Frequently asked questions: Tekla Structures Subscription licensing

With a subscription license, you typically pay for an annual subscription. While the subscription is active, you have access to support, upgrades, and online services. With a perpetual software license, you pay for the software when you purchase it. You also pay an annual maintenance fee that gives you access to support and upgrades.

Yes, you can continue to use your perpetual licenses. You can optionally also purchase new subscription licenses. To discuss your options further, please contact your local Trimble office or reseller.

All Tekla products can be purchased as subscription. For full details about the Tekla Structures subscription options and benefits, see Tekla Structures subscription plans.

The Tekla Structures Configurations that are offered as subscriptions are:

• Carbon - for viewing models, extracting data, and collaborating on projects
• Graphite - for authoring constructible models and producing design documentation
• Diamond - for performing detailing of any material and automating production workflows.

To discuss subscription costs and request a quote, please contact your local Trimble office or reseller.

The Carbon configuration is for viewing models, extracting data, and collaborating on projects. For full details, see Tekla Structures subscription plans.

Features

The Carbon subscription includes these functions and features:

• Modeling - Opening and viewing models
• Planning Tools - Logistics planning, sequencing, classifying, and status visualization
• Drawings and Reports - Creating reports and printing drawings.
• Interoperability - Exports for steel CNC & MIS Systems; Exports to rebar manufacturing systems; Exports for precast concrete ERP & MES systems; Working with reference models (e.g. DWG, DXF, IFC formats)
• Other - Open API capabilities

Configurations

The Carbon subscription includes the following Tekla Structures configurations:

• Project Viewer
• Production Planner

The Graphite configuration is for authoring constructible models and producing design documentation. For full details, see Tekla Structures subscription plans.

Features

The Graphite subscription includes the functions and features of the Carbon subscription plus:

• Modeling - Modeling of parts, steel assemblies, precast units, and concrete pour units
• Modeling - Creating steel and concrete components*, and unique part marking (numbering)**
• Drawings - Creating general arrangement, rebar, and anchor bolt drawings (plan, section, erection)
• Analyzing - Creating analysis models and model loads, plus analysis and design interfaces.

* Conceptual components only

** Numbering is limited to cast-in-place parts, cast units, and reinforcing bars.

Configurations

The Graphite subscription includes the Tekla Structures configurations of the Carbon subscription plus:

• Construction Modeling
• Engineering
• EPM Modeler
• Rebar Detailing

The Diamond configuration is for performing detailing of any material and automating production workflows. For full details, see Tekla Structures subscription plans.

Features

The Diamond subscription includes the functions and features of the Graphite subscription plus:

• Modeling - Full creation of steel and concrete components, and unique part marking (numbering)
• Drawings and Reports - Creating steel and concrete production drawings (part, assembly, cast units).

Configurations

The Diamond subscription includes the Tekla Structures configurations of the Graphite subscription plus:

• Drafter
• Primary
• Precast Detailing
• Steel Detailing
• Full
• Partner
• Educational

• Software version updates and service releases
• Local software support by email, phone, or support request form
• Online software support 24/7 and access to support articles
• Online community access to Tekla forums

Subscriptions belong to your organization. Your organization's administrator uses the Tekla Online Admin Tool to assign subscription licenses to specific users. Subscriptions give users access to Tekla products, features, and services when they sign in using their Trimble Identity.

All subscription license types are user licenses. They are always assigned to a specific user (a person) in your company. Subscription licenses can only be assigned to one user at a time.

After you purchase a subscription license, your organization's administrator assigns it to a member of your organization. This counts as one assignment.

For a different person in your company to use the license, your organization's administrator must reassign the license to them.

Some license types limit the number of times that you can reassign the licenses from user to user. The Standard license type can be assigned or reassigned a maximum of four times in each calendar year. After a Standard license is assigned to the first user, it can be reassigned a maximum of three times. The Named User license type cannot be reassigned, except when the user to whom it was assigned leaves the company.

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There are changes in the license types starting from September 1, 2023.  For more information see Change of license type - End of sale of Standard, Flex, and Worldwide licenses.

The answer depends on the subscription license type that you have. Different license types provide different levels of flexibility.

• Standard - This license type can only be used within the country of purchase*. It can be assigned or reassigned a maximum of four times in each calendar year.
• Flex - This license type can only be used within the country of purchase*. There are no limitations on how many times it can be assigned or reassigned.
• Worldwide - This license type has no limitations on the countries where it can be used.
• Named User - This license type has no limitations on the countries where it can be used.

* All licenses must be used in accordance with our EULA and Terms and Conditions. Standard and Flex licenses are only available for use in the region they have been purchased. Standard and Flex licenses can be used temporarily outside of their territory for a period of 2 months. If the end user is working in another country full-time or if the user is working in another country for a period longer than 2 months, your company must purchase a Worldwide or Named User license.

When a user launches Tekla Structures, the user selects the license server that they want to use. The user can select the online license server that has the subscription licenses or the company’s legacy on-premises license server that has the perpetual and maintenance licenses.

After selecting the license server, the user can select from the list of license options available to them. This list allows the user to select the configuration, license type, and source organization from which the license is being supplied.

The company’s administrator can control which licenses are available to each user using the Tekla Online Admin Tool for subscription licenses, or using the options settings on the legacy on-premises license server.

Please contact your local Trimble office or reseller and they will help you.

We offer two types of subscriptions: Recurring and Term. Please contact your local Trimble office or reseller to discuss which option is right for you.

• Recurring - these subscriptions are an annually recurring subscription that are valid for a period of 1 year. They automatically renew each year unless canceled.
• Term - these subscriptions have a set validity period (maximum 3 years). They do not automatically renew at the end of the validity period.

Yes, you can change your existing perpetual licenses to subscription licenses. Please contact your local sales representative and they will explain how you can change your perpetual licenses to subscriptions and get the added value right away.

It is no longer possible to buy new perpetual licenses. All licenses for Tekla Structures are are purchased as a recurring or fixed-term subscription.

Recurring subscriptions are automatically renewed. Your local Trimble office or reseller will contact you before the subscription period ends. You can see your current subscription period using the Tekla Online Admin tool.

Notify your local Trimble office or reseller at least 30 days before the end of the current subscription period. The termination takes effect at the end of your current subscription period. Terminations that have not been received 30 days before the end of the subscription period only take effect after the next subscription period ends. Contact your local Trimble office or reseller for more information.

When payment for a subscription product is authorized, your licenses are automatically delivered to your Tekla Online Organization and you can start using your Tekla software immediately. Watch Managing your Tekla Subscriptions to see how your users get access to your subscription licenses.

Your company’s Main Delivery and Main Technical contacts will receive an email notifying them that the license is now available in your Tekla Online Organization.

Your organization's administrators can use the Tekla Online Admin Tool to view and manage all your organization’s subscription licenses. Users can see which licenses are available to them on the My Licenses page of their Tekla Online profile.

Usually, you have multiple licenses on the My Licenses page in your Tekla Online profile. The license names that end in Maintenance give you access to support and services. The other licenses give you access to the Tekla products, features, and services that your company has bought.

Tekla online licensing is an online digital rights service that is used by Tekla applications and online services to verify that you are entitled to use them.

1. Start Tekla Structures.
2. In the setup dialog box, click Change license server.
3. Select Use your Tekla online license, then click OK.

Trimble Identity is an online service that provides single sign-on access for Trimble and Tekla products and online services. You need a Trimble Identity to download Tekla products and to use your subscriptions.

For instructions, see Create your Trimble Identity for Tekla products.

To use subscription licenses, your Trimble Identity must be associated with an organization. Associating your identity with an organization allows you to use the Tekla software and services granted to that organization.

For more information, see Tekla Online organizations and Trimble Identity.

Usually, your company’s Tekla Online administrator invites you to join your company’s organization in Tekla Online services. You can also use the Send request option on the My organization page of your Tekla Online Profile to send a request to join your company's organization.

The subscription is associated with your Trimble Identity. When you sign in to your Trimble Identity, Tekla applications and online services verify that you are entitled to use them.

Yes, you can use a subscription license offline for a period of 72 hours. When you close Tekla Structures, ensure that Keep this license reserved on this device is selected in the closing confirmation message dialog box. This option is usually selected by default.

While you are using Tekla Structures offline, Tekla Structures shows a stopwatch icon and the message "Disconnected from server" with the remaining offline time.

For more information, see Work offline with a Tekla Structures subscription.

If your connection to the online license server is lost, a notification is shown. Tekla Structures continues to work in offline mode for the amount of time shown in the notification. The maximum offline time is 3 days.

You can still save your work, and you can continue to use Tekla Structures offline until the time limit expires. When the time limit expires, Tekla Structures shows a notification that you must save your work and close the product.

The Tekla Online Admin Tool is an online service that lets Tekla online administrators view and manage the users and licenses in their Tekla online organization. Administrators can also see who is currently using your company’s licenses. To use this tool, you must have administrator rights in your Tekla online organization.

Using the Tekla Online Admin Tool, Tekla online administrators can view which users are currently using each license.

You can use Tekla Structures version 2019 or later with a subscription license.

Using previous Tekla Structures versions with a subscription license has the following limitations:

• Versions earlier than Tekla Structures 2021 do not recognize the new configurations associated with the Carbon, Graphite, and Diamond subscriptions. When used with a version earlier than Tekla Structures 2021, the subscription activates one of these configurations:

  • A Carbon subscription activates the Project viewer or Production planner configuration.

  • A Graphite subscription activates the Rebar Detailing or Production planner configuration.

  • A Diamond subscription activates the Full configuration.
• You must update versions 2020, 2019i, and 2019 to the latest service packs so that they work concurrently with Tekla Structures 2021 using the same subscription.

For more information, see the About Tekla Structures subscriptions for older versions section on the About subscriptions for Tekla Structures page.

The process is the same as for Tekla Structures for version 2019 and newer:

1. Start Tekla Structures.
2. In the setup dialog box, click Change license server.
3. Select Use your Tekla online license, then click OK.

Yes, the licensing is based on the user, not based on the computer where you are using the products. When you launch Tekla Structures, you can select the type of license that you want to use for that session.

Online licensing works in Citrix and other virtual desktop environments, including virtual machines hosted on cloud platforms. Ensure that your access control or firewall settings allow communications to Trimble Identity and Tekla Online services. For more information, see Requirements for connecting to Tekla Online services.