EcuTek How the system Works

[steve99]

Originally Posted by tomm.brz

a question
Ecutek kit is: cable + dongle, then you need a license for every single car


Is the license contained in the dongle? or is it just downloaded digitally from the ProEcu software?
I mean, if I borrow my ecutek cable to a friend, and he wants to use my cable he will then buy a license from a master tuner


How does it work with the new license for him? will he receive a new dongle or just use mine ?

Yes you need one ecutek licience for every ecu you flashed this ie ECU Licience, the dongle id is Ecutek kit software licience you only need one of those


once ecu has licience (its transferred on first ecutek flash) then you can flash that ecu as much as you like.


Dongle just liciences your ecutek software and tunes.


Ecutek ECU Licience is separate


Yes you friend can use your dongle/cable kit to flash their 86/brz but they will need to buy a ecu licience.


the licience will be applied to dongle id so next time you go online with your ecutek kit licience is downloaded to PC.


when they flash the new ecu that licience is transferred to ecu in car.


Any tunes from a tuner would then need to be licienced to your dongle id.


If you made up an unlicience/locked tune then anyone could flash it with any ecutek kit

[Kodename47]

Originally Posted by stlgrym3

wow, it's kind of scary dealer would reflash ECU during dealer visits.

Why? It's common practice, in some dealers/networks, to update the ECU to the latest valid software when doing a service/warranty work. If they do this as they see you're on older software, some would say they're being nice

Originally Posted by tomm.brz

Is the license contained in the dongle? or is it just downloaded digitally from the ProEcu software?

The ECU license is indeed downloaded digitally when you do an EcuTek update. If he's using your equipment to do it you would get the license applied to your dongle ID. If you flash your car it will know there is a license on the ECU and a comment in the flash box appears with something like "Flash will not consume a license." The license would be used up on the next ECU that you flash that does not have EcuTek on it.

[tomm.brz]

Originally Posted by steve99

It possible to remove the ecutek licience with ecutek using a special switch then flashing, but in doing so you will loose your ecutek licience and need to get it renewed or buy a new one.


or if you wrote over your stock ecutek rom in ecu with another flash tool again licience will be lost. this also happens if dealer reflashes your stock ecutek rom in ecu.


any modified ecutek rom has access keys changed to dealer cannot read or write rom , but they can still run diagnostics and read stuff like CVN and Calid and discover rom is not 100% stock.


note the "flash counter" you see in ecutek is put their by ecutek its in that 14 byte encoded string, so its not readable or useable by dealer.

what are the different possibilities one can use to totally remove ecutek license and "fix" the CVN code to become as stock as possible?
you could do also with ecutek then?
Can you also do it with techstream? or Tactrix? (but which cable you have to use then with those last two? )

[Irace86.2.0]

My PC is a Mac. Does that matter for the software? Sometimes PC means Windows to people instead of personal computer.

So the $25 cable is $350? The $10 usb stick, sorry dongle, is another $350 too or is it included? I ask because people seem to be selling used cables and dongles or just cables, and I am trying to figure out what all is needed. Then a software license key is bought for another $350? Then a tune from a shop or Delicious is another $350? Someone can't sell their license, right? Unless they haven't used it to flash anything, or never? And someone could or couldn't sell their flashed ECU?

Reading the OP gave me a headache, as a series of unconnected facts seem to be assembled in a convoluted way. I'm guessing it is my sleep deprivation than his typing. I will attempt to reread the OP tomorrow.

[steve99]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

My PC is a Mac. Does that matter for the software? Sometimes PC means Windows to people instead of personal computer.

So the $25 cable is $350? The $10 usb stick, sorry dongle, is another $350 too or is it included? I ask because people seem to be selling used cables and dongles or just cables, and I am trying to figure out what all is needed. Then a software license key is bought for another $350? Then a tune from a shop or Delicious is another $350? Someone can't sell their license, right? Unless they haven't used it to flash anything, or never? And someone could or couldn't sell their flashed ECU?

Reading the OP gave me a headache, as a series of unconnected facts seem to be assembled in a convoluted way. I'm guessing it is my sleep deprivation than his typing. I will attempt to reread the OP tomorrow.

Ecutek cable kit comes with cable and dongle, you need both or its useless and software wont run.

correct licience stays in ecu not onsellable

it would be possible to sell ecu with licience but you would need to use ecu swap proceedure its not just plug and play

read the first post

[COO86L]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

My PC is a Mac. Does that matter for the software? Sometimes PC means Windows to people instead of personal computer.

So the $25 cable is $350? The $10 usb stick, sorry dongle, is another $350 too or is it included? I ask because people seem to be selling used cables and dongles or just cables, and I am trying to figure out what all is needed. Then a software license key is bought for another $350? Then a tune from a shop or Delicious is another $350? Someone can't sell their license, right? Unless they haven't used it to flash anything, or never? And someone could or couldn't sell their flashed ECU?

Reading the OP gave me a headache, as a series of unconnected facts seem to be assembled in a convoluted way. I'm guessing it is my sleep deprivation than his typing. I will attempt to reread the OP tomorrow.

Cable kit includes your dongle and your cable. The “dongle” is a DESkey which is a form of software security key, similar to the old software key codes system but much more sophisticated. Prevents coping of the software.

The license file is a string of code that gets embedded into your cars ecu. Can’t be taken out of ecu and sold. It starts off stores to your software and your specific dongle identified software. You can sell it before flashing to your vehicle but only as a kit with the dongle and license, cannot remove and sell only license.

Ingredients to tune a car that’s never been touched by ecutek before are:

Cable kit (dongle and obd ii cable)
Ecutek license
Tune file (from your chosen tuner)

PC in this case is indeed referring to a Windows device (although it does indeed stand for personal computer). Not Mac or Linux compatible.

Can sell a flashed ecu and will work fine in your car if you sync it properly.
Second hand cables are worth Jack shit, the “dongle” allows use Of the ecutek proecu software.

[Irace86.2.0]

So the only person who would buy a cable without a dongle on the used market is someone who may have done a flash then sold their cable but kept their dongle and now wants to retune the ECU.

What about the license? How would anyone know before purchase that a license hadn’t been used?

[Grady]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

So the only person who would buy a cable without a dongle on the used market is someone who may have done a flash then sold their cable but kept their dongle and now wants to retune the ECU.

What about the license? How would anyone know before purchase that a license hadn’t been used?

Plug the dongle into the computer, fire up the ECUTec software and it will tell you.

[steve99]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

So the only person who would buy a cable without a dongle on the used market is someone who may have done a flash then sold their cable but kept their dongle and now wants to retune the ECU.

What about the license? How would anyone know before purchase that a license hadn’t been used?

not rearly


without a "dongle" you cannot run ecutek software
without ecutek cable you cannot flash , you cannot use say a tactrix cable instead, must be ecutek.


A lot of people think the ECU licience or tune is in the dongle , its not.


The dongle is just a "licience key " for the ecutek software.


The ECU licience is completely separate, you need to buy or have a new ECU licience for every ecu you want to flash.


The dongle key only allows ecutek software to run.


don't buy a ecutek cable without a dongle key, its useless. you would nedd to buy a new dongle key to get software to work, then you also need an ECU licience, and a tune to actually flash a car.

[Irace86.2.0]

I have a Harrop kit I bought used. I was going to wait for them to finish their CARB approval to install the kit, but if it takes forever I may get impatient and do a Delicious tune. At minimum I will need to buy a license ($350) if Harrop hands out their tune like Edelbrock did, that is, if I get a buddy with a cable and dongle to flash my ECU. If I go the Delicious route then I will need a license and their tune ($350 + $400) with the help of the buddy. If I want to data log or make updates then I should buy the cable and dongle kit ($350). So I could be in this for $350-1100.

Then there is a blutooth kit for an additional $350 to be able to use some functions and view some data over a mobile device, but that kit doesn't replace the cable and dongle kit; it is merely a convenience add-on, so the bulky computer isn't in the passenger seat like in Fast n Furious telling you about your manifold pressure blowing, right?

[steve99]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

I have a Harrop kit I bought used. I was going to wait for them to finish their CARB approval to install the kit, but if it takes forever I may get impatient and do a Delicious tune. At minimum I will need to buy a license ($350) if Harrop hands out their tune like Edelbrock did, that is, if I get a buddy with a cable and dongle to flash my ECU. If I go the Delicious route then I will need a license and their tune ($350 + $400) with the help of the buddy. If I want to data log or make updates then I should buy the cable and dongle kit ($350). So I could be in this for $350-1100.

Then there is a blutooth kit for an additional $350 to be able to use some functions and view some data over a mobile device, but that kit doesn't replace the cable and dongle kit; it is merely a convenience add-on, so the bulky computer isn't in the passenger seat like in Fast n Furious telling you about your manifold pressure blowing, right?

Im not sure if ecutek package a blutooth adapter and a dongle, but it might be a cheaper option to but dongle and blutooth adapter separate as you can use blutooth adapter to flash as it has a mini usb port on back of blutooth adapter


Or you just buy bluttoth adapter and borrow your mates dongle when you need to flash.

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by steve99

Im not sure if ecutek package a blutooth adapter and a dongle, but it might be a cheaper option to but dongle and blutooth adapter separate as you can use blutooth adapter to flash as it has a mini usb port on back of blutooth adapter


Or you just buy bluttoth adapter and borrow your mates dongle when you need to flash.

Seems like the Bluetooth module could be used to flash ECUs but they don’t put that function into the software n hardware.

[steve99]

Blutooth module will definitly flash cars i have one and used it to flash. But you use the usb interface on module and the PC based ecutek software and you need dongle as well.

But yeah it definitly wont flash using the blutooth tablet\phone software vie blutooth

[Grady]

Originally Posted by steve99

borrow your mates dongle when you need to flash.