure you have the latest version of the license file
• You have the correct licensefile in the right place (See installation manual. Make sure you don't have older versions left in the same directory)
  Windows: If you're license file cannot be placed in C:\FlexLM because you don't have a C:\ drive, check below.
• When not on the campus network: Your VPN is connected and working properly
• Your firewall is not blocking Maya (contacting the licensing servers). Disable any firewall or protection software and try again. Check here for more information on firewall requirements.

"d3dx9_42.dll missing" error when I start Maya

If you get an error "d3dx9_42.dll missing" (or alike), your Windows DirectX is not up-to-date. Refer to microsoft.com to obtain the latest version.

I have problems installing VPN

Refer to the page about VPN.

The automated license installation does not work -
Manual license installation

Download the following two files from the Maya for students webpage:

• MAYAPATH.LIC
• License.env

Save them in a convenient location (your downloads folder for example).

Open Windows Explorer or My Computer and navigate to the installation location of Maya 2011, typically: C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Maya2011\

Copy MAYAPATH.LIC into the Maya2011 folder.
Open the bin folder within the Maya2011 folder.
Copy License.env into this folder, overwriting the existing file.

That's it. You should now be able to run Maya.

If you've also installed MatchMover:
Navigate to the MatchMover2011 folder. Copy License.env into this folder

I don't have a C:\ drive and therfore cannot place my license file in the proper location

Please refer to this Autodesk knowledgebase article: License file is set to OTHER than default C:\FlexLM.

I'm having graphical problems with Maya

Try to update the drivers for your graphics card. For laptops, these are typically available through the website of your laptop vendor.
When your using an integrated graphics card (such as the Intel GMA) instead of a dedicated, 3D accelerated graphics card, it's likely you encounter problems. These can seldomly be solved: these integrated graphics solutions are just not suitable for these heavy, professional 3D applications.
If only a part of your 3D accelerated viewport is working (the rest is gray), you may try to lower the color setting for your display from 32bits (16M colors) to 24bit (65k colors) as a workaround.