Licensing Overview

All PSCAD software editions must be licensed to run.  There are a few different licensing modes, as well as a few different license types.

The following are the currently available license types:

• Lock-Based License: This license type uses a combination of hardware lock and license database file to authenticate.  There are two types of lock-based licenses:

• Single-User License: A single license is installed and used locally on a workstation.

• Multi-User Licenses: One or more seats (i.e. instances of the PSCAD application) may be used locally, in addition to being shared with other workstations on the Local Area Network (LAN).

• Lockless Trial License: This time-limited license type uses a license database file, but no hardware lock to authenticate.  A lockless trial license is used primarily for the evaluation of our fully-featured software editions.

• Certificate License: A certificate is an electronic license that is acquired via a cloud-based license server. Certificate licenses are authorized through the customer’s MyCentre account (MyCentre Licensing).  A temporary, renewable license certificate is granted locally on the user’s workstation upon request from within the PSCAD application. Certificate licensing does not require a hardware lock or a license database file.

The following are the currently available licensing modes:

• Standalone License Manager: The standalone license manager, installed as a separate product, manages licensing for one or more seats (i.e. instances of the PSCAD application).  The standalone license manager grants licenses to either the host workstation or to other workstations on the network, and is used only for lock-based licenses.

• Self-Licensing: Under this licensing mode, the PSCAD software can license itself. Self-licensing is available only on the local workstation, and cannot be shared with other workstations over the network.

• MyCentre Licensing: This licensing mode functions through a member’s MyCentre web portal account.

The licensing mode for each license type is summarized in the following table:

1The standalone license manager is not recommended in combination with a single-user lock-based license, since it can potentially overcomplicate product licensing..