License Configuration for Previous Versions

This page provides license configuration instructions for AIStor Key Manager versions prior to RELEASE.2025-11-12T19-14-51Z.

As of release RELEASE.2025-11-12T19-14-51Z, AIStor Key Manager no longer requires a MinIO Commercial License to operate. This guide is only for users who need to install or maintain older versions of Key Manager.

For new installations, use the current installation guides which do not require license configuration.

Download your MinIO Commercial License

Use the following steps to download your license:

Log into MinIO SUBNET.
Navigate to the Deployments view.
Select the License button to view and download your license key.
Save the license file or copy the license string to a secure location.

If you do not have access to SUBNET, contact us at hello@min.io or see our pricing page for licensing information.

License configuration by platform

Select the tab for your deployment platform:

Kubernetes

Install the Operator with license.

Install the Operator chart with the values file:

helm install keymanager-operator minio/aistor-keymanager-operator \
  -n keymanager-operator --create-namespace \
  -f aistor-keymanager-operator-values.yaml \
  --set license="eyJhbGciOiJFUzM4NCIsInR..."

Proceed with Key Manager installation.

After the operator is installed with the license, proceed with installing the Key Manager using the aistor-keymanager chart as documented in the Kubernetes installation guide.

Linux

Save the license file.

Save the license file to a secure location on your Key Manager host, such as /etc/minkms/minio.license, update its owner, and change the permissions.

# Example: Save license to /etc/minkms/minio.license
# Ensure proper ownership and permissions
chown minkms-user:minkms-user /etc/minkms/minio.license
chmod 600 /etc/minkms/minio.license

Configure the environment variable.

Add the MINIO_LICENSE environment variable to your Key Manager environment file:
```
MINIO_LICENSE=/etc/minkms/minio.license
```
If you cannot set the environment variable, provide the license path directly to the minkms server command:
```
minkms server /path/to/data --license /etc/minkms/minio.license
```

OpenShift

Create a license secret.

Create a Kubernetes secret containing your base64-encoded license:

# First, base64 encode your license
echo -n "YOUR-LICENSE-STRING" | base64

# Create license.yaml
apiVersion: v1
data:
   minio.license: <base64-encoded-license-here>
kind: Secret
metadata:
   name: minio-license
type: Opaque

Apply the license secret.

Apply the secret to the keymanager-operator namespace:
```
oc apply -f license.yaml -n keymanager-operator
```
Proceed with the Operator installation.

After creating the license secret, proceed with the operator installation as documented in the OpenShift installation guide.

Upgrading to license-free version

If you are currently running a version that requires a license and wish to upgrade to RELEASE.2025-11-12T19-14-51Z or later:

Follow the standard upgrade procedures for your platform.
After upgrading, you can optionally remove:
- The MINIO_LICENSE environment variable from your configuration.
- The minio.license file from your system.
- License secrets from Kubernetes/OpenShift namespaces.
- The --license flag from systemd service files or startup scripts.

The new version will continue to function if these configurations remain in place but will ignore them.

Troubleshooting

If you encounter license-related errors with previous versions:

Verify the license file path is correct and the file is readable by the Key Manager process.
Ensure the license string is correctly formatted (no extra whitespace or line breaks).
Check that the license has not expired by logging into SUBNET.
Verify the Key Manager process user has permission to read the license file.
For Kubernetes/OpenShift, ensure the license secret exists in the correct namespace.

For additional assistance, contact hello@min.io.