How to Redeem License Activation Codes
There are four steps to redeem your product licenses for VMware Infrastructure and related products.
- Purchase your VMware products
- Register your License Activation Code
- Activate software licenses by generating license files
- Install the license files to enable your products
1. Purchase Your VMware Products
When you purchase VMware products, you will receive an order confirmation email and a product licensing email that contains a License Activation Code. One License Activation Code contains all of the product licenses you purchased in a single order. Generally, the License Activation Code has the following format: FAC–XXXXX–XXXXX–XXXXX–XXXXX.
Note: If you do not receive the email containing your License Activation Code, contact VMware Support.
2. Register Your License Activation Code
Visit the VMware License Management Portal and click Register License Activation Code after logging in. Enter the License Activation Code from your email and click Continue. Click Done to return to the Manage Licenses Page. The licenses from your recent purchase will now be displayed in the My Product Licenses section of this page.
Note: If you are new to VMware, select Register from the login screen to create your VMware account.
3. Activate Software Licenses by Generating License Files
To generate and retrieve your license files, follow this basic procedure on the Manage Licenses Page of the VMware License Management Portal:
- Click Generate New License File.
- Select the appropriate licensing model and click Next.
Centralized License Server – A single license file holding your licenses is stored on a license server. The license server manages an entire license pool, making licenses available to one or more hosts. When a host requires a particular licensed functionality, the license key for that functionality is temporarily checked out from the license pool. Unused license keys are released to the pool, becoming available again to any hosts. This model simplifies license administration by allowing allocation and re-allocation of licenses from a single location.
Single Host – Created license files are stored on individual VMware ESX hosts. Unused licenses are not automatically distributed, and licensing can occur without an external connection. - Enter the number of licenses you want to redeem and click Next.
Note: Some products, such as ESX Server, require licenses to be activated on a per CPU basis and in powers of two. For example, to generate a license file for a 4-CPU host, enter 2 to activate two ESX Server license units. For all other licenses, enter the exact number of licenses to include in the license file. - Enter a comment for your license file, if desired.
The comments can act as an internal name system when generating multiple license files. For example, you can enter the name of the server where the file will reside or the name of the specific project for which the file is created. The comments you enter appear in the My License Files table on the Manage Licenses page. - Click Finish to generate your license file.
- Select a method to retrieve your license file.
Download your license file to your local hard disk or send it as an email attachment.
For detailed information on the license file activation process, see the License Management Portal Online Help.
4. Install the License Files to Enable Your Products
Download your VMware products from the Product Downloads page. Install the license files retrieved from the License Management Portal to enable product features during product installation.
If you have any questions on the license activation process, contact VMware Support.
