Trouble with a lifetime licensing issue,

[Jrtechnicalhelp]

Hello,
I'm troubleshooting a server where a lifetime license (owned, active until 2038, registered to the correct IP and hostname) isn't applying correctly. The license key updates in /usr/local/directadmin/conf/license.key without errors, but /usr/local/directadmin/directadmin license still shows a monthly license (active until May 2025). Initially, I got an "invalid key length" error, but now the key is accepted, yet the license type/plan doesn't switch to the lifetime license.

Steps tried:

• Cleared cache (/usr/local/directadmin/conf/*.cache, /usr/local/directadmin/data/sessions/*).
• Ran /usr/local/directadmin/directadmin license-set [key].
• Used /usr/local/directadmin/scripts/getLicense.sh [key].
• Restarted DirectAdmin (service directadmin restart).
• Verified connectivity to directadmin.com (port 443 open, ping/curl successful).
• Confirmed IP/hostname match the license in the client area.

The panel is functional with the monthly license, but the client needs the lifetime license to avoid monthly fees. I've read on forums (e.g., Reddit) that lifetime licenses can be flagged during server/IP changes, causing validation issues. The server may be on a pre-2023 codebase, which might affect compatibility.

Has anyone encountered this? Is there a specific cache file or validation step I’m missing? Could this be related to DirectAdmin’s unified codebase or lifetime license restrictions? Any advice on forcing the lifetime license or checking server-side validation would be appreciated. I’ve submitted a support ticket but need a quick resolution for a client deadline.

Thanks for any insights!

 

[Richard G]

owned, active until 2038, registered to the correct IP and hostname

Is this an external or internal license? Because external is or does not need to be registered to an ip or hostname anymore, unless you want to lock it on a certain ip.
Or is it a VPS license?

/usr/local/directadmin/directadmin license still shows a monthly license (active until May 2025)

Yes that's double odd, at least to me. We got lifetime licenses. If I give that command I don't see any dates, I get an output like this:
expiry=2147483647
expiry_string=Tue Jan 19 03:14:07 2038

The panel is functional with the monthly license, but the client needs the lifetime license to avoid monthly fees.

In that case the client has to reinstall the server. You can upgrade from lifetime to monthly, but you can not go back.
So if the client was not happy and just re-used the lifetime licensekey, then these kind of odd issues can indeed happen.

So please let us know if indeed the client did a downgrade from monthly to lifetime, because in that case a new installation is required.