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Activating a License on the Target Node

Owned by Sylvain Ménard
Last updated: Mar 10, 2023
3 min read

Since RT-LAB 10.5, each target must be activated with a valid license to be able to run a simulation. Two simple steps must be followed to activate a license on a target.

  • Step 1: Request a License
  • Step 2: Install the License

Before activating a target, you should ensure that your systems (host + target) are correctly configured by following these prerequisites:

  • RT-LAB must be installed on your Windows host computer. See Installing RTLAB Software on your Host Station.
  • Each target must be available in RT-LAB. See Connecting your Real-Time Target Node to your Network for an OPAL-RT chassis or Setting Up the Windows PC as a Target Node for Windows.
  • RT-LAB must be installed on each target. See Installing RT-LAB on the target Node for an OPAL-RT chassis.

Step 1: Request a License

  • Open the target (double click [1]), select the “License” tab [2] then click “Request” [3] to open a wizard that will guide you through the license request process.

Fill in the license request form then click Next.

Verify the request information and then click Finish to complete the process. The request will be automatically sent through a web service on the Internet.

Upon successful completion, you will receive this confirmation message:

If your host is not connected to the Internet or if a problem occurred, the wizard will prompt you to save the request file and send it by email to our support team via https://www.opal-rt.com/support-home/



Note: You can request licenses for more than one target from the RT-LAB menu Help > Request a license.



Step 2: Install the license

  • Before starting, ensure that you have received the required license for the target from our support team. Copy the license file to your command station.
  • Install the license: Open the target (double click [1]), select the “License” tab [2] then click “Install” [3] to open a file browser.


  • Browse to the license file and click Open. The file will be installed on the target automatically.
  • The license page will be updated with the new license data. This page contains the description, the license number, the expiration date and the list of available features for this target.



Note: You can install several license files at once from the RT-LAB menu Help > Install a license file.



Important Notes About Licenses

Starting from RT-LAB version 10.5.xlicense is a binary file (.bin) instead of a ".lic" file.
Starting from RT-LAB version RT-LAB 10.5.xlicense check is made at the load step.
Starting from RT-LAB version RT-LAB 11.0.xlicense check is made at the Compile and link generated code build step. In order to compile your models, you must have an RT-LAB developer license.

The license resides only on the target computer. RT-LAB 10.5.x+ can be installed with no license on an infinite number of host computers. For Windows target nodes, the license is placed in C:\OPAL-RT\LicServer.

  • The RT-LAB 10.5.x+ license server is totally independent of the license server of RT-LAB 10.4.x and previous versions. Both license systems can cohabitate and be functional on the same hosts/targets.
  • The RT-LAB 10.5.x+ license server is totally independent of Acresso's FLEXlm software previously used for the license management. It is now purely an OPAL-RT Technologies solution.

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