Intel® Quartus® Prime Software Licensing Questions and Answers

A. You can find information about how to get a license on the Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Quick-Start: Intel® Quartus® Prime Pro Edition page.

*Note that starting from Intel® Quartus® Prime Pro Edition 21.3 or later and Intel® Quartus® Prime Standard/Lite Edition 21.1 or later, ModelSim*-Intel® FPGA Edition and ModelSim*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition are no longer supported.

A. You need a valid license file to run the following software:

• Intel® Quartus® Prime Pro or Standard Edition Software, and prior subscription versions of the Intel® Quartus® Design Software.
• Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition Software.
• Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software.
• DSP Builder for Intel® FPGAs.
• Intel® FPGA Intellectual Property (IP).
• MAX+PLUS® II Software.

*Note that license file is not required for the Intel® Quartus® Prime Lite Edition Software, ModelSim*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition Software, and Intel® FPGA IP functions. Please checkout Intel® FPGA Licensing Support Center for further details.

A. You must log into the Intel® Self-Service Licensing Center (SSLC) to create and manage your licenses. For information on how to use the SSLC, please check the section B. Using the Intel® FPGA Self-Service Licensing Center in the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide.

If you purchase a software product online from the Intel® authorized distributor, you can find instructions in the section B.2. Getting a License File with Your New Purchase in the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide.

A. You can evaluate the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software or prior versions of the Intel® Quartus® Design Software for 30 days without a license file, but programming file support is not included. However, a license file is required to evaluate DSP Builder for Intel® FPGA software. You may contact your local Intel® sales representative or Intel® authorized distributor to request the license.

Intel® FPGA IP is enabled for no-cost Intel® FPGA IP Evaluation Mode immediately upon installation. No license file is required. AN320: Using Intel® FPGA IP Evaluation Mode (PDF) details the Intel® FPGA IP Evaluation Mode flow.

A. No, you do not need to know the specific machine(s) where an Intel® FPGA software or IP product will be hosted before placing an order. You only need to make sure that your computer or server meets the minimum system requirements for the software or IP product you intend to use. Please check the System Requirements and Prerequisites in the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide.

A. The email you received has an URL that will take you directly to the SSLC page. Log in using your My Intel® account and follow the steps for Getting a License Files with Your New Purchase.

A. Two user types are assigned to each product license: an administrator and a licensed user. If you are the administrator and the license user is shown as 'unassigned' on the SSLC page, you are the only person who can view and obtain licenses. If you assign the license to another user, the licensed user can also view and obtain licenses.

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

Note: The Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software does not support companion licenses. You must purchase additional licenses if you want to run the software on other computers.

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.

A. Although most license files are sent within a few minutes of being requested, it may take up to 24 hours for you to receive a license file after making the request. If the email address provided was incorrect, you will not receive the license file. To view and generate your current license, go to SSLC and select Licenses > All Licenses from the menu bar.

A. You can find instructions about how to set up licenses for the Intel® FPGA software in the section Set Up a Fixed License or Set Up a License in a Network License Server in the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide.

A. For software, IP, or Development Kit legacy licenses with a maintenance expiration date prior to January 1, 2009, you can now obtain a license file via the Intel® Self Service Licensing Center's Generate Legacy Licenses option.

A. You may find information about this on the FPGA Software Download Center page.

A. Most license entitlements for Intel® Quartus® Prime Software and Intel® FPGA IP cores are perpetual. Exceptions for products or complementary tools, such as Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition, are noted in the license file and SSLC with a license expiration date. Licenses for development kits are non-perpetual licenses.

A. To purchase Intel® FPGA software online, please refer to the Intel® authorized distributor page.

After the license order is placed, the license will be processed and made available in the SSLC within 2-7 days. An email notification will be sent out to the user when the process is completed.

A. You can check which software your license enables by checking the Header at the top of your license file. The header outlines the type of license, the primary computer and companion IDs, maintenance expiration dates, and a product license summary. For more information, refer to the License File Header.

A. The maintenance expiration date is used to indicate the versions of Intel® Quartus® Design Software and IP core that can be used. All products versions released prior to the maintenance expiration date can be used. Since the release of version 4.1 of Intel® Quartus® Design Software in July 2004, Intel® FPGA IP has been included in the combined download package with the software.

A. There are two types of expiration: maintenance and license expiration. Maintenance expiration only controls which versions of the product can be used, while the license expiration determines whether the product stops working entirely.

License files issued on or after July 5, 2010, include a header at the top of the file that indicates the license type and states whether there is a license expiration or not. If there is a license expiration date, it is provided for each product in the license. Alternatively, you can select the product license on the SSLC page and view product details to check the license expiration field. If the field is blank, it means the license is perpetual and has no license expiration date.

A. Maintenance expiration controls which version(s) of the product can be used but does not affect the license itself. By renewing maintenance, you can access the latest product releases and updates for an additional 12 months.

A. Evaluation and other types of licenses have an expiration date, and if the expiration date passes, the product will stops working. To avoid this, you can purchase a full software or IP core license that gives you a perpetual license with no expiration date.

A. Transferring products from one computer to another is called rehosting your license. Software and IP licenses can be transferred to a different computer by going to the SSLC page. You can refer to the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide for instructions on how to rehost license. The guide provides details in section B.12. Rehosting a License on a Different Computer.

A. You can transfer your existing licenses from one computer to another, this is called Rehost licenses. You have a total of three rehosts for each license.

The SSLC page tracks the number of available rehosts for each software and IP product. To view this information, navigate to Licenses > All Licenses in the SSLC menu bar. The available rehosts are displayed in the last column of the table. If you have exhausted all available rehosts and still need to transfer a product license, you can log in to My Intel Account and submit a support ticket through Intel Premier Support website.

A. If the version of the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software you want to use was released prior to the maintenance expiration date of your license, you do not need a new license file as most license entitlements for Intel® Quartus® Prime Software and Intel® FPGA IP cores are perpetual. You can use your existing license to run that version of the software.

A listing of all Intel® Quartus® Design Software releases and their release dates can be found on our FPGA Software Download Center webpage.

A. There are two primary reasons why product licenses are not visible to you on the SSLC page:

(1) The maintenance expiration date is prior to January 1, 2009.
(2) You are not shown in our system as the administrator or licensed user for the product(s).

For products whose maintenance expiration is prior to 1/1/2009, you can generate legacy licenses by using the Generate Legacy Licenses option. You will need to provide your Software Guard, NIC ID, or Host ID to obtain the license file.

If you encounter any further issues, please visit the Intel® forum website and post your question under the topic related to Intel® FPGA Software Installation & Licensing. Alternatively, you can submit a ticket through the Intel® Premier Support website.

A. We refer to this as Splitting Seats on your licenses. You can refer to the Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide for instructions on how to split licenses. The guide provides details in section B.17. Splitting Seats on Your License and Generating Licenses.

After you have entered the number of seats to be split, 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. Refer section B.12. Rehosting a License on a Different Computer to rehost license.

A. Intel® FPGA T-Guard or dongle is also referred to as a Software Guard ID. The Software Guard ID is treated as a fixed node computer on the SSLC page. After you select a license product and wish to generate the license, you have the option to ‘Create a New Computer’ or ‘Assign an Existing Computer’. When you select the +New Computer button, a pop-up window will appear. Select the Computer Type as 'Guard ID', License Type as ‘Fixed’, and enter the computer name and computer ID. Once the information is filled, proceed to generate the license.

A. The development kit comes with a serial number that is stated either on the box or a customer letter. This serial number serves as a license activation code to activate your Intel® Quartus® Prime Software via the SSLC. Check if the software DKE license is visible in the Products and Users View in the SSLC. If the license is visible, no activation is needed. You may proceed to create the new license file. If the license is not visible, the serial number will be the activation code for you to activate the license. If you do not know how to activate the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software license, please refer to this guide—How to Activate License?. For activation issues, please visit the Intel® forum website and post your question under the topic related to Intel® FPGA Software Installation & Licensing. Alternatively, you can submit a ticket through Intel® Premier Support website.

A. There are several resources available to help in troubleshooting licensing problems, including the following:

• Intel® FPGA Licensing Support Center is a one-stop shop for details about Intel® FPGA licensing-related updates. The page contains answers to common how-to questions and issues related to licensing.
• Ask Intel® 24/7 chatbots, located at the bottom right of the Intel® FPGA Licensing Support Center webpage, for help with common questions.
• Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing user guide contains detailed information about installing a license and troubleshooting licensing problems.
• FPGA Knowledge Base (KDB) webpage FPGA Knowledge Base webpage contains known licensing issues and technical support solutions.
• Visit Intel® Community - Intel® FPGA Software Installation & Licensing to get technical support and engage in discussions with the user community and Intel® experts.

A. Yes, Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition is free, although you do need a valid license (at no cost) to run the software. Check the KDB article “Does the Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition software require a license file?” for further details.

A. If your license is about to expire, you will need to purchase a new license. For details about purchasing a license renewal, please contact your local Intel® sales representative or Intel® authorized distributor.

After completing the license renewal purchase, the user can apply the renewal in SSLC. Please refer to Section B.10. Renewing Your License for instructions.

A. While we strongly recommend that customers maintain their IP core licenses with up-to-date maintenance, we do allow for maintenance lapses. If you renew your Intel® FPGA IP core maintenance after it has expired, the maintenance period will begin on the date of renewal and last for 12 months. There is no penalty fee for the lapse period when you renew.

A. No, a 60-day evaluation license does not include the option to generate encrypted POF files and decryption keys for the EP3CLS device family. The encrypted POF files and decryption keys are only available with a purchased license for the EP3CLS device family.

A. When the encryption generation is active, you can find 'FEATURE quartus_nonvolatile_encryption' in the license file.

A. Yes, encryption has been included as a standard option in subscription licenses since the end of 2011.

A. The Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software does not support companion licenses. You must purchase additional licenses if you want to run the software on other computers.

A. Yes, you will need to purchase an Intel® FPGA IP license if you wish to use it with the Intel® Quartus® Prime Lite Edition or previous Lite versions of the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software. Please refer to Compare Pro, Standard, and Lite Editions (PDF) and contact your local Intel® sales representative or Intel® authorized distributor for IP pricing.

A. Please contact your local Intel® sales representative or Intel® authorized distributor for more information.

A. You do not need a license file to evaluate the Intel® Quartus® Prime Software for a period of 30 days. You do need an evaluation license to evaluate the DSP Builder for Intel® FPGAs. To obtain your 30-day trial software from MathWorks for use with DSP Builder for Intel® FPGAs, please navigate to the bottom of the DSP Builder for Intel® FPGAs webpage and click the ‘Get an Evaluation License’ button.

Intel® FPGA IP is enabled for a no-cost Intel® FPGA IP Evaluation Mode, which is available upon installation. For details about the Intel® FPGA IP Evaluation Mode flow, please see AN320: Using Intel FPGA IP Evaluation Mode (PDF).

A. The Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software license expires 12 months after the date of purchase, which means that you will need to renew your license to continue using the software. To do so, you can contact your Intel® authorized distributor to purchase a new license file for the Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software. Once you have obtained the new license file, you can generate the license on the SSLC website.

A. Self Service for Intel® University Program was launched on September 30, 2011. Only licenses granted after the launch are visible on the SSLC page. For inquiries on licenses granted before the date, send an email to psg.university@intel.com.

A. You can find the answer in this KDB article.

A. The security feature can be requested from Intel® by submit a ticket through the Intel® Premier Support website.

A. To merge your new license file with your existing one, please refer to Section B.18. Merging or Adding Seats on Your License and Generating License for instructions.