Choose how your license is delivered, not how a vendor assumes it should be
AuthGuru supports multiple license delivery methods — software key, hardware dongle, RTC time dongle, and cloud-based delivery — so the method fits your product and your customer's environment, not a single default approach.
One delivery method doesn't fit every product
Not every customer environment can support the same license delivery approach. Some run fully offline with no network access. Some need a physical, tamper-resistant key for high-security environments. Some are cloud-connected and want licensing to work invisibly in the background. A licensing platform built around a single delivery assumption forces publishers to work around it — license delivery methods exist so the approach matches the deployment, not the other way around.
License delivery methods for your business use
Four ways to get a license into your customer's hands — chosen based on their connectivity, security requirements, and how your product is actually deployed.
Software Key
License bound to the software itself on local machine — no physical hardware, validated locally once activated.
Cloud-Based
License validated and managed entirely online — connected to network, always checked against the online server.
Hardware Dongle
A physical USB security key carrying the license — no network required, no software footprint to tamper with.
RTC Time Dongle
A hardware dongle with its own onboard real-time clock — license terms hold even with zero network dependency.
Two licensing paths, one platform
Every delivery method falls into one of two categories — online or offline — and knowing which one fits your product makes the choice between the four methods above much clearer.
When your software stays connected
Online licensing validates against a server on every check — no local trust required, and license terms can be updated or revoked in real time from your side.
Always current
Entitlement changes, upgrades, and revocations take effect immediately, without waiting on the customer.
No local clock trust needed
Time-based terms are validated against server time, removing any dependency on the customer's system clock.
Simplest to manage
No physical hardware to ship, replace, or track — licensing is entirely software-based and remotely managed.
Best fit
SaaS-style products, cloud-connected desktop software, and any deployment where connectivity is a safe assumption.
When your software can't stay connected
Offline licensing provisions terms directly onto the delivery method — a hardware dongle or RTC time dongle — so validation happens locally, with nothing to phone home to.
No network dependency
Licensing terms are provisioned onto the delivery method itself and validated locally, with no server call required.
Time-bound terms still hold
RTC Time Dongles carry their own onboard clock, so expiration dates enforce correctly even fully air-gapped.
Physical enforcement layer
Hardware-based delivery adds a tamper-resistant layer software-only methods can't match on their own.
Best fit
Industrial, embedded, air-gapped, or regulated environments where connectivity can't be assumed or isn't permitted.
Why the delivery method matters commercially
The right delivery method affects who you can sell to, how much support your team fields, and how easily you can grow into new customer segments later.
Matches your actual customers
No forcing offline or industrial customers into cloud-only licensing, or vice versa.
Reduces support friction
The right method reduces activation and connectivity issues reported from the customer site.
Meets security requirements
Hardware-based methods satisfy compliance expectations that larger accounts often require.
Keeps options open as you grow
Methods can be mixed across product lines or customer segments without re-platforming.
Delivery is one part of a connected system
Switching or mixing delivery methods doesn't mean switching platforms or rebuilding your integration — everything runs on the same underlying data.
Same license & entitlement data
Whichever delivery method you choose, it draws from the same license and entitlement records — nothing is duplicated or out of sync.
Same protection logic
Enforcement rules apply consistently regardless of delivery method — a dongle and a software key enforce the same terms.
Same APIs
Your integration doesn't change when the delivery method does — the same API surface covers all four options.
Built for publishers with more than one deployment scenario
This capability fits publishers whose customer base doesn't fit a single delivery method.
Mixed customer environments
Serving both standard commercial customers and offline, embedded, or industrial customers from the same product line.
Different connectivity requirements
Customers ranging from fully cloud-connected to fully air-gapped, each needing a fitting delivery method.
Security or compliance variation
Some customer segments require hardware-based enforcement; others are satisfied with a software key.
Works alongside
Delivery method is one of three independent decisions behind every license — closely tied to how it's licensed, deployed, and protected once it reaches your customer.
Let's find the right delivery method
Tell us about your customers' environments, and we'll help you match the right delivery method to each one.
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