How do I fix the error “Cannot load control SSPanel; license not found” in VB6 program

Question

I have a VB6 legacy program which I need to change. I am unable to run the program from the IDE. When I activate one of the forms in the IDE I get an error which refers me to an

Answer 1

Another possibility was the Microsoft article Q195353 FILE: VBUSC.EXE Provides Licensing for Discontinued Controls which is archived here and here.

Key summary: VBUSC.EXE installs the design-time licenses for the controls listed above if Visual Basic is detected on the computer.

The VBUSC program can be downloaded here (still direct from Microsoft).

---

Original article text was:

SUMMARY
=======

VBUSC.EXE is a file that installs the Design-Time Licenses for ActiveX controls
that shipped with earlier versions of Visual Basic, but are no longer supported
and have been discontinued with the current version.

MORE INFORMATION
================

The following file is available for download from the Microsoft Download
Center:

  VBUSC.exe
  (http://download.microsoft.com/download/VB60Pro/Install/2/Win98/En-US/VBUSC.exe)

Release Date: August 15, 2000

For additional information about how to download Microsoft Support files, click
the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:

  Q119591 How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services

Microsoft scanned this file for viruses. Microsoft used the most current
virus-detection software that was available on the date that the file was
posted. The file is stored on secure servers that prevent any unauthorized
changes to the file.

   FileName               Size
  ---------------------------------------------------------
  VBUSC.EXE                88k

The following controls are no longer supported by Microsoft Visual Basic:

ActiveX Control Name                Filename
------------------------------------------------
Desaware Animated Button Control    ANIBTN32.OCX
Microhelp Gauge Control             GAUGE32.OCX
Pinnacle-BPS Graph Control          GRAPH32.EXE
Microsoft Grid Control              GRID32.OCX
Microhelp Key State Control         KEYSTA32.OCX
Microsoft Outline Control           MSOUTL32.OCX
Outrider SpinButton Control         SPIN32.OCX
Sheridan 3D Controls                THREED32.OCX

The ActiveX controls listed above are no longer supported, but ship with the
Professional and Enterprise Editions of Microsoft Visual Basic for backward
compatibility when upgrading existing projects.

These controls do not ship with the Learning Edition of Microsoft Visual Basic.

For the Professional and Enterprise Editions, the controls are located on the
installation CDs at the following locations:

Microsoft Visual Basic Edition        Location
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Professional 6.0                      \Common\Tools\VB\Controls
Enterprise 6.0                        \Common\Tools\VB\Controls
Visual Studio Professional 6.0        \Common\Tools\VB\Controls (CD2)
Visual Studio Enterprise 6.0          \Common\Tools\VB\Controls (CD3)


Each of these directories contain a README.TXT with instructions on how to
install the controls for design-time use.

NOTE: Using the Learning Edition to upgrade a project developed in an earlier
version of Microsoft Visual Basic might result in licensing problems for these
controls.

The VBUSC.EXE installs the design-time licenses for the controls listed above if
Visual Basic is detected on the computer.