Older versions of Castaway [Desktop]

If you haven't used Castaway in a while or are working on an older device, there's a chance you may run into an older version of Castaway.

Since 1 July 2023, we no longer support versions of Castaway Desktop prior to v2021.1.304.1. You will need to update to the latest version in order to continue using the software. Upgrading is easy and quick and you will not lose any of your prior work.

This article will address some frequently asked questions as well as provide guidance to keep your installation of Castaway up to date.

What you might experience:

I've opened Castaway and get the following error message.

"Unable to verify licence over the internet. Please check your connection and contact our Support Team"

What's going on?

If you've received this error message, you've opened an older version of Castaway. You can tell by looking at the version number in the top right or the copyright date in the bottom right corner.  You'll need to update to the latest version.

How do I install the latest version of Castaway?

Links for the latest version can be found on our Get Started page here. Simply follow the prompts to install.  Prior to the new install, we highly recommend uninstalling any and all previous versions of Castaway to avoid confusion. If you're not sure about the process, we have an article on uninstalling Castaway that will take you through the steps.

My organisation uses a terminal server, what should I do to keep Castaway up to date?

The guidance for a desktop installation of Castaway and terminal servers are the same as above. Please share this article with your IT service team.

I don't want to update. Can I just continue to use an older version of Castaway?

The short answer is No. The longer explanation is that as soon as your operating system (eg: Windows) updates on your computer, your Machine ID will invalidate and you'll lose features such as export and output printing. This is a security measure. We will not be able to provision you a new Machine ID in an older version of Castaway

To maintain app stability and security, it's important for all users to be using the most up to date version of Castaway as recommended by our team.

What happens to my files? Are they still accessible?

Your Castaway files will update to match the latest version the next time you open them in the latest software version. You will not notice a time lag and access will not be interrupted.

If you have more questions or are still unsure, please don't hesitate to reach out to our Customer Success team here