Codesys Licensing

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Cecile Lilien

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Aug 3, 2024, 2:39:03 PM8/3/24

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The CODESYS Application-Based Runtime Licenses provide truly hardware-independent licensing to CODESYS customers. Application-Based Licenses are scaling with the scope of the application running on any CODESYS SoftPLC supported platform. The scope of the application is defined by the number of I/O channels, number of fieldbus networks, number of visualized variables, code size and additional options such as SoftMotion. The device view in the CODESYS Development System shows details of the application scope in a CODESYS project for licensing purposes.

At the core of the Application-Based Licenses are eight main license levels to choose from, plus optional add-ons for advanced features. The Application-Based Licenses are starting at a very low price for small applications and grow with the complexity and size of larger projects. Easy upgrades are available as needed to grow with your application.

The result is a very economical and transparent licensing model for most control and HMI applications. Running the same application on a powerful industrial Windows PC or on a low-power Linux edge device is now possible with the same license at the same competitive price.

Use it to project PLC applications according to IEC 61131-3. Register in the CODESYS Store and download the full version free of charge: Then install the system on your Windows workstation PC. Another option is to use the CODESYS Development System to install the SoftPLC (see 3.) and the license (see 4.).

Please note: In the CODESYS Store we only offer software, no hardware. To select a suitable hardware, please contact the supplier of your choice and make sure that a compatible CODESYS SoftPLC is available for the selected hardware (see 3.). A comprehensive selection of CODESYS-compatible hardware can be found here.

The software is installed via the CODESYS Development System (for Linux-based SoftPLCs) or a separate setup routine (for Windows-based systems). Virtual controllers are deployed via the CODESYS Automation Server.

The CODESYS Store offers numerous add-on products for CODESYS. They extend the functionality of the CODESYS Development System and the CODESYS Control SoftPLC systems. For each product, there is a defined license mode per workstation or per target device:

Licenses can be stored on an existing CODESYS Key or on the device directly during the purchasing process in the CODESYS Store, afterwards in the CODESYS Development System or on a special web interface (License Central under )

Device manufacturers who intend to install the CODESYS runtime system on their devices obtain a license file on purchasing the CODESYS Control Runtime Toolkit. Each device programmable with CODESYS is subject to license fees known as runtime royalties. For documentation purposes, each manufacturer is awarded a license certificate for the toolkit and the add-on products purchased.

Add-on products such as the CODESYS PLCHandler, the CODESYS OPC UA Server, the CODESYS Redundancy Toolkit or the products supporting fieldbus systems can be purchased as add-ons for the CODESYS Runtime Toolkit. Fees for add-ons to CODESYS Visualization and the integrated MotionControl/CNC Toolkit are added to the license fees for the runtime system used. All add-on products are licensed through an extension of the license file which is also documented by a certificate.

SoftSPS-Systeme are designed for standard device platforms like industrial PCs or other open device platforms. They can be installed by the users themselves. The required licenses are application-specific and are stored directly on each individual device using the WIBU CodeMeter technology. Alternatively, they are available as network licenses

The administration of CODESYS-based controller systems (as of CODESYS V3) can be conveniently done in the cloud-based platform CODESYS Automation Server. For this purpose, special accounts ("tenants") are booked and managed in the CODESYS Store. The licensing depends on time and usage, among other things on the number of controllers administered and data volume consumed.

The CODESYS Group is the manufacturer of CODESYS, the leading hardware-independent IEC 61131-3 automation software for developing and engineering controller applications.
CODESYS is a registered trademark.

We are having problems with licensing PFC100 controller.
We are using WAGO PFC100 (750-8101) in one of our machines and for some reason it seems that we are not able to activate license on this controller.

I haven't tested the solution yet, but it might do the trick, we are running the system from SD card also. In our case the SD image was completely blank before we downloaded the application and tried to do the licensing. It might still be, that the soft container in the SD card is somehow corrupted or faulty?!

Hi, i have a similar problem. im using pfc200 4.5.0.0.
There are two softcontainer and only one with license in it. every 1-2 hrs it will auto logoff. i tried the steps above but i dont find the /var/opt/codesys/.cmact_licenses

In addition to the standard installation of CODESYS, add-ons are also available, which are subject to fees and licensing. You get licenses for these products from CODESYS GmbH in the form of ticket numbers, which you can install using the CODESYS License Manager.

The License Manager stores the licensing information on an external USB device (CODESYS dongle) or in a soft container which is registered in the local CodeMeter Control Center. The dongle has to be plugged in to your local PC.

In the license repository, you can get the current information for each ticket number from the central license server. Other information is also provided, such as whether a license can still be activated or must be returned.

There are plug-ins which require a license, but they can still be used with limited functionality even without a license. In such cases, messages about the missing license are displayed at locations which are specific to the plug-in. Examples of plug-ins like this (add-ons): CODESYS Git, CODESYS SVN, CODESYS UML from the Professional Developer Edition.

If the profile includes plug-ins which are subject to licensing, then CODESYS also starts without any message when a dongle with the required licenses is plugged in to the USB port of the computer or a soft container with the licenses is registered.

If the profile includes plug-ins subject to licensing but no dongle or soft container is available or a required license are found, then, CODESYS displays the License Missing dialog at start-up. You can decide whether or not to start CODESYS without the affected plug-ins.

Note: When starting from the command line, this dialog is skipped if you specify the --skipunlicensedplugins option in the command. In this case plug-ins without the required license are automatically not loaded.

While CODESYS is running, the required licenses are checked every five minutes. If a license is missing, for example because the dongle was removed in the meantime, then the License Missing dialog opens. For add-ons which can also be used without a license, the functional scope is adapted depending on the existing or missing license.

To solve this problem, insert the dongle again and pres the Retry button. If the dongle contains a valid license, the dialog closes and you can continue working as usual. Click Cancel to exit CODESYS.

Using the License Manager in CODESYS, you can manage licenses for add-on products on a CODESYS dongle or in a soft container. A soft container is the software counterpart of a security key (dongle). As a result, hardware licenses can be linked to an individual PC, even without using a security key.

CODESYS provides the Package Manager whose functionality extends the standard installation of CODESYS with additional features and configuration settings. The concept behind the Package Manager is similar to that of a typical Windows installation mechanism.

In V3.5 SP13 and higher, CODESYS checks whether or not an older version is already installed when installing the development system. If this is the case, then when you start the development system for the first time, you will see the Import Assistant dialog for importing the package installations available in the older version.

Here is the Docker file what I used.
I'm not sure if this docker file have a problem.
If it have a problem, please let me know how to download the files into my device using ftp server.

I just want to highlight, that we intend to use the codesys runtime on an embedded device that has no possibilites to connect any dongle devices to. It is an edge IO-Link master with an 1.6GHz ARM computer running inside that has an embedded linux running and a Docker container engine:

I've purchased and activated a "CODESYS Control Basic S" license on my Windows notebook, where I already have the Codemeter Control Center installed. Upon activation, I can see the CODESYS license as active on my notebook.

I've added some additional log output. Maybe this helps in figuring out the root cause. I've turned logging and verbose mode on for the CodeMeterLin application and I get the error, that some entry is not found.

I'm having the same problem. I'm trying to license Codesys running in a Linux container, which I downloaded from the following link ( _control_sl_linux). The same error that you mentioned appears. Is there any solution?

The problem on our side was that we changed the WORKDIR directory in the /etc/init.d/codesyscontrol script to /home/user/codesys, but we forgot to copy all files (including the hidden files) from the initial WORKDIR (I am not sure but I guess the initial WORKDIR was /var/opt/codesys) to the new one.
After copying those files and restarting codemeter and codesyscontrol, we were able to upload licenses.