• All Altera Sites
  • Knowledge Base
  • Support & Technical Docs
  • Forums & Wiki

Quartus II Software Licensing Questions and Answers

Evaluation and Getting Started

Manage Product Licenses

General

 

Q. Do I need a license file to use Altera software or IP?
A. You need a valid license file to run the following software:

  • Quartus II
  • MAX+PLUS II
  • ModelSim-Altera Edition
  • DSP Builder
  • Intellectual property (IP) MegaCore®

Quartus II Web Edition software, ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition software, and Altera IP megafunctions do not require license files.

Q. How do I get a license file for Altera software or IP?
A. You can request a license file by logging into the new Self-Service Licensing Center using your Altera ID. If you do not already have an Altera ID, you can register for one on this site.

Q. Do I need a license to evaluation Altera software or IP?
A. A license file is required to evaluate Altera Quartus II and DSP Builder software. Your local Altera sales person can provide this for you. Altera IP is enabled for no-cost OpenCore Plus evaluation immediately upon installation. No license file is required. Application Note 320 details the OpenCore Plus evaluation flow.

Q. Do I have to know what machine(s) an Altera software or IP product will be hosted on before placing an order?
A. No, this information is no longer required at time of order. You can now view your licenses, assign them to machines, and get a license by visiting the Self-Service Licensing Center.

Q. I just bought a Quartus II subscription and/or an IP core license and received an email. How do I get my license?
A. The email you received has a URL that will take you directly to the Self-Service Licensing Center. Simply log in using your Altera ID and follow the Create New Licenses steps.

Q. Am I the only one who can view and get licenses?
A. Two user types are assigned to each product license; an adminstrator and a licensed user. If you are the administrator and the license user is shown as 'unassigned' in the Self Service Licensing Center, you are the only one who can view and get licenses. If you assign the license to another user, the licensed user can also view and get licenses.

Q. What is a companion license?
A. A companion license grants license portability to a fixed product license. Each fixed product can be assigned to up to three computers: an office, a lab and a home computer as long as all are only used by the same person. The license grant restricts the user to only one computer at a time.

Q. What is a checkout license?
A. A Checkout license enables portability for users with only floating seat licenses. The license administrator can issue a two-week fixed license allowing one of the users to have access to the same product licenses from the network while traveling with a laptop.

Q.Why hasn't my license file arrived by email yet?
A. Although most license files are sent a few minutes after they are requested, it may take up to 24 hours for you to receive a license file after requesting it. You will not receive the license file if the email address provided was incorrect. You can also access your license by going to the License History section in the Self-Service Licensing Center.

Q. How do I set up a license?
A. You can find instructions about how to set up licenses for Altera software in Altera Software Installation and Licensing Manual (PDF) and MAX+PLUS II licensing page.

Q. How do I know what software my license enables?
A. You can see what software your license enables by checking in the header at the top of your license file. The header outlines the type of license, the license expiration date (if applicable) and all products included in the license file. See Altera Software Installation and Licensing Manual (PDF) for information.

Q. What version of Quartus II software and IP does my license support?
A. Altera uses the maintenance expiration date to indicate which versions of Quartus II software and IP core can be used. All versions of the product released prior to the maintenance expiration date can be used. A listing of all software release versions and their release dates can be found on our website at https://www.altera.com/download/archives/arc-index.jsp. MegaCore IP has been shipping in the combined download with Quartus II software since version 4.1 released in July 2004.

Q. How do I know when / if my license expires?
A. There are two types of expiration: maintenance and license. Maintenance expiration only controls which versions of a product can be used. The license expiration determines whether the product stops working entirely. License files issued on or after July 5, 2010 have a header at the top of the file. The header indicates the type of license and states whether there is a license expiration or not. If yes, the date is provided for each product in the license. Another way to look this up is to select the product license at the Self-Service Licensing Center and view product details. In the license expiration field, you'll either see a specific date or it will be blank. Blank means the license is perpetual with no license expiration.

Q. What happens when my maintenance expires?
A. Maintenance expiration controls the version(s) of the product that can be used. Maintenance expiration does not cause the license itself to stop working. If you renew the maintenance, you will be able to use all of the latest releases and updates for an additional 12 months.

Q. What should I do when my license expires?
A. Evaluation and other types of licenses have an expiration date. If you have one of these licenses and pass the expiration date, the product will stop working. Purchasing a full software or IP core license will give you a perpetual license with no license expiration date.

If you are using the MAX+PLUS II BASELINE software, you can request a new license file at the Altera Software Licensing web page.

Q. Can I transfer my license to a co-worker?
A. If you are the license administrator, you can assign it to someone else as the licensed user by going to Manage Users in the Self-Service Licensing Center. Contact Altera Customer Service if you need to change the administrator for a software or IP product.

Q.I have a new PC, how do I move my license?
A. Moving products from one computer to another consumes a rehost. Software and IP licenses can be moved to a different PC by going to the Create New License section in the Self-Service Licensing Center. The listing of product licenses on this page includes the available rehosts. Select the products you want to move and then click Assign Computer.

Q. How many times can I move a product license?
A. The number of available rehosts is tracked in the Self-Service Licensing Center for each software and IP product. It is provided in the last column of the table in the Create New License section. If you run out of available rehosts and still need to move a product license, please contact Altera Customer Service.

Q. I need to use an old version of Quartus II software. Where can I get a license?
A. You do not need a new license file to use the older version of software as long as the version you want to use was released prior to the product's maintenance expiration date. A listing of all Quartus II releases and their release dates can be found on our website.

Q. I need to use Max+ II software license. Where can I get this?
A. Max+ II software licenses can be requested on the Altera Software Licensing web page.

Q. Why can't I see all of my product licenses in the Self-Service Licensing Center?
A. There are two primary reasons why product licenses are not visible to you in the Self-Service Licensing Center. The maintenance expiration date is prior to January 1, 2009 or you are not shown in our system as the administrator or licensed user for the product(s). Licenses for products whose maintenance expiration is prior to 1/1/2009 can be generated by following the Generate Legacy License links in the left navigation of Self-Service Licensing Center. You will need to know the computer ID in order to get the license file. If you are not the administrator or licensed user for the product, you can either contact your internal administrator (if known) or contact Altera Customer Service for assistance.

Q. How do I move floating seats from one computer to another?
A. We refer to this as split floating licenses in the Self-Service Licensing Center. Select split floating licenses from the left navigation or licensing home page. The eligible floating licenses are displayed. You can then select the product from which you want to remove / move licenses and click Split. Once the number of seats to be split is entered, the newly split seats will be shown as separate product licenses. If the licenses were previously assigned to a computer you will need to rehost them onto the appropriate machine. Use the Create New Licenses page to do this rehost.

Q. How do I get a license for my Altera T-Guard / Dongle?
A. The Altera T-Guard / Dongle is treated like a fixed node computer in the Self-Service Licensing Center. You can select one or more products on the Create New Licenses page and then Create New Computer using the T-Guard / Dongle number as the ID. The primary computer type on the Create New Computer page should be selected as 'Guard ID'.

Q. How do I troubleshoot a licensing problem?
A. There are several resources available to help troubleshoot licensing problems, including the following:

Q. Is ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition free?
A. Yes, ModelSim-Altera Starter Edition is free. You do not need a license to run this software.

Q. My Altera software is about to expire. Do I buy a license renewal or a brand new license?
A. You can purchase a renewal for Altera software if the maintenance has not yet expired or if the maintenance expired less than 30 days ago. Otherwise, purchase a brand new license. Contact your local sales person for details about purchasing a license or renewal.

Q. My Altera IP core maintenance expired a year ago. Can I renew? Is there a penalty for the lapse?
A. Although we strongly recommend that customers keep their IP core licenses current on maintenance, we do allow them to lapse. Maintenance resumes beginning with the date the renewal was purchase and runs for 12 months. We do not currently require payment for the lapse period as part of the renewal.

Q. Does a 60-day evaluation license include the option to generate encrypted .POF files and decryption keys for the EP3CLS device family?
A. No, the evaluation license does not include the security feature.

Q. What is the feature line in a subscription license file that indicates whether the encryption generation is active?
A. When the encryption generation is active, you can find 'FEATURE quartus_nonvolatile_encryption' in the license file.

Q. Is encryption included in a subscription license?
A. Yes, encryption is included for new subscription license. We include it as a standard option towards the end of 2011.

Q. Does Quartus Web Edition software come with security features?
A. No, customer must purchase the Quartus II Subscription Edition to obtain the security features.

Rate This Page
Please give us feedback