Every license is lifetime: a one-time payment, no subscriptions, no limits on the number of programs, computers or installations. Each license includes 12 months of free updates, then (optionally) 50% off the next 12 months of updates from the original purchase price.
Let’s say it straight away: Proxy Agent checks the license. A valid key is needed for traffic to flow through the server — your programs’ requests to the models, and the ordinary proxy’s connections. Without a key the product still starts, opens and configures in full: all sections are visible, models, access keys, logs, analytics, secret hiding and management over the API work. Exactly the traffic is closed. That is the honest answer to “is a key mandatory” — mandatory, but only for traffic, not for the interface.
What the license key does
The key is permission to pass traffic, not a pass to the whole product. The split is simple.
- Without a valid key, no traffic flows: programs’ requests to the models get a clear refusal, and the proxy service does not let connections through — every such connection lands in a separate log. These requests never reach the models or the secret-hiding rules, and are not written to the request log.
- The interface is always open: sign-in, the AI agent chat panel, the health check, management over the API and every section — models, access keys, HTTP proxies, logs, analytics, secret hiding and settings.
This is deliberate. The product lives on your server and works with your keys and your data, so you need to look around and configure it calmly first — otherwise you cannot even tell what exactly is wrong with the key. The license closes exactly what you pay for: the passing traffic.
The check runs on your server against the key’s signature: no calls to external servers and no hardware binding. The same key fits all our products — the list of products it covers is written inside the key.
How to set the key
The key is set on the server with the AGENT_LICENSE environment variable. The value can be the key itself, or a path to the file where it lives — handier when the key is stored separately from the startup file. In compose.yml it looks like this:
services:
proxyagent:
image: xedant/proxy-agent:main-latest
environment:
- PROXYAGENT_DATABASE=Host=postgres;...
# the key as a string
- AGENT_LICENSE=eyJMaWNlbnNlVHlwZSI6IlBlcnNvbmFsIi4uLg==.R2VuZXJhdGVkU2lnbmF0dXJlLi4u
# or a path to a file with the key
# - AGENT_LICENSE=/run/secrets/proxyagent-licenseThe value is read once when the container starts, so after changing the key you need to restart the container — it will not pick up the new value on its own. There is no key entry form in the interface: it comes only from the environment variable.
How to check the state
The license state is visible right in the interface — nowhere to go. The license line sits at the bottom of the “Settings” window; it is the only place where the key’s state shows, and the line refreshes once a minute while the window is open, so a key whose term has passed stops being valid without reloading the page.
The line reads “Licensed to {name}”, and when the key has a term — with the days remaining; for a trial key it reads “Trial license, {days} days left”. When something is wrong with the key, the line turns red and names the reason: “Invalid license” (the key is damaged or the signature does not match), “License has expired”, “License does not cover ProxyAgent” (the key was issued for another product), or “No license — set AGENT_LICENSE” (no key configured). While the state has not arrived yet, you see “Checking license…”.
In the “Settings” window, clicking the line opens the “License Information” reference dialog — the same facts, in detail: who it is licensed to, the license type, the scope (trial, personal, company or service), the list of products (or “Universal” when the key covers them all), the issue and expiry dates (“Perpetual” when the term is unlimited), and the status — a green “Valid” or the refusal reason. Nothing to enter or activate in this dialog.
What happens when a key expires
The term is checked on the fly, on every request. As soon as the end date has passed, traffic stops immediately — no container restart needed for that — and the license line turns red. To bring traffic back, put the renewed or new key into the AGENT_LICENSE variable and restart the container: it is the restart that picks up the new value.
If there is no key at all, or it does not fit, the order is the same: the product starts and shows its usual interface, but no traffic flows, and the reason is visible both in the license line and in the refusal text.
Free trial
To evaluate the product calmly, a free trial key for 30 days is issued. It is no different in capability from the paid one: the same models, access keys with limits, logs, analytics, secret hiding and the proxy service. The trial key is issued on request — write to us on Telegram with your name and email. Since the key is only needed for traffic, you can install and inspect the interface even before receiving it.
Personal license — $197
For private use without limits: any number of installations on your computers and servers.
Company license — $497
For everyone in a company or team, external contractors included, with no limits on people or installations.
Service license — $970
An unlimited number of instances under your domain plus the full source code with the right to change it any way you like: styling, branding, integration with your infrastructure. It can be used by any visitor of your domain as part of your services.
Update term and renewal
The first 12 months of updates are free: a new version comes out — just update the container image. After a year, updates can be renewed at 50% off the original purchase price: personal
How to get a license
Write to us on Telegram, giving your name, email and the product name. The license key comes in reply — the same key fits all our products, and the list of products it covers is written inside it. In Proxy Agent the key is set on the server with the AGENT_LICENSE variable; there is no activation form in the interface. Keep the key — we use it to find your purchase when you need help.
Still have questions — take a look at the FAQ page. Installation is described on the Proxy Agent Installation page.