DataCore Puls8 License Compliance and Expiration

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Overview

DataCore Puls8 requires a valid license to perform a defined set of operations. The license state is evaluated periodically, and the outcome depends on two independent checks:

  • Expiration - whether the license is still within its validity period.
  • Compliance - whether the cluster satisfies the terms of the license, such as the maximum number of nodes.

A license that fails either check prevents the operations listed in Operations That Require a Valid License. Data access is never affected.

Licensing is enforced only when an operation is requested. It is never enforced on the data path. Volumes that are already provisioned continue to serve I/O if the license expires, is deactivated, or falls out of compliance.

License Types and Duration

License Type Description
Trial Activates DataCore Puls8 for 30 days from the day DataCore Puls8 is installed. No license key is required.
Regular A purchased license, activated from a license file obtained through the licensing portal. The expiration date is defined by the license.

The trial period is fixed at 30 days and is measured from the day DataCore Puls8 is installed, not from the day the trial is activated. If you activate the trial some time after installing, the remaining trial period is correspondingly shorter. A trial period that has already been used cannot be reactivated.

Operations That Require a Valid License

The following operations are refused when the license is expired or non-compliant:

  • Creating NFS RWX volumes and volume snapshots.
  • Creating a DiskPool claim (DiskPoolClaim). Storage pools themselves can still be created, and existing pools continue to be reconciled.
  • Lifeline Controller handling of failed nodes.
  • Automatic prerequisite setup - The Automatic Prerequisites Handler does not run, but prerequisites can still be configured manually.
  • Creating new backups. Existing backups, restores, and backup schedules are not affected.
  • Auto-Encrypted DiskPools and KMS integration - The Key Management Service (KMS) cannot be accessed while the license is expired or invalid.

The following operations are never gated by the license:

  • Serving I/O to volumes that are already provisioned.
  • Mounting and unmounting volumes.
  • Expanding volumes.
  • Deleting volumes and snapshots.

When a License Expires

A license expires at the end of its expiration date. The license remains valid for the whole of that date, and the operations listed above are refused from the following day.

There is no grace period after a license expires. Operations that require a valid license are refused immediately once the expiration date has passed.

The license state is cached and refreshed approximately every 60 seconds. If the license agent becomes temporarily unreachable, operations continue on the last known compliant state for a 180-second grace window. Beyond that window the check fails closed and operations are refused until the agent is reachable again. This grace window applies only to an unreachable agent; it does not extend an expired license.

License Compliance

A license is reported as non-compliant when any of the following conditions apply:

Condition Description
Node limit exceeded The cluster contains more nodes than the license permits. The limit is shown in the MAX-NODES field.
License expired The expiration date has passed.
Cluster mismatch The license was issued for a different cluster.

Exceeding the licensed node limit is enforced, not merely reported. To restore compliance, either remove the additional nodes from the cluster or obtain a license that covers the required number of nodes.

Checking the License Status

Use the following command to check the current license status:

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Check the Current License Status
kubectl puls8 license get -n <puls8_namespace>
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Sample Output
 TYPE   STATUS  COMPLIANT  EXPIRY   VALIDITY    MAX-NODES
 Trial  Active  Compliant  ~ 1m 0d  2026-08-29  500
Field Description
TYPE The license type, such as Trial or Regular.
STATUS Whether the license is Active, Expired, or Invalid.
COMPLIANT Whether the cluster satisfies the terms of the license.
EXPIRY The time remaining before the license expires.
VALIDITY The date on which the license expires.
MAX-NODES The maximum number of nodes the license permits.

The COMPLIANT field is evaluated without considering the expiration date. An expired license can therefore report Expired in the STATUS field while still reporting Compliant. Always use the STATUS field to determine whether a license is currently valid.

To diagnose a compliance violation, use the following command:

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Verify the License and Check for Compliance Issues
kubectl puls8 -n <puls8_namespace> license verify

Expiration Warnings

The DataCore Puls8 Headlamp Plugin displays a banner on the DataCore Puls8 pages when a license has expired or is due to expire within 30 days, and displays a warning on the License page when the cluster reaches 80% or more of the licensed node limit.

The DataCore Puls8 Kubectl Plugin does not display expiration warnings. Use kubectl puls8 license get to check the remaining validity, or monitor the license from the Headlamp Plugin.

Restoring Service After Expiration

To restore full functionality after a license expires:

  1. Obtain a license key through the sales and onboarding process. See License Activation.
  2. Generate an offline activation request and submit it to the DataCore Puls8 licensing portal.
  3. Apply the license file returned by the portal.
  4. Confirm that the STATUS field reports Active and that the expiration date is updated.

Once a valid license is active, the operations listed in Operations That Require a Valid License are permitted again.

If the trial period has been used and no purchased license is available, contact sales@datacore.com or your DataCore representative.

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