Choosing a Licensing Model
When first starting out, choosing a licensing model for your software can be a bit daunting. There are so many choices, how do you choose which one is best for your application or business? A quick internet search is likely to confuse you more than educate you, thanks to a plethora of enterprise jargon and buzzwords. We built Keygen to escape that mess.
Today, we'll take a short dive into the most popular licensing models for software applications and how they can be created using Keygen's software licensing API.
Licensing terminology
Below is a quick dive into some of the most commonly used API resources. For a reference on software licensing terms, check out our Beginner's Guide to Software Licensing.
| License | Licenses represent an entitlement, i.e. you grant a licensee permission to use something. |
| Machine | Machines represent a device or node that a license is allowed to be used with. |
| Policy | Policies define behavior for different license types, e.g. Timed Trial, Basic and Pro types. |
| User | Users represent an identity for an end-user, or licensee, of your software. |
Licensing models
Perpetual Licenses
A perpetual license is one of the most common licensing models for small software apps due to its simplicity and positive end-user experience.
Timed Licenses
A timed license, or fixed-duration license, is a license that expires at some point in time. These can be used for trials, subscriptions, and more.
User-locked Licenses
A user-locked license is a license that can only be used by a particular user, typically identified by an email address.
Node-locked Licenses
A node-locked license is a license that can only be used on a single activated device at any given time.
Floating Licenses
A floating license can be used across a number of activated devices, up to a set maximum.
Feature Licenses
A feature license is a license that is entitled to utilize a particular feature of a software application.
Metered Licenses
A metered license, or usage-based license, is a license that is entitled to utilize a particular feature of a software application a set number of times.
Offline Licenses
Learn how to implement powerful offline licensing schemes, built on secure cryptography, compatible with a variety of licensing models.
Don't see the licensing model you're looking for? Reach out and let us know, and we'll get it added here plus answer any questions you have about implementation.