Activating Liferay DXP

Starting with the 2026.Q1 release, all Liferay DXP installations—including trial and free-tier environments—require an XML (.xml) activation key to enable core features and services. This key defines your subscription terms, trial agreement, or Free Tier validity period (which requires renewal every 12 months).

Official Docker images include a deployed trial key. Other installation types (e.g., bundles) prompt for a key via the activation interface if one is not already present in the deployment folder. In both cases, you must deploy a permanent activation key to maintain installation validity beyond the initial 30 days.

Note

These are the standard guidelines for activation with any application server deployment. There are, however, important distinctions and nuances for Docker or Cloud Native environments. Refer to Docker and Cloud Native Deployments for environment-specific activation guides.

When you run DXP for the first time, it displays the license page.

Acquiring Activation Keys

When you start Liferay DXP for the first time, the platform enters a setup state and requests an activation key before allowing access to the console. Your choice of tier determines how you acquire your key and features available:

Tier	Key Acquisition
Free Tier	Liferay Marketplace
Enterprise Subscription	Liferay Customer Portal

How to Get a Free Tier Key

To obtain a Free Tier activation key:

Navigate to the Liferay DXP - Free Tier page in the Marketplace.
Click Get Activation Key and sign in to your Marketplace account.
Complete the Activation Key Creation form and click Get Activation Key.
Click Download to save the .xml file to your local machine.

To manage, renew, or re-download your existing Free Tier keys:

Open the Dashboard menu and select Customer.
Click My Products to view your active keys and manage their renewal status.

How to Get an Enterprise Key

Enterprise keys are managed through the Liferay Customer Portal by authorized project administrators.

Sign in to the Customer Portal.
Click Activation Keys in the main navigation.
Locate the appropriate project and environment, then download the required .xml key.

Once you have acquired your activation key, follow the deployment steps below to activate your Liferay DXP instance.

Activating DXP

For standard/local deployments (e.g. bundles), activate Liferay by deploying the activation key XML file directly to the deploy folder in your Liferay Home.

[LIFERAY_HOME]
    ├── data
    ├── deploy
    │   └── my-activation-key.xml <-- Drop key here
    ├── license
    ├── logs
    ├── osgi
    ├── patching-tool
    ├── tools
    └── work

A message in the DXP console confirms the registration.

License registered ...

License Manager

License Manager provides a centralized view of your server and license status. To access it, click License Manager on the initial activation page, or if your instance is already running, log in as an administrator and navigate to Global Menu → Control Panel → License Manager.

The license manager page displays server and license information.

The License Manager displays the license status (e.g., active or expired), alongside details like the license type and expiration date.

Reactivating Liferay DXP

To apply a new activation key or upgrade from a Free Tier to an Enterprise Subscription, you must replace the existing license files.

Stop the application server.
Delete the contents of your [Liferay Home]/data/license folder but preserve the folder.
Navigate to [Liferay Home]/osgi/modules folder and remove any activation-key-[...].xml files.
Start the application server.
Deploy the new activation key file to your [Liferay Home]/deploy folder.