> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.2501.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Licensing & Usage

> Apply your 2501 license, understand entitlement caps, and track usage from Command Center

A **license** is a signed token (JWT) issued by 2501 that sets your tenant's caps on **hosts**, **gateways**, and **tasks**. Without one, the tenant runs on a limited free tier so you can evaluate the product. The Usage page lets administrators track consumption against the caps and explore LLM usage over time.

> [!NOTE]
>
> The Usage page, plan data, analytics, and the license banner are visible to **administrators only**.

Licenses can be contract or trial, and have a validity window. A license with no end date is shown as **Perpetual**.

## Free tier (no license)

If no license has been applied, the tenant runs on a built-in free tier with capped resources:

| Dimension | Free-tier cap |
| - | - |
| Tasks (lifetime, across ad-hoc and recurring) | 50 |
| Hosts | 10 |
| Gateways | unlimited |

The free tier applies only when there is **no active license**. Once you reach the cap on a dimension, creation in that dimension is rejected until a license is applied. An **expired** license is a hard block, not a free-tier fallback - apply a fresh license to keep going.

## Applying a license

**1. Open Settings > License**

In **Command Center**, go to **Settings** > **License**.

**2. Paste the signed token**

Paste the signed token (a JWT) issued by 2501 into the license field.

**3. Apply License**

Click **Apply License**. The new license becomes active immediately, and the previously active license is archived.

Only **one license is active at a time**. The License screen also shows a **License history** of every license you have applied; applying a new one archives the previous one.

![License settings](https://mintcdn.com/2501/Nw-5R3i4HUHiTxUb/images/settings_license.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=Nw-5R3i4HUHiTxUb\&q=85\&s=b179198bdbf57b6db898ba2da932e890)

Settings → License: paste the signed JWT, then review the history of previously applied licenses below.

## How the task cap is enforced

The **tasks** cap is a tenant-wide **lifetime count** of every task ever created (ad-hoc and recurring combined). It is **not** reset per month, and it is enforced everywhere tasks are created: in Command Center (UI and API) and when the engine turns incoming [gateway](https://docs.2501.ai/0.19/core-concepts/gateways.md) tickets into work.

Once the lifetime task cap is reached (on a license, or on the free tier), **task creation is rejected** until a license is applied or its cap is raised. An expired license also blocks task creation. See [Tasks](https://docs.2501.ai/0.19/core-concepts/tasks.md#task-limits) for how this surfaces during normal use.

## The Usage page

The **Usage** page (administrators only) is where you watch consumption and dig into LLM activity.

![Usage page](https://mintcdn.com/2501/Nw-5R3i4HUHiTxUb/images/usage_page.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=Nw-5R3i4HUHiTxUb\&q=85\&s=b51fa0dc8674ec87df8142ae3ae68c1e)

The Usage page: plan-usage bars at top, followed by Activity over the selected date range.

### Plan usage

The **Plan-usage** card shows a used-vs-cap bar for each entitlement (hosts, gateways, and tasks), plus the contract start and end dates and days remaining.

### Usage banner

A tenant-wide banner appears across Command Center when **hosts** or **tasks** usage reaches **90% or more** of its cap. The banner links straight to the Usage page.

### Activity and LLM usage

The Usage page **Activity** section explores LLM usage over a date range, with a toggle between **Cost** and **Tokens**.

* **Tokens mode** counts all token usage in the range: input, output, and cached tokens.
* **Cost mode** stays anchored to tickets and [pricing plans](https://docs.2501.ai/0.19/configure/models.md). Define pricing plans on your models so Cost mode can attribute spend.


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