Deploy Stop Motion Studio 2 on Windows 11 — Manual Installation

Overview

This guide is for schools that do not use Microsoft Intune or another MDM solution.

Deploying Stop Motion Studio on a Windows device requires two steps:

1. Install the MSIX — provisions the app for all users on the device
2. Run the activation tool once — writes the encrypted license key to the registry

The app reads the registry at launch to activate itself. Once both steps have been completed on a device, all users on that device can open Stop Motion Studio without being prompted for a serial number.

Prerequisites

Download the following files before you begin:

• Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix — the application installer
• ActivationScripts.zip — contains activate.ps1 and install.cmd

Both steps require Administrator rights on the target device.

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Step 1 — Install the MSIX

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackagePath "C:\Path\To\Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix" -SkipLicense

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage installs the app for all users on the device, including students who log in later. Do not use Add-AppxPackage — that installs for the current user only, which is not suitable for shared school machines.

Step 2 — Run the Activation Tool

Extract ActivationScripts.zip, then open Command Prompt as Administrator in that folder and run:

install.cmd -Key "YOUR-SCHOOL-SERIAL-HERE"

Replace YOUR-SCHOOL-SERIAL-HERE with your actual license key as provided in your activation email.

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Verify

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

Get-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Cateater\StopMotionStudio"

You should see an ActivationToken entry with a binary value. Then open Stop Motion Studio — it should launch without any license prompt.

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Running on Multiple Devices

The same two steps apply to every device. How you execute them depends on your setup.

USB Drive

Copy both files to a USB drive:

StopMotionDeploy\
├── Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix
├── activate.ps1
└── install.cmd

On each device, open PowerShell as Administrator and run both steps pointing to the USB drive:

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackagePath "E:\StopMotionDeploy\Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix" -SkipLicense

E:\StopMotionDeploy\install.cmd -Key "YOUR-SCHOOL-SERIAL-HERE"

Network Share

Same as above, using a network path instead:

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackagePath "\\server\share\StopMotionDeploy\Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix" -SkipLicense

\\server\share\StopMotionDeploy\install.cmd -Key "YOUR-SCHOOL-SERIAL-HERE"

PowerShell Remoting

If PowerShell Remoting is enabled on your devices, you can run both steps from a single administrator workstation across multiple machines simultaneously:

$computers = @("PC-LAB01", "PC-LAB02", "PC-LAB03")
$key = "YOUR-SCHOOL-SERIAL-HERE"

Invoke-Command -ComputerName $computers -ScriptBlock {
    param($Key)
    Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackagePath "\\server\share\StopMotionDeploy\Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix" -SkipLicense
    & "\\server\share\StopMotionDeploy\activate.ps1" -Key $Key -Scope Machine
} -ArgumentList $key

Group Policy (Active Directory)

If your school uses Active Directory, deploy the MSIX via GPO Software Installation:

1. Open Group Policy Management and create or edit a GPO linked to your device OU.
2. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Policies > Software Settings > Software Installation.
3. Right-click > New > Package, and point to the MSIX on your network share.
4. Select Assigned as the deployment method.

For activation, use PowerShell Remoting (above) to run install.cmd once across all devices after the GPO has deployed the app.

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Updating Stop Motion Studio

When a new version is released, run Step 1 again on each device with the new MSIX:

Add-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackagePath "Stop Motion Studio for Windows.msix" -SkipLicense

The activation token in the registry is not affected by app updates. Step 2 does not need to be repeated.

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Removing Stop Motion Studio

Remove the application

$package = Get-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online | Where-Object DisplayName -eq "StopMotionStudio"
Remove-AppxProvisionedPackage -Online -PackageName $package.PackageName

Remove the activation token

reg delete "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Cateater\StopMotionStudio" /v "ActivationToken" /f

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FAQs

Q: Do students need admin rights to open the app? No. Once both steps have been completed, any user on the device can open Stop Motion Studio without admin rights or any license prompt.

Q: Is the license key stored in plain text? No. The activation script uses the Windows Data Protection API (DPAPI) to encrypt the key before storing it in the registry. The encrypted token is tied to the local machine and cannot be decrypted on a different device.

Q: What if a device is re-imaged or replaced? Run both steps again on the new device.

Q: The app still asks for a serial number after running the activation tool. Confirm the ActivationToken registry value exists under HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Cateater\StopMotionStudio. If it does not, check that install.cmd was run as Administrator.