How to manage licenses and subscriptions?

How to manage licenses and subscriptions?

When users purchase DotStore plugins, then create an account associated with DotStore. Through this account’s dashboard, managing licenses and subscriptions becomes super-easy. 

However, you may still have queries related to the same. So in this document, we have tried resolving all your concerns related to WordPress and WooCommerce plugin license and subscriptions, purchased or downloaded from the DotStore.

Subscription-related Queries

1.     How to check the expiry date of my license’s subscription for a DotStore product?

Follow these simple steps to check the expiry date of your DotStore product -

•  Go to your DotStore account and navigate to the ‘Licenses’ section.
• On this page, you will find the list of all the products you’ve purchased through DotStore. Scroll to the name of the plugin and see the ‘Issued at’ date and Expiration status if you remember the subscription type.
• Now, you can click on the plugin’s name to expand its details and see subscription types, expiration dates, and more such details.

From here, you can either click on the plugin name to know the expiry date or calculate the expiry date manually i.e. it’ll be one year ahead of the issue date of your plugin.

2.     How to Upgrade from Lite or Free version of DotStore plugins to the Premium version of the product?

There are several ways of doing this. Here’s how you can upgrade to a premium version of our Lite or free versions of the same plugin –

a. Method 1

Go to the name of the plugin, present in the left sidebar of your WordPress or WooCommerce website admin dashboard and click on it. There, you will find the option to Upgrade.

b. Method 2

Go to the admin dashboard and open the Plugins section of your website. Below the name of the plugin you want to upgrade, there should be an option for the same. Click on it and follow through the next steps to get a premium version.

On clicking the upgrade method, you will be redirected to the purchase page which enlists the types of plan available for upgrade. Choose a plan from this page.

In the end, make the payment using the best payment method you could find.

Note that the DotStore offers secure payment transactions to its customers. So, there is no need to worry about the safety of your money and payment channel. You can choose any type of plan from a single site to 5-sites and unlimited for a yearly or lifetime subscription.

3.     Are my subscriptions valid forever once I’ve made payment?

Mostly, not. However, your lifetime purchases have the subscriptions which are valid forever. Please check the duration of your subscription and the plan type to check the expiry date of your subscription. You can also check it from the DotStore account’s Licenses section, or the email you’d received when purchased the plugin.

4.     How many types of subscriptions do the DotStore offer?

There are 2 types of subscriptions for the premium DotStore plugins – Annually and Lifetime. For the annual subscriptions, customers have to pay a pre-decided fee annually. On the other side, lifetime subscriptions need a one-time purchase. You may get these subscriptions for any type of license (i.e. single site, 5 sites, and unlimited sites). The cost of your subscription will vary accordingly.

5.     I purchased a yearly subscription for a DotStore plugin and it is not activated yet. So, the date of subscription expiry will be the date of purchase or the date of subscription activation?

Plugin issue or purchase date is considered as plugin subscription date. So, when you get the notification regarding the successful purchase of plugin, the date of subscription expiry is counted from then.

6.     How to Activate my Subscription?

Once your purchase is successful, you get an email regarding the same. This email contains all essential details and instructions related to plugin subscription activation.

Download the plugin zip from the given link and install it on your WordPress website or WooCommerce shop. Now, there are 2 ways of activating a subscription -

• Copy the license key from this email and paste it in the section, given for it, when you open the plugin.
• Go to your DotStore dashboard and open the licenses section. Copy the license key from here and use it for your WordPress/WooCommerce website.

7.     How will I renew my subscription for a WooCommerce or WordPress plugin?

Auto-renewal -

For the purchases made after April 09, 2019, auto-renewal of products is enabled by default. So, in case you’ve correct payment method setup and you’ve not turned the renewal off, you need not do anything or remember the plugin expiry dates.

If you’ve not unsubscribed from DotStore, you will get a notification before and after payments. Otherwise, also, you will receive the bank or remittance partner’s notification on money deduction.

For manual renewal –

Go to your plugin dashboard and go to the license page, click on the plugin’s name and renew it from the newly-opened tab. You can choose to upgrade or downgrade your subscription type and change your license type at this time.

Note: In case you face any difficulty during the process at any step, you can always create a token regarding your concern. Our support team will help you renew your license.

8.     What will I receive once my subscription renewal is successful overall?

For those, who have not unsubscribed from DotStore, there will be an email notification, updating you about the same. Otherwise, you will just get the notification from the service provider, through which, you’ve made the payment.

Renewal will update the expiry date, etc. of your plugin and you’ll be able to see it in your DotStore dashboard. Your plugin will work for an extended duration with your site(s).

9.     What if I could not renew my subscription before expiry or I deactivate it?

That is not a big problem. You can still use the product, for which the subscription has expired. However, to make any changes in its file or to update the product, it is mandatory that you renew the product. Deactivation is the same case too. However, we recommend updating the plugins for WordPress and WooCommerce regularly, as we keep on upgrading the features of our products and improve them on the security front.

10.  Do I need to renew my free Plugins too?

No. Free plugins do not need any subscription or license. So, renewal isn’t required at all.

11.  How much will I need to pay for renewing my subscription?

The fees of plugins vary with products, subscription types, and licenses. Please refer to the plugin’s product page or your Dashboard pages to know about the price.

12.  How to end my plugin’s subscription?

Go to your DotStore account and open the ‘Licenses’ page. On this page, you will find a list of purchased/active subscriptions. Search for the plugin, which you want to deactivate. Click on the name of this plugin once you find it. On the right-hand side, you will be able to see an option to cancel auto-renewal. Click on it and follow the steps accordingly. You will be able to cancel the subscription for the next iterations.

13.  How long is my Plugin’s subscription valid?

It depends on your subscription type.

If you have taken a lifetime subscription for a plugin, it will remain valid forever. In this case, you will receive lifetime updates of the product and get support whenever required.

For the annual subscriptions, your plugin plan remains valid for a year. After that, you will need to renew your subscription to receive plugin’s updates, support, and other such things.

14.  For how long will I get the free support for a WordPress or WooCommerce plugin, purchased from DotStore?

We provide our customers with the required support for the whole duration of the subscription. So, customers using lifetime subscriptions get lifetime support and upgrades while for the annual subscribers, one year of support and upgrade is available.

License Related Queries:

1.      How many types of licenses do the DotStore offer?

DotStore offers 3 types of licenses for the plugins whether you have taken an annual subscription plan or lifetime subscription plan. These are –

Single Site License – For the WordPress and WooCommerce website owners, who have to use the plugin for just one website or store, this license type is suitable.

5 Sites License – If you have more than one website, with which, you want to install a particular plugin, take this 5 Sites License.

Unlimited Sites License – For the website development professionals and agencies, the Unlimited Sites License is the best. This license lets you use the same subscription for up to 25 WordPress/WooCommerce websites.

2.      Why do I need a DotStore Account to Activate a License?

DotStore account is your digital logbook for the plugin purchases. Alongside it, this account lets you –

      See your subscriptions & their expiry dates.

      Manage upgrades, downgrades, activations, cancellations, and renewals.

      Download plugin files.

      Find an activation fee.

Hence, you will need this account to perform the purchases and more related to the DotStore products. Rest assured that this account will make things smooth and convenient for you only.

3.      I want to install a DotStore plugin for a multi-site setup. So, I will need just one license, or multiple licenses, or a multi-user license?

For that, you might need to purchase multiple single-site licenses or multi-site licenses as per the number of your websites. For example – Your 5-sites license will work for a multi-site setup with 5 sites.

4.      Can I transfer my plugin’s license from one website to another? How?

Yes. For this, you need to uninstall or deactivate the plugin from your old website. Afterward, download its zip and install it on your new website. For this setup, you can use the same plugin activate key again. Remember that the plugin can stay activated for only one entity (or as per your license type) at once, so deactivation or uninstallation is mandatory here.

5.      Do I need a license for my free plugins?

No. DotStore do not comply with any licensing or monitoring system for its free plugins. Licenses are for premium plugins only.

6.      Can I upgrade from Personal (1 site) license to Business (5 sites) or Agency (25 sites) license plans OR from Annual plan to Lifetime plan anytime? Or, I will have to wait for expiry? Or, do I need to deactivate and re-activate it with a new license?

You can upgrade your plan anytime if you’ve purchased a DotStore plugin. You will just need to pay the additional balance for upgradation of license and the plugins will need re-activation using a new license key for this purpose.

7.      Can I downgrade from Business (5 sites) or Agency (25 sites) license plans to Personal (1 site) license or Business OR from Lifetime plan to Annual plan anytime? Or, I will have to wait for expiry? Or, do I need to deactivate and re-activate it with a new license?

You can downgrade your plan anytime if you’ve purchased a DotStore plugin. The difference in the license amount will be auto-calculated as per your plan and the plugins will need re-activation using a new license key for this purpose.

Auto-Renewal Related Queries:

1.     Will my product be auto-renewed by default?

If you have purchased a DotStore plugin after April 9, 2019, auto-renewal is enabled for your product by default. Purchases made before that need the auto-renewal feature to be switched on manually. Also, you can choose to enable or disable the auto-renewal for your subscriptions.

2.     How can I enable auto-renewal for the purchases, I have made before April 9, 2019?

For the purchases made before April 9, 2019, you will have to get the license key of your product using this link. Enter your email [Use the email address which you’d used for the purchase] address when the page opens up.

Soon, you will get an email comprising the plugin download link & product activation key.

Now, go back to your DotStore account > Licenses Page and click on the name of the plugin.  From the section, which just got opened, you can enable and disable auto-renewal of your products.

Go through this linked page for more details.

3.     How can I disable auto-renewal for my purchases?

Log in to your DotStore account and click on ‘Licenses’. Afterward, click on the name of the plugin, for which you want to disable auto-renewal. At this point, you will find an option to cancel auto-renewal. Click on it and auto-renewals will be disabled. To upgrade this product, you will need to manually make the upgrade.

4.     Which Payment Methods are accepted for DotStore so that auto-renewal could happen smoothly?

VISA, Master Card, American Express and Discover credit or debit cards alongside PayPal are the accepted payment methods for DotStore. You can make any of these as your default payment method for auto-renewal. Please make sure that your payment method could yield the required money for the payment to happen without hassles.

5.     What if I mistakenly end my subscription? How to reactivate my subscription? Will it require payment (again)?

When a customer places an order through DotStore, plugin auto-renewal is enabled by default. You can disable it from the DotStore, under My Account tab. Similarly, deactivation and reactivation are also possible from the same tab. While your plugin’s license expiry date isn’t reached, you can always re-activate or end your subscription. This won’t require any additional fees to be paid.

6.    How will I know that I’ve got to renew my license/subscription if auto-renewal is turned off?

You will get an email notification about your product’s expiry. You can also check your DotStore dashboard to figure out the expiry date of your product, or manually count it from the date of making the purchase. Please do not unsubscribe from DotStore emails if you want to receive this notification. Subscribe back to get this reminder.

7.     Do you send an advanced notification before performing the auto-renewal?

We send an auto-renewal email which is scheduled for 15 days prior to your plugin expiry date. However, if you have unsubscribed from our mailing list, you won’t receive this email.

8.     Do you send email notifications or notification to my DotStore account if auto-renewal happens for any of my products?

Yes. We send the confirmation for the renewal. You will get it if you’ve subscribed to DotStore.

9.     What will happen if my plugin license expires and I fail to renew it on time?

Deactivation or ended subscription or expired license won’t affect your current setup. However, before updating the plugin or to customize its files, the subscription will be required.  You can always go to your account on the DotStore website and re-activate your subscription.