Activation
Find your machine code, buy a plan, and activate SnapByFace offline with an RSA-2048 signed license code: trial limits, renewal, machine transfers, and failure causes.
SnapByFace works without a license: it runs the same local search, and the results view is capped at 5 matches per person and 20 matches per search. You can also start up to 100 analyses in total before a license is required. A license removes the caps.
How licensing works
- Licenses are offline. A license code is
base64(payload).base64(signature), signed with an RSA-2048 private key. SnapByFace carries only the public key and verifies the signature locally — no internet connection and no account are needed to activate. - One license code is bound to one machine through that machine’s machine code.
- Buying happens on the website (that step needs a browser); entering the code never contacts a server.
Trial limits
| Trial | Activated | |
|---|---|---|
| Matches shown per person | 5 | unlimited |
| Matches shown per search | 20 | unlimited |
| Analyses you can start | 100 in total | unlimited |
| Indexing and searching | full | full |
| Media export (photos and video) | available | available |
:::note One analysis means one run over your media folders. Browsing results, exporting, and re-matching after a threshold change do not count against the 100. :::
:::note Activating does not re-run anything. The matches already found are unlocked, so activation is instant even on a large library. :::
Plans (USD, one-time payment)
| Plan | Price |
|---|---|
| 6 Months | $50 |
| 1 Year | $90 |
| 2 Years | $170 |
| Lifetime | $300 |
Step 1 — Find your machine code
- Open SnapByFace.
- Open the Software Activation dialog (from the menu, or the “not activated” button).
- Your machine code is shown in a read-only field — click Copy beside it.
:::tip Never retype a machine code by hand. Copy it and paste it into the order page — one wrong character produces a license that cannot activate on this machine. :::
Step 2 — Buy
On the pricing page, choose a plan and paste the machine code when asked for it. The license is issued for exactly that machine code.
Step 3 — Wait for the email
The license code is delivered by email, usually within minutes of payment.
Step 4 — Paste the license code
- Open the Software Activation dialog again.
- Paste the entire code into the code box — both base64 parts and the
.between them. - Click Activate.
The dialog reports the result immediately: success, or the specific reason it failed.
Step 5 — Confirm
The dialog shows the active plan and its expiry date (or “permanent” for the Lifetime plan), and the capped results are unlocked.
After activation
- Nothing is re-indexed and no search is repeated — existing results unlock.
- The license is stored locally in
~/.snapbyface/license.datand re-verified at every launch. - Re-indexing or deleting the media index does not affect activation; only
license.datdoes.
Renewal and upgrades
- Timed plans expire on the date shown in the dialog; the app tells you when a license has expired.
- Renewing means buying a plan and activating the new code in the same dialog; it replaces the current license on this machine.
- The Lifetime plan does not expire. Nothing renews automatically.
What changes after a plan expires
Until you renew, SnapByFace still opens and your existing results stay browsable and exportable. Two things change:
- You cannot start a new analysis.
- The results view falls back to the trial cap — 5 matches per person, 20 per search — and exports cover what is visible.
Nothing is deleted. Renewing with the same machine code restores full access to everything already found; nothing has to be re-indexed or re-run.
Moving to another machine, or reinstalling
A license is bound to a machine code. The code changes when the hardware identity changes — typically after replacing the motherboard or the main storage drive, or after a clean OS reinstall on different hardware.
Contact support with the old machine code, the new machine code (Copy button in the activation dialog), and the email address used for the purchase. You will be issued a re-signed code for the new machine.
:::note These do not change your machine code: renaming the computer, plugging in or removing a USB network adapter, installing a virtual machine or Docker, connecting a VPN, adding or replacing RAM, or updating SnapByFace. :::
Common activation failures
| What you see | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Code reported invalid | Truncated code — only one of the two base64 parts, or the . is missing | Paste the whole code again, including everything after the dot |
| Code reported invalid | The mail client wrapped the code across lines | Paste into a plain text editor, join it into one line, then paste again |
| Machine code does not match | The code was issued for a different machine | Copy the machine code from this machine and request a re-issue |
| License expired | A timed plan reached its end date — new analyses are blocked and the results view falls back to the trial cap | Buy a renewal and activate the new code; results already found are shown in full again |
| Extra spaces in the code | Copy/paste picked up whitespace | Strip spaces so the code is one continuous line |
| Machine code field empty | Hardware fingerprint could not be read | Contact support with your order email |
| No email arrived | Wrong address, spam folder, or a payment still being confirmed | Check spam and the order address, then contact support |
Before you contact support
- The machine code copied from the activation dialog.
- The email address used at checkout.
- The failure message shown in the dialog, word for word.
- Your SnapByFace version and operating system.
:::caution Never post a license code publicly. It is bound to your machine code, so anyone who reads it can attempt to use it. Sharing your machine code with support is safe — it contains no photos, files, or personal data. :::
Privacy note
Verification happens entirely on your computer: SnapByFace checks the RSA signature and compares the machine code locally, so activation does not call a server. The only request SnapByFace sends out is the optional device statistics ping — machine code, app version, operating system, language, activation state, and plan — used to count installations and support licensing. It contains no photos, videos, face data, file paths, library size, or search activity, and it can be switched off in Settings.