---
layout: commands
page_title: 'Commands: License'
description: >
  The license command provides a datacenter-level view of the Consul
  Enterprise license.
---

# Consul License

Command: `consul license`

<EnterpriseAlert />

The `license` command provides a datacenter-level view of the Consul Enterprise license. This was added
in Consul 1.1.0 but Consul 1.10.0 removed the ability to set and reset the license using the CLI.
See the [licensing documentation](/docs/enterprise/license/overview) for more information about
Consul Enterprise license management.

If ACLs are enabled then a token with operator privileges may be required in
order to use this command. Requests are forwarded internally to the leader
if required, so this can be run from any Consul node in a cluster. See the
[ACL Guide](https://learn.hashicorp.com/consul/security-networking/production-acls) for more information.

```text
Usage: consul license <subcommand> [options] [args]

  This command has subcommands for managing the Consul Enterprise license
  Here are some simple examples, and more detailed examples are
  available in the subcommands or the documentation.

  Install a new license from a file:

      $ consul license put @consul.license

  Install a new license from stdin:

      $ consul license put -

  Install a new license from a string:

      $ consul license put "<license blob>"

  Retrieve the current license:

      $ consul license get

  Inspect a license:

      $ consul license inspect "<path to license file>"

  Reset the current license:

      $ consul license reset

  For more examples, ask for subcommand help or view the documentation.

Subcommands:
    get        Get the active license
    inspect    Inspect a signed license
    put        Puts a new license in the datacenter
    reset      Resets the license in the datacenter

```

## inspect

This command inspects and validates a license. Just like a Consul agent it
can load the license from a file on disk or from the `CONSUL_LICENSE` and
`CONSUL_LICENSE_PATH` environment variables.

Usage: `consul license inspect [<options>] [<license file>]`

Inspect a license contained in a file:

```
$ consul license inspect consul.hclic
```

Inspect a license loaded from the environment:

```
$ consul license inspect
```

This will look at the CONSUL_LICENSE environment variable first
and if not present then we will look for the file specified
by the CONSUL_LICENSE_PATH environment variable.

The output looks like this:

```
Source: /consul/config/consul.hclic (path from the CONSUL_LICENSE_PATH environment variable)
Product: consul
License ID: 6089174b-a713-74cf-4c8d-856b86f1ce50
Customer ID: 7c020610-60a2-7ccb-c210-20d899e5f3b4
Installation ID: *
Issue Time: 2020-09-14 19:45:56.212195875 +0000 UTC
Start Time: 2020-09-14 00:00:00 +0000 UTC
Expiration Time: 2021-09-14 23:59:59.999 +0000 UTC
Termination Time: 2021-09-14 23:59:59.999 +0000 UTC
Modules:
        Global Visibility, Routing and Scale
        Governance and Policy
Features:
        Automated Backups
        Automated Upgrades
        Enhanced Read Scalability
        Network Segments
        Redundancy Zone
        Advanced Network Federation
        Namespaces
        SSO
        Audit Logging
        Admin Partitions

License is valid

```

## put

-> **Deprecated** The ability to manage the cluster's license via the CLI
was removed in Consul 1.10. While the CLI command still exists it will
always return an error. This command will be fully removed in a future release.

Corresponding HTTP API Endpoint: [\[PUT\] /v1/operator/license](https://www.consul.io/api-docs/operator/license#updating-the-consul-license)

This command sets the Consul Enterprise license.

The table below shows this command's [required ACLs](/api#authentication). Configuration of
[blocking queries](/api/features/blocking) and [agent caching](/api/features/caching)
are not supported from commands, but may be from the corresponding HTTP endpoint.

| ACL Required     |
| ---------------- |
| `operator:write` |

Usage: `consul license put [options] LICENSE`

#### API Options

@include 'http_api_options_client.mdx'

@include 'http_api_options_server.mdx'

The output looks like this:

```text
License is valid
License ID: 2afbf681-0d1a-0649-cb6c-333ec9f0989c
Customer ID: 0259271d-8ffc-e85e-0830-c0822c1f5f2b
Expires At: 2019-05-22 03:59:59.999 +0000 UTC
Datacenter: *
Package: premium
Licensed Features:
        Automated Backups
        Automated Upgrades
        Enhanced Read Scalability
        Network Segments
        Redundancy Zone
        Advanced Network Federation
```

## get

Corresponding HTTP API Endpoint: [\[GET\] /v1/operator/license](https://www.consul.io/api-docs/operator/license#getting-the-consul-license)

This command gets the Consul Enterprise license.

The table below shows this command's [required ACLs](/api#authentication). Configuration of
[blocking queries](/api/features/blocking) and [agent caching](/api/features/caching)
are not supported from commands, but may be from the corresponding HTTP endpoint.

| ACL Required |
| ------------ |
| `none`       |

Usage: `consul license get [options]`

#### API Options

@include 'http_api_options_client.mdx'

@include 'http_api_options_server.mdx'

The output looks like this:

```text
License is valid
License ID: 2afbf681-0d1a-0649-cb6c-333ec9f0989c
Customer ID: 0259271d-8ffc-e85e-0830-c0822c1f5f2b
Expires At: 2019-05-22 03:59:59.999 +0000 UTC
Datacenter: *
Package: premium
Licensed Features:
        Automated Backups
        Automated Upgrades
        Enhanced Read Scalability
        Network Segments
        Redundancy Zone
        Advanced Network Federation
```

## reset

-> **Deprecated** The ability to manage the cluster's license via the CLI
was removed in Consul 1.10. While the CLI command still exists it will
always return an error. This command will be fully removed in a future release.

Corresponding HTTP API Endpoint: [\[DELETE\] /v1/operator/license](https://www.consul.io/api-docs/operator/license#resetting-the-consul-license)

Resets license for the datacenter to the one builtin in Consul binary, if it is still valid.
If the builtin license is invalid, the current one stays active.

The table below shows this command's [required ACLs](/api#authentication). Configuration of
[blocking queries](/api/features/blocking) and [agent caching](/api/features/caching)
are not supported from commands, but may be from the corresponding HTTP endpoint.

| ACL Required     |
| ---------------- |
| `operator:write` |

Usage: `consul license reset [options]`

#### API Options

@include 'http_api_options_client.mdx'

@include 'http_api_options_server.mdx'

The output looks like this:

```text
License is valid
License ID: 2afbf681-0d1a-0649-cb6c-333ec9f0989c
Customer ID: 0259271d-8ffc-e85e-0830-c0822c1f5f2b
Expires At: 2019-05-22 03:59:59.999 +0000 UTC
Datacenter: *
Package: premium
Licensed Features:
        Automated Backups
        Automated Upgrades
        Enhanced Read Scalability
        Network Segments
        Redundancy Zone
        Advanced Network Federation
```