Forcepoint Subscription Agreement, support and lifecycle covers the contract terms that govern most Forcepoint licences, other than the metrics themselves. The Subscription Agreement takes effect when the customer accepts it or uses the Products. “Subscriber” means the entity that placed an Order and “is the ultimate end user of the Products”.[1] An Order may be agreed with Forcepoint directly or with “a Forcepoint authorized reseller”.[1] Forcepoint’s terms page lists it among the product end-user agreements, alongside the Network Security EULA, the Solution Rider, the Technical Support Description and the Cloud/SaaS SLA.[6]
Editions
The agreement does not define editions. It defines what is licensed. “Products” means “Software, Databases, Database Updates, Software Upgrades, together with applicable Documentation and media”. If an Order includes them, Products also cover Technical Support, Cloud Services and Services Offerings.[1] Software is licensed “in object code only”. Software Upgrades exclude “products for which Forcepoint generally charges a separate fee”.[1]
Support comes in three Technical Support programs:[2]
| Program | What it adds |
|---|---|
| Essential Support | 24x7x365 online support through the Customer Hub, downloads of updates and patches, cases for Severity Two to Four, telephone support for Severity One in regional business hours |
| Enhanced Support | Everything in Essential, plus a Customer Success Manager, priority access to engineers, telephone support for Severity One and Two, 24/7 support for Severity One and an annual executive business review |
| Enterprise Support | Everything in Enhanced, plus the Customer Success Architect team, semi-annual Maturity Assessment reports and Knowledge Exchange sessions |
Source for the table: Technical Support Description sections 1 to 3.[2] The Solution Rider adds two paid options. U.S. Federal Government Preferred Support (FEDSR) routes support cases to U.S.-based staff. Designated Support Engineer hours must start within 90 days of the Order and expire with the support subscription.[5]
Metrics
The agreement defines the User, Device or Seat, Node and Throughput. It ties them together through the Permitted Capacity, “the number of Devices, Nodes, Seats, Throughput, Users, or other license metrics as set forth in the Order or in the Solution Rider”.[1] How each product line uses these metrics is covered in Forcepoint licensing.
Counting / floors
Commitment (01/26). “The Permitted Capacity provided in the Order(s) represents the amounts that Subscriber has committed to for the Subscription Term.” Use above it must be covered by buying more capacity “for the balance of the then-current Subscription Term”.[1] “All Orders are non-cancellable, and there will be no fee adjustments or refunds for any reason, including decreases in usage, during the Subscription Term.”[1] Catalog proof: Excess use must be bought for the rest of the term; Orders are non-cancellable with no refunds for lower usage.
Verification. The Subscriber must keep records “sufficient to track its compliance” and, on request, certify compliance in writing with supporting records. “During the Subscription Term and one year thereafter”, Forcepoint or its independent auditor may review records, facilities, systems and personnel. Forcepoint bears the cost unless additional fees are found to be due. In that case the Subscriber reimburses the reasonable cost of the verification and pays within 30 days, including interest. Fees are charged at “Forcepoint’s then-current list price without any discounts or prior pricing terms offered to Subscriber”.[1] The clause also lets Forcepoint “access Subscriber’s system” during the term, subject to law, to check compliance. Any license manager component that tracks usage must not be impeded or disabled.[1] Compared with many vendor audit clauses, this one has no notice period, no frequency limit and no materiality threshold for cost recovery. Catalog proof: Verification during the term and one year after, at list price; License manager components must not be disabled.
Restrictions. The Subscriber may not “sell, resell, distribute, host, lease, rent, license or sublicense” the Products. It may not run penetration tests on them, publish benchmark results without consent, or “use the Products to provide processing services to third-parties”. It may assign no more than 20 administrators for certain products.[1] Agents and independent contractors may use the Products “solely for the benefit of Subscriber”.[1] The Solution Rider adds terms for AI agents and automated access. Customers may not get around rate limits “through Credential rotation, token pooling, or use of multiple accounts”. Forcepoint may throttle requests above its limits.[5] Catalog proof: No hosting, resale or service bureau use.
Virtualization & partitioning
A virtual machine running a Product is a Node in its own right. The agreement also allows the Subscriber to “relocate or transfer the on-premise Product for use on a different server within its location”. Copies are permitted only “for data backup and internal testing purposes”.[1] Technical Support for on-premises Products “may be limited to the most current release and the most recent previous sequential major release”. If the Subscriber does not stay on a supported release, Forcepoint may terminate the Subscription or raise fees on 60 days’ notice.[1] Catalog proof: On-premises Products may move between servers within a location; Support may be limited to the current and previous major release.
Cloud / BYOL
The Cloud Services SLA (05/26) sets service levels and Service Credits. A Credit Request must be made “in writing within 5 days of the occurrence of the failure to meet an SLA”. A Service Credit is free use of the affected Cloud Service for a set period, and one claim yields credit under one SLA only.[3] For Forcepoint ONE network infrastructure, the credit is one day for each two-hour period below 99.99% availability, up to five days a month. SLAs do not apply to customers in their first 30 days, to trial customers, or when the Customer has broken the AI agent and automated access terms.[3] If Cloud Services are suspended or terminated, Forcepoint may reverse configuration changes. Rerouting email and web traffic is then the Subscriber’s responsibility.[1] Catalog proof: Cloud SLA credits must be claimed within 5 days.
Programs
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Renewal and lapse. Unless the Order says otherwise, “upon the Subscription Term’s expiration, the Subscription Fees will be Forcepoint’s then-current list price”. A subscription renewed after it lapsed “must include Subscription Fees for the lapsed period”. When the term ends, the right to use the Products ends, and the Subscriber must uninstall and destroy copies on termination.[1] Catalog proof: Post-term fees revert to list price unless the Order says otherwise; Late renewals pay for the lapsed period.
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Evaluation. Evaluation subscriptions “are available for a period of up to 30 days”. Limited availability subscriptions run for a period Forcepoint sets. Both are provided “AS IS and AS AVAILABLE” and end unless the Subscriber places an Order and pays.[1] Catalog proof: Evaluation subscriptions last up to 30 days.
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Suspension. Forcepoint may suspend Products on 10 days’ written notice if the Subscriber breaches the agreement. “Additional charges may apply to reinstate Products following suspension.”[1]
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Hardware support. Support for appliances is available only “to Subscribers with a valid Subscription for Forcepoint software applications running on the hardware”, and only during the Subscription Term.[2] Catalog proof: Hardware support requires a software subscription.
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Product Life Cycle Policy (January 2023). End of Sale is “Date from which licenses to the Product will no longer be sold”.
- Software and appliances get 90 days’ notice of End of Sale, during which licences can still be bought or expanded. After software End of Sale, Forcepoint may offer one year of limited support. Customers with a current, fully paid subscription keep support to the end of their term.
- When a new major release ships, versions “either two Major Releases back or 18 months old” enter End of Maintenance for most product families. For NGFW, the version one major release back does.
- Long-Term Supported releases receive 24 months of support.
Source: Product Life Cycle Policy.[4] Catalog proof: Software End of Sale gets 90 days' notice; Older software versions retire after two major releases or 18 months.
Out of scope
This article does not cover the Network Security EULA’s licence and maintenance terms (Forcepoint NGFW and FlexEdge SD-WAN licensing), the Mobile App Subscription Agreement, data processing terms, indemnities and liability caps, or the channel partner programme listed on Forcepoint’s terms page.[6]