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Glossary of terms in ColdFusion licensing and activation
Last update:
May 18, 2026
Term | Description |
Activation Code | A unique code used in Feature Restricted Licensing (FRL) - Isolated to identify a specific machine's configuration. It's required to generate an isolated package and bind the license to a particular machine. The activation code is machine-specific and will not change unless there are configuration changes to the machine. |
| Admin API | A set of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) provided in ColdFusion's license.cfc that allows administrators to perform actions such as license activation, deactivation, and generating activation codes programmatically. These APIs can be used for FRL Isolated, FRL Offline and FRL Online licenses, but not Named User Licensing (NUL). |
| Adobe Admin Console | A centralised platform where administrators manage Adobe licenses, users, and product configurations for their organisation. This is used to create and manage Feature Restricted Licenses (FRL) packages but is not used to track devices using Named User Licensing (NUL). |
| Adobe ID | A user account that provides access to Adobe products and services. Named User Licensing (NUL) is tied to individual Adobe IDs. |
| ColdFusion Activation Code | A code generated by ColdFusion that is specific to the machine on which it was generated and is used to create an activation code for FRL Isolated licensing. |
| Deactivation | The process of disabling a ColdFusion license, reverting it to developer mode. Deactivation can be done via the ColdFusion Administrator or through the Admin API. When a license is deactivated, all associated license files are removed. |
| Deployment Type | Specifies the type of environment the ColdFusion instance will be used in, such as Production, Development, Staging, Testing, or Disaster Recovery. |
| Device ID | A unique identifier for a device that is tracked when using Named User Licensing (NUL). Device IDs are displayed in the ColdFusion Administrator. Device IDs are also used in FRL Online licensing, where administrators can block a device which will remove the license from the device. |
| Entitlement | The specific product or service that a user is licensed to use, for example, ColdFusion Standard or Enterprise edition. Entitlements are selected when creating license packages in the Admin Console. |
| Feature Restricted Licensing (FRL) | A licensing model that allows software providers to control access to specific features based on a user’s license. ColdFusion supports three types of FRL: Online, Offline, and Isolated.
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| Grace Period | A period during which ColdFusion continues to operate even if there are issues with the license, such as a system clock alteration or the system going offline. After the grace period, ColdFusion will revert to developer mode if the issues are not fixed. |
| License File | A file named ngl-preconditioning-data.json that contains licensing information and is used to activate ColdFusion. The file is included in the license package that is downloaded from the Adobe Admin Console. |
| License Mode | Specifies the type of licensing being used, such as Named User Licensing (NUL) or Feature Restricted Licensing (FRL). |
| Named User Licensing (NUL) | A licensing model where a license is assigned to an individual user's Adobe ID rather than a device. It requires users to log in with their Adobe ID to activate and use ColdFusion. |
| NGL (Next Generation Licensing) | Refers to the licensing system used by ColdFusion. The files created by this system are stored in the CF_HOME > .nglfiles directory. The ngl-preconditioning-data.json file contains license-related information that is used for activation. |
| Package | A .zip file downloaded from the Adobe Admin Console that contains the necessary files to activate ColdFusion. The package contains license information and other configuration files and can be used for FRL Offline, FRL Isolated and FRL Online Licenses. |
| Silent Installation | An installation method that does not require user interaction, which is useful for installing ColdFusion on multiple machines. Silent installations are performed using a silent.properties file, which contains the installation parameters, or by running a command. |
| System Clock Skew | A mismatch in the system clock that can cause licensing issues. ColdFusion checks for this periodically and may go into a grace period if a mismatch is detected. |
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