Activating firewall license keys FAQ

The license key is a unique token that, when activated, will either start or extend subscription features on your Sophos Firewall. A license key is typically for a term of 12, 24, or 36 months. When activated, a license key will either make a feature available or, in the case of a renewal, extend the expiry date of that feature. You can use a license key only once.

Check your license schedule to make sure you chose the correct license key. If you ordered multiple license keys, your license schedule will group these per product in a table. Each table heading contains a description of the subscription that you've ordered.

The example below shows one license key for an XG 210 EnterpriseGuard subscription with a term of 36 months.

If you've claimed a firewall and you've purchased a base firewall license, you can activate your license key.

You can activate your license from your firewall. See Set up a new firewall with Sophos Central.

Your reseller can activate your license using the Sophos Partner Portal.

When you've activated your license key, it's important to synchronize the license from the licensing system to the firewall.

To do this manually, sign into your firewall's web admin console, go to Administration > Licensing, and click Synchronize. The license update is immediate.

The firewall will automatically self-synchronize daily, which can take up to 24 hours. You must have internet connection for the license to synchronize.

We activate subscriptions for you without using license keys whenever possible. For TotalProtect or EnterpriseProtect orders, you'll receive a serial number. When you claim that firewall, the related subscriptions will automatically activate either FullGuard or EnterpriseGuard. For subscription renewals in the UK, US, and Canada, Sophos sends the license schedule directly to the customer. Therefore, when a renewal order is processed, we update the subscriptions attached to the serial number supplied on the order instead of generating license keys.

You can only use a license key once, so it won't work if you try to use it again.

A license key is tied to a specific firewall appliance model, so it's important to match the model to the license key on the license schedule. For example, a license key for an XG125 will work on an XG125 but won't work on an XG210.

A license key will only work on a license that's tied to a serial number that was registered successfully with a base license you purchased. Sign into your firewall's web admin console, go to Administration > Licensing, and make sure the base license's status is Subscribed, not Evaluating.

There may be an issue with the order processing that requires Sophos to cancel license keys. When this happens, you can't use the license keys on your license schedule. In most cases, a new license schedule containing new keys will be issued. In the UK, US, and Canada, communication about this process will follow the same channel as the original license schedule. Sophos will issue a replacement license schedule. In other regions, the distributor must communicate with the reseller and the reseller with the customer.

Here's an example of a license schedule.

Suppose the subscription to be activated is Enhanced Support or a bundle that includes Enhanced Support, and the firewall is out of warranty. In that case, the term of the new subscription is reduced to cover the warranty gap. Sophos performs a fair-value calculation based on the value of Enhanced Support to cover the gap and is capped at a maximum of six months. So, if the subscription to be activated is Enhanced Support and the previous subscription expired two months ago, the term of the new subscription is reduced by two months. If the subscription is a bundle that includes Enhanced Support, then the term of the bundle is reduced by the number of days that is equivalent in value to Enhanced Support coverage for the gap. The calculations are based on the USD list price.

All Sophos Firewall renewal licenses are automatically activated once the order is processed.

When a renewal order is processed, we update the subscriptions attached to the serial number supplied on the order instead of generating license keys. The license key is no longer included in your license schedule, but the start and end dates of your purchased products remain.

The new license schedule is sent to the same person as before.

These changes apply to all Sophos Firewall renewal licenses across all platforms, whether XG, XGS, virtual, or software.