License Activation, Seats, and Transfers

SpaceSpider is a paid desktop app with a per-seat license. This page walks you through activating a new license, how seats are counted across your machines, how to move a license to a new device, and how teams manage bulk activations. It also covers offline activation for air-gapped machines.

What a license unlocks

A valid SpaceSpider license enables:

• Unlimited spaces.
• All grid presets from 1 to 9 panes.
• All supported AI CLIs in the CLI picker.
• Signed auto-updates via the stable and beta channels.
• Priority support on the issue tracker.

The free trial is a seven-day window on a first-run machine. It disables nothing; it just stops loading spaces after the window closes, at which point you activate or uninstall.

Activate your license

After purchase you receive an email with a license key in the form SS-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX. To activate:

1. Launch SpaceSpider.
2. Open Settings > License.
3. Paste the key into License key.
4. Enter the email address you used at checkout.
5. Click Activate.

The app contacts the license server, binds the seat to this machine's anonymous hardware ID, and returns a signed activation token stored alongside spaces.json in the app data directory.

Activation takes a second or two on a reasonable connection. If you are behind a proxy, make sure the app can reach the license endpoint.

How seats are counted

Each license purchase includes a seat count. Seats correspond to distinct machine activations. A seat is consumed the moment a machine activates; it is released when you deactivate that machine (from inside SpaceSpider or via the web dashboard).

Examples:

• A single-seat license: activate on one machine. Moving to a new laptop means deactivating the old one first.
• A 5-seat team license: activate on up to five machines simultaneously. The sixth activation fails until a seat is freed.

A seat is not the same as a user account. Two team members can each activate once; one team member activating twice counts as two seats.

Deactivate a machine from inside the app

1. Open Settings > License.
2. Click Deactivate this machine.
3. Confirm.

The app contacts the license server, releases the seat, and removes the activation token from disk. The app reverts to trial mode on that machine.

Deactivation takes effect immediately. The freed seat is available to another machine without delay.

Transfer a license to a new device

The common case: you bought a new laptop.

1. On the old machine: Settings > License > Deactivate this machine.
2. On the new machine: install SpaceSpider following Install on Windows, macOS, or Linux.
3. On the new machine: Settings > License and enter your key and email.
4. Click Activate.

If you cannot access the old machine (lost, crashed, retired), use the web dashboard to release the seat remotely.

Remote release via the dashboard

Sign in to the SpaceSpider licensing dashboard with the email you used at purchase. You will see a list of every machine currently holding a seat, identified by hostname and last-active timestamp. Click Release seat next to any machine. The next time that machine tries to start SpaceSpider, it reverts to trial mode; the seat becomes available immediately for your new activation.

A remote release does not wipe data on the old machine. It only removes the activation token.

Offline activation

Some machines have no internet or are behind strict policies that block outbound traffic. Offline activation is supported via a challenge/response flow.

1. Open Settings > License on the offline machine.
2. Click Activate offline.
3. Copy the 8-digit machine challenge the app displays.
4. On an online machine, sign in to the licensing dashboard and choose Offline activation.
5. Paste the challenge. The dashboard returns a signed response.
6. Enter the response back into the offline machine's Activate offline field.
7. Click Apply.

The response is single-use and bound to the specific hardware ID that generated the challenge. It also has an expiry of 15 minutes; generate a new challenge if you run over.

Team and enterprise licenses

Team licenses are issued to an organization's admin email. The admin can:

• Invite teammates by email. Each teammate receives an activation key or a pooled email-based activation.
• Monitor active seats and last-seen timestamps.
• Revoke seats when people leave.
• Bulk-export activation logs for compliance.

Enterprise licenses add SSO, a self-hosted license server option, and invoicing.

Change the email on a license

Email changes are supported through the dashboard. Changing the email does not invalidate existing activations; it only updates the account owner. For security, the change requires confirmation on both old and new email addresses.

Refund and cancellation

Cancellation is self-service in the dashboard. You can cancel at any time; your license remains active for the remainder of the paid period. After that, activations revert to trial mode.

Refunds are available within 14 days of purchase for unused licenses. Refunded licenses are revoked, which deactivates all seats tied to them on the next check.

Troubleshooting license activation

• "Invalid key": check for typos. Keys are case-insensitive but dashes are required.
• "Seat limit reached": you are at the cap. Deactivate an existing machine or upgrade the seat count.
• "License server unreachable": temporary network issue. Retry in a minute. If persistent, use offline activation.
• "Key belongs to another account": the email you entered does not match the key. Use the checkout email.
• Trial keeps expiring after reinstall: the app data directory was wiped. Import your license token from backup or re-activate.

More general fixes in Troubleshooting.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use one license on both my personal and work machines?

A single-seat license is tied to one machine at a time. Buy a second seat or deactivate between machines.

Does the license cover future major versions?

Licenses include updates for the stated term (typically one year of updates). After the term, the app continues to work but stops receiving new releases until renewal.

What data does activation send?

A one-way hashed hardware fingerprint, the license key, and the email. No file paths, no project data, no CLI conversations are transmitted.

Is there a free tier?

No. There is a seven-day free trial that unlocks all features for evaluation.

Can I resell or share a license?

No. Licenses are non-transferable between accounts. You can transfer the seat between your own machines freely.

Related reading

• Updating SpaceSpider
• Install on Windows
• Troubleshooting Common Issues