Licensing

License Tiers

The plans build on each other: Basic lets you connect, browse, and use AI Chat with small import/export operations; Pro unlocks the full engineering toolset with no limit on import/export size; Pro+ adds Forge and EPLAN on top of Pro; and Enterprise includes everything and is available on request.

Trial Period

On first launch, you can start a 30-day free trial with all Enterprise-level features unlocked. After the trial expires, the application falls back to Basic (free) mode.

To start a trial:

1. Click View → Settings → Manage License
2. Click Start 30-Day Trial
3. All features are available for 30 days

Activate License (Online)

1. Purchase a subscription (Professional or Enterprise) at https://www.anyautomation.ch
   • Tip: Inside the License Activation dialog a View Plans & Subscribe button opens the same comparison page in your browser, where you can review all plans and prices.
2. You will receive an activation code via email (format: ACT-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX)
3. Open View → Settings → Manage License
4. Enter the activation code
5. Click Activate
6. The license will be bound to your hardware

Billing: Choose monthly or yearly billing on the website during checkout. Yearly plans save approximately 17%.

Important: The software requires an online license validation at least every 14 days. If no internet connection is available, the software can be used offline for up to 14 days. After 14 days, a new online validation is required.

Hardware Binding

Each license is bound to a unique hardware ID generated from:

• CPU ID (Processor Serial Number)
• Motherboard Serial Number
• Primary MAC Address

Machine Switch Limit

Your license is bound to your account, not to a single machine — you can move it between computers without contacting support. The application enforces a rolling limit of up to 3 different machines per 30-day window: each new sign-in on a previously-unseen hardware ID counts as one switch. The fourth distinct machine within the same 30-day window is rejected at sign-in time. The window slides — switches that fall out of the past 30 days no longer count against the limit. Sign in on a new machine and the previous machine's binding is released automatically.

The current usage is visible in the License window (see below). When you reach 3/3, an in-panel banner explains the next free slot and when it becomes available.

License Window

Open the window via View → Settings → Manage License (or click the License entry in the main toolbar). The Manage License window now combines two sections in one place:

• Account & License (top, visible while signed in) — the same set of rows previously hosted in a separate Settings tab. Use it to review the active subscription and sign out of this machine.
• Plans & Activation (bottom, always visible) — the Hardware ID display, activation-code field, a subscription banner with a View Plans & Subscribe button that opens the website, and the current-plan indicator.

Manage Subscription

• Click Manage Subscription in the License dialog
• Opens the Stripe portal for:
  • Changing payment method
  • Downloading invoices
  • Canceling subscription

View License Information

In the License dialog, you can see:

• Current license type (Basic/Professional/Enterprise)
• Current period expiry date
• Hardware ID
• Activation code

Security Alerts

When the app detects an unusual security event, a yellow banner appears at the top of the main window. These alerts stay visible until you dismiss them (click the × button) so they are never overwritten by other status messages.

Two event types surface here:

• Storage integrity warning. The app could not fully save your license information to the Windows Registry. This is usually a permissions issue on a managed laptop. The app keeps running with your cached license — if the warning appears immediately after activation, try running the app once as Administrator, or contact your IT department.
• Certificate change warning. The TLS certificate of anyautomation.ch changed unexpectedly. Your connection is still TLS-protected (otherwise the app would refuse the request entirely), but the change is worth investigating — especially if it coincides with a newly installed corporate proxy. The app continues to work; contact support if the warning does not clear within 24 hours.

Both alerts are informational. Your license stays active while they are visible. The banner automatically disappears the next time the condition clears.

Trial migration banner

If the app finds a legacy trial on this machine but no account is signed in, a yellow banner at the top of the window invites you to sign in before the deadline. Click Sign in in the banner to open the sign-in dialog; once signed in, the trial transfers to your account and the banner is replaced by a "Trial migrated" confirmation. The migration is automatic — there is no manual step beyond signing in.

If the migration fails (server error, expired window, the trial already belongs to a different account), a red banner replaces the original explaining the cause; restart the application and try again, or contact support if the failure persists.

If the automatic migration cannot find the legacy hardware ID (for example after replacing the disk or restoring a Windows backup), open View → Settings → Manage License and click Migrate manually. Enter the 16-character hardware ID from a backup, a support email, or an old registry export and submit — the manual flow uses the same trial-migration pipeline as the automatic banner, so any failure surfaces the same diagnostic message immediately below the button.

Account page (browser)

Click Manage on website in the License window (or visit https://anyautomation.ch/profile after signing in) to open your browser-based account page. The page covers four operations beyond what the desktop License panel exposes:

• Profile — your email, account-creation date, and last sign-in timestamp.
• Manage subscription — opens the Stripe customer portal in a new tab to change payment method, download invoices, or cancel.
• Release this machine — frees the current machine binding so you can reactivate on a different computer without waiting for the 30-day window. A confirmation prompt appears before the release. The next sign-in on a new machine becomes the new active binding.
• Delete account (Danger zone) — permanently deletes your account record, revokes all signed-in sessions, and releases the license. The dialog asks you to type DELETE in capitals to confirm. This cannot be undone.

The page is HTTPS-only and requires you to be signed in. After sign-out (from either the desktop app or the page itself), the page redirects you to the sign-in form on the next visit.

Untrusted Environment (Basic mode)

If the app detects a debugger attached to its process, or if the main executable is not signed with the expected Certum certificate, the app silently downgrades to Basic tier. This is a defense-in-depth measure against tampering. Release builds always have the correct signature; if you see this behaviour in a normal install, the binary has been modified — reinstall from https://www.anyautomation.ch.

Manage Organization License

Volume Pro and Volume Enterprise are multi-seat subscriptions for organizations. The owner (the person who purchased the subscription) manages seats from a web dashboard; team members sign in with their own email and each occupies one seat.

Owner — Set up the subscription. Go to https://www.anyautomation.ch and choose Volume Professional or Volume Enterprise with the desired seat count (2-200). After Stripe checkout, you receive two emails: a magic-login code for owner sign-in to the desktop app, and an organization confirmation with the org ID and owner role.

Owner — Invite team members. After signing in, open the license dialog (View → Settings → Manage License) and click Manage on website. The web dashboard shows occupied and available seats. Enter a team member's email address and click Invite — the team member receives an email with a magic link, valid for 7 days.

Member — Accept the invitation. Clicking the magic link opens the web page with the org name and an Accept button. After accepting, the account is bound to the organization. In the desktop app, sign in with the same email — the license dialog shows membership with role "Member" and a note that management is handled by the owner.

Owner — Release a seat. In the web dashboard, click Release seat next to the member row. The seat becomes free immediately and can be reassigned. The former member account falls back to Basic tier (unless they have their own solo subscription).

Change seat count. In the Stripe customer portal, you can increase quantity at any time — the additional seats are immediately available for invitation. Reductions require enough free seats first; release the right number of seats before lowering quantity in the Stripe portal.

Add-ons under the volume model. The EPLAN add-on can be activated organization-wide — every member inherits access automatically at next sign-in. Owners see this in the license dialog under Add-ons → EPLAN as "Org activated"; members see "Active (Org)" without their own manage button.

Activate the EPLAN Add-on

The EPLAN add-on is a separately licensed extension for connecting to EPLAN Electric P8. Available for Pro, Enterprise, Trial, and Volume subscriptions.

Solo activation. In the license dialog → Add-ons section → EPLAN card → Purchase opens Stripe checkout for CHF 19.99/month or CHF 199.99/year (annual saves 17 %). After payment, the card switches to "Activated"; sign out and back in (or click Refresh in the license dialog) to load the new entitlement — the EPLAN tab appears in the left activity bar.

Volume activation (owner). In the web dashboard → Add-ons → EPLAN → Add opens a Stripe checkout for the organization-wide add-on subscription with quantity matching the seat count. After payment, every team member inherits EPLAN access at the next validate cycle.

Trial accounts. During the 30-day trial period, the EPLAN add-on is included automatically — no separate activation needed.

Cancel the add-on. Solo: end the add-on subscription via the Stripe portal — the EPLAN tab disappears at the next validate cycle. Volume: owner cancels in the web dashboard, all team members lose access simultaneously.