Perforce P4 licensing covers P4, Perforce’s centralized version control platform for code and large binary assets, formerly sold as Helix Core. P4 is licensed per Authorized User. The P4 Supplemental Terms define three licence types: Named, Bot User and Git Only. Each Authorized User needs a separate, unshared licence.[1] An unlicensed P4 Server is free within fixed limits. Self-hosted deployments above those limits are bought as annual subscriptions. P4 Cloud is a Perforce-hosted service billed per user per month.[2] The P4 Supplemental Terms supplement the Perforce Master Terms and Conditions. Where the two conflict for the P4 offering, the P4 Terms prevail.[1] For the general model, see named user licensing.
Editions
| Plan | Price[2] | Hosting | Limits and inclusions[2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| P4 Free | USD 0 | Customer (on premises or cloud) | Up to 5 users, 20 workspaces, 3 Git repos, 3 lifetime support cases; P4 Code Review |
| P4 Cloud | USD 39 per user per month, billed monthly | Perforce (single tenant) | Teams up to 100; 64 GiB storage; unlimited workspaces and support cases; P4 Code Review for 3+ users |
| P4 Scale | Quote, billed annually | Customer | Unlimited workspaces, support cases and Git repos; P4 DAM as a paid add-on |
| P4 Platform | Quote, billed annually | Customer | Everything in Scale plus P4 DAM and P4 Plan |
Perforce says self-hosted deployments are offered with annual subscription licences for teams of all sizes. P4 Cloud is a monthly subscription for teams under 100.[2] Teams larger than 100 are pointed to Assembla’s managed and hosted options. Premium add-ons such as server administration, migration support and server audits are reserved for the Scale and Platform plans.[2] Teachers and students can request free educational licences (program row).[2]
P4 One has its own Supplement. Its licence is limited to the customer’s own direct, non-commercial and internal business purposes. It is time-based and expires according to the Order Form (catalog rule).[9]
P4 Code Review (formerly Helix Swarm) is free to use with any P4 Server, licensed or not. It needs no separate licence and follows the server’s own limits (catalog rule).[5]
Metrics
The P4 Supplemental Terms define three licence types (catalog rules):
- Named License. Each Authorized User gets a unique, fixed account that consumes one licence. The licence covers a single server or multiple servers, whether or not the user is active. It gives full access to P4 functionality.[1]
- Bot User License. The user may only schedule and run Background Jobs and has no access to any graphical interface. A Background Job is a program that uses the P4 server, through Perforce client programs or the client API, to perform automated tasks. One Bot User License may run many jobs. The customer must still buy one for each unique background user it needs, “e.g., to provide for traceability and security” (catalog rule).[1]
- Git Only License. The user is restricted to contents in depots of type graph, spec and upload, which are used with the Git Connector (catalog rule).[1]
Using a Bot User or Git Only License for any other purpose is a breach of the Agreement.[1] P4 Cloud is priced per user per month. Users are added or removed in the P4 Cloud admin portal.[2]
Counting / floors
Who counts. Authorized Users include employees, temporary employees, customers, contractors and third-party agents authorized to log into the customer’s P4 instance.[1] A separate email address or account counts as an Authorized User. So does any non-human operated device that can access the P4 offering (catalog rule).[1] Build machines and service accounts therefore need licences. Where they only run Background Jobs, a Bot User License is the matching type.
No sharing. Licences may not be shared. A licence can be reassigned only by permanent transfer to another user when the current user no longer has access (catalog rule).[1]
Free limits. Without a licence file, recent P4 Server releases allow unlimited files for 5 users and 20 client workspaces. Alternatively, they allow unlimited users and workspaces for up to 1,000 files. These limits apply to 2019.2 patch 14, 2020.1 patch 8, 2020.2 patch 6, 2021.1 patch 1 and later (catalog rule).[3] Releases before 2016.1 allowed 20 users instead of 5.[3] The free server keeps working above 5 users or 20 workspaces, but is then limited to 1,000 files across the whole system.[2]
Reading the count. p4 license -u reports the licence limits, the licence and support expiry dates, and how many users, clients, files and repos are in use against them.[3] Licence expiry happens at the start of the expiry date in UTC. A server in California therefore sees its licence expire on the previous local day (catalog rule).[3]
Shrinking. Under the Master Terms, quantities bought cannot be decreased during the subscription term. Excess use is billed at the then-current price.[7]
Virtualization & partitioning
P4 licensing counts users, not hosts. A licence covers use “on a single server, or on multiple servers”.[1] The licence file is still tied to servers. Above the trial limits, a licence is needed for each commit server, central server and Distribution Server. Any standby or replica server meant to function as a failover system also needs one (catalog rule).[4] Licences for standby and replica failover servers are requested with a duplicate server request after the upstream server is licensed.[4] A licence file may name the licensed host, an IPv4 or IPv6 address, or a MAC address. Changing the server address or port means stopping the server and installing a new licence file.[6]
Cloud / BYOL
Self-hosted P4 can run on premises or in a customer’s cloud. The free plan includes deployment templates for AWS, Azure, Google Cloud and DigitalOcean.[2] For a cloud-based P4 Server, the licensed IP address must be the instance’s private IP address, not the public one. An FQDN used in the licence must resolve to that private address (catalog rule).[4] Where the IP address may change over the licence term, the licence can be tied to an FQDN instead.[4] P4 Cloud is a Perforce-managed, single-tenant service with automatic updates and backups.[2]
Programs
Free tier. P4 is free for small teams “no end date, and no limitations on features”, for up to 5 users and 20 workspaces.[2] The free version is self-hosted, with no storage limitations.[2]
Subscriptions. P4 Offerings ordered under the Master Terms renew automatically for equal terms unless non-renewal notice is given at least 45 days before the end of the term.[7]
Click-through licences. Helix Core installed under the February 2024 click-through agreement was licensed “time-based or perpetual”, as stated in the ordering document or invoice (catalog rule).[8] That agreement also had Named and Bot User licence types. Perforce may review use on ten days’ notice, and underpayments are due at the then-current price per Authorized User (catalog rule).[8] Evaluation software under it could not be used for commercial or production purposes. It could contain a “time bomb” that stops it after the trial.[8]
Out of scope
This article does not cover P4 Plan (formerly Helix Plan), P4 DAM, Helix ALM, IPLM and VersIC, which have their own Supplements or agreements. It also leaves out Assembla hosting and the P4 support plan comparison.