Add an Enterprise Edition License to Redpanda in Linux

To enable enterprise features for Redpanda Self-Managed, you must have an Enterprise Edition license. This guide outlines how to apply or update an Enterprise Edition license for Redpanda Self-Managed in a Linux environment.

Prerequisites

Add a new license

Redpanda supports the following ways to apply a new license:

Apply the license using a license file

If you have the license key stored in a file, you can apply it by specifying the file path:

rpk cluster license set --path <path-to-license-file> -X admin.hosts=<admin-api-url>

Replace the following placeholders:

  • <path-to-license-file> with the path to your license file.

  • <admin-api-url> the Redpanda admin host and port

Apply the license using an inline license string

If you want to provide the license string directly, use the following command:

rpk cluster license set <license-string>

If neither the path nor the license string are provided, rpk looks for the license in /etc/redpanda/redpanda.license.

Use Redpanda Console

You can upload a license directly through Redpanda Console.

See Manage Enterprise Edition Licenses through Redpanda Console.

Verify a license

After adding or updating a license, you can use rpk to verify that the license was set.

rpk cluster license info

This command will display the current license details, including the expiration date and whether any enterprise features are active. For example:

LICENSE INFORMATION
===================
Organization:      redpanda
Type:              enterprise
Expires:           Oct 24 2027

Redpanda blocks upgrades to new feature releases if enterprise features are active without a valid license. Ensure compliance by obtaining a license to maintain access to the latest features and updates.

Update an existing license

To update an existing license, you can use one the following methods:

When a new license is uploaded, enterprise features in Redpanda Self-Managed are unlocked immediately without requiring a cluster restart. However, to unlock enterprise features in Redpanda Console, you must restart the Redpanda Console instance.

Next steps

Check the Status of an Enterprise Edition License.

Suggested reading

rpk cluster license set