How to Fix “Licence Details Not Recognised”

The Licence details not recognised message appears when SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base cannot match the purchase email and product key entered on the Licence screen with an active Monthly or Yearly subscription.

In most cases, the problem is caused by a small typing mistake, an extra space or using an email address that is different from the one used during purchase.

Check the purchase email

The purchase email must match the email address connected to the SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base subscription.

Open:

Knowledge Base > Licence

Carefully check the email entered in the Purchase Email field.

Common problems include:

• Using a different email address
• Entering a work email instead of the purchase email
• Using an old email address
• Missing part of the domain name
• Typing .com instead of .co.uk
• Adding an accidental space

For example:

[email protected]

is different from:

[email protected]

Even a small difference can stop the licence from being recognised.

Use the email from your purchase confirmation

Check the email account used when purchasing SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base.

Look for:

• Purchase confirmation
• Subscription confirmation
• Product key email
• Payment receipt
• Licence details email

Use the exact email address shown in that message.

If the purchase was made through a business account, the licence may be connected to a billing or accounts email rather than your normal WordPress administrator email.

The WordPress administrator email may be different

SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base does not automatically assume that the WordPress administrator email is the purchase email.

For example:

WordPress administrator email:

[email protected]

Purchase email:

[email protected]

In this situation, you must use:

[email protected]

on the Licence screen.

Check the product key

The product key must be entered exactly as it was supplied.

A SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base product key may use a format similar to:

SRKB-ABCD-EFGH-JKLM

Copy the full key from the original purchase or licence email.

Check that:

• Every section is present
• The hyphens are included
• No characters are missing
• No extra characters have been added
• Similar-looking letters and numbers have not been confused

Copy and paste the key

Copying and pasting is usually more reliable than typing the key manually.

When copying:

1. Highlight only the product key.
2. Copy it.
3. Open Knowledge Base > Licence.
4. Remove the existing key.
5. Paste the copied key.
6. Check for spaces before or after it.
7. Select the activation button.

Do not copy nearby punctuation or wording from the email.

Remove accidental spaces

An extra space can be difficult to see.

This may happen when the email or product key is copied from:

• An email message
• A PDF
• A password manager
• A mobile device
• A formatted document

Click at the beginning and end of each field and remove any blank spaces.

You can also paste the value into a plain text editor first, then copy it again.

For example:

Incorrect:

SRKB-ABCD-EFGH-JKLM

Correct:

SRKB-ABCD-EFGH-JKLM

The same applies to the purchase email.

Check for line breaks

Copying from a narrow email or mobile screen can sometimes add a hidden line break.

If the key still fails:

1. Delete the full product key field.
2. Paste the key into a plain text editor.
3. Make sure it appears on one line.
4. Copy it again.
5. Paste it into WordPress.

The full product key should remain on one uninterrupted line.

Check similar-looking characters

Some characters can be mistaken for one another.

Examples include:

• The letter O and number 0
• The letter I and number 1
• The letter B and number 8
• The letter S and number 5

Copy the key directly from the original email rather than retyping it.

Confirm the subscription is active

SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base requires an active Monthly or Yearly subscription.

A product key will not activate if the connected subscription is:

• Cancelled
• Expired
• Unpaid
• Refunded
• Suspended
• No longer active

Check your subscription or payment confirmation before trying again.

Monthly subscriptions

A Monthly licence remains active while the monthly subscription continues successfully.

The licence may become inactive if:

• The subscription was cancelled
• A renewal payment failed
• The payment method expired
• The subscription was refunded
• The payment provider could not collect the renewal

Update the payment details where required, then try activating the WordPress knowledge base plugin again.

Yearly subscriptions

A Yearly licence remains active until the current annual subscription period ends.

If the renewal did not complete, the product key may stop being recognised after the subscription expires.

Check the latest renewal receipt or subscription status.

Confirm you purchased the correct product

Make sure the product key belongs to SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base.

A key purchased for another SoftwareRoad product will not activate this plugin.

The purchase confirmation should mention either:

• SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base Monthly
• SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base Yearly

Do not use a licence key from another plugin, software application or website.

Check that the full product key was copied

Some email applications shorten long lines or hide part of the text.

Make sure the complete key was copied.

For example, copying only:

SRKB-ABCD-EFGH

would be incomplete if the full key is:

SRKB-ABCD-EFGH-JKLM

Open the original email fully and copy the entire product key.

Try entering the details again

If the details look correct, remove them and start again.

1. Open Knowledge Base > Licence.
2. Delete the purchase email.
3. Delete the product key.
4. Select Save or remove the current licence details if required.
5. Refresh the page.
6. Re-enter the purchase email.
7. Paste the product key.
8. Select Activate Licence.

This can clear an incorrectly saved value.

Check that the website can contact SoftwareRoad

Licence activation requires your WordPress website to contact the SoftwareRoad licence service.

The request can fail if the website cannot make outgoing HTTPS connections.

Possible causes include:

• Hosting firewall restrictions
• WordPress HTTP requests being disabled
• A security plugin blocking external requests
• DNS problems
• An outdated server certificate setup
• Temporary hosting network problems
• The SoftwareRoad service being temporarily unreachable

The website must be able to send the licence details securely and receive the activation result.

Test other WordPress connections

Check whether WordPress can:

• Download plugin updates
• Connect to the WordPress plugin directory
• Run Site Health tests
• Make normal outgoing web requests

Open:

Tools > Site Health

Review any errors related to:

• REST API
• Loopback requests
• HTTPS
• DNS
• Outgoing HTTP requests

A hosting issue affecting external connections may also prevent licence activation.

Check security plugin settings

A WordPress security plugin may block outgoing requests to unfamiliar domains.

Temporarily review settings related to:

• External HTTP requests
• Firewall rules
• REST API restrictions
• Country blocking
• Application passwords
• Bot protection

Do not disable website security permanently.

If temporarily disabling one setting fixes the activation, add a suitable allow rule and enable the protection again.

Check the hosting firewall

Some hosting providers block external requests at server level.

Contact your host and ask whether the website can make outgoing HTTPS requests to SoftwareRoad.

Tell them that a WordPress plugin licence check is being blocked.

You do not need to send the host your full product key.

Check for DNS problems

The website server must be able to resolve and connect to the SoftwareRoad domain.

A temporary DNS problem may prevent the request from reaching the licence service.

If other external WordPress services are also failing, contact the hosting provider.

Trying again after a few minutes may resolve a short-lived DNS issue.

Try again after a temporary server error

The licence service or website hosting may occasionally experience a temporary connection problem.

If the purchase email and product key are definitely correct:

1. Wait a short while.
2. Refresh the Licence screen.
3. Enter the details again.
4. Select Activate Licence.

Avoid repeatedly pressing the activation button many times in quick succession.

A temporary communication error does not normally mean the product key is invalid.

Clear WordPress caches

An old Licence screen or saved response may be cached.

Clear:

• WordPress page cache
• Object cache
• Hosting cache
• Server cache
• Browser cache

Then open the Licence screen again.

Administration pages are not normally cached, but some aggressive optimisation systems may still cause problems.

Test in another browser

Browser extensions can occasionally interfere with form submissions.

Try:

• A private browser window
• Another browser
• Disabling form-filling extensions temporarily
• Disabling privacy extensions temporarily
• Signing out and back into WordPress

This is less common, but it is a quick check.

Check the website address

The licence is activated against the current website.

Problems may occur after moving WordPress between:

• A staging domain and live domain
• HTTP and HTTPS
• A temporary hosting address and final domain
• www and non-www
• A local development site and public website

Make sure WordPress uses the correct live addresses under:

Settings > General

Check:

• WordPress Address
• Site Address

Both should use the correct website domain and HTTPS where available.

Activation after moving the website

If SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base was activated on another website or staging copy, remove the old activation where possible before activating it on the current site.

Then:

1. Open Knowledge Base > Licence on the live website.
2. Enter the original purchase email.
3. Enter the original product key.
4. Activate the licence again.

The purchase details do not change because the website has moved.

Do not create a new key unnecessarily

A licence recognition error does not normally mean you need a new product key.

First check:

• Purchase email
• Product key spelling
• Subscription status
• Website connection
• Current domain
• Temporary server errors

Creating replacement details before identifying the cause can make the situation more confusing.

The licence worked previously

If the same licence was working before, check what changed.

Possible changes include:

• The subscription renewal failed
• The website domain changed
• WordPress moved to a new server
• A firewall was enabled
• A security plugin was installed
• DNS settings changed
• The licence details were removed
• A staging website was copied over the live site

Review recent website and hosting changes.

The licence stopped working after an update

A normal plugin update should not change the purchase email or product key.

Check the Licence screen and try activating again.

Also clear:

• WordPress cache
• Object cache
• Server cache
• Browser cache

If the problem began immediately after updating and the subscription is active, contact SoftwareRoad support with the plugin version and error message.

The licence screen shows the wrong email

Remove the incorrect saved email and enter the purchase email.

The email connected to the WordPress administrator account does not need to match the SoftwareRoad licence.

Use only the address connected to the subscription.

The key is accepted on one website but not another

Check whether the licence is already active on the original website.

Also check whether the second website is:

• A staging copy
• A development site
• A duplicate installation
• Using a different domain
• Restored from an old backup

Remove the old website activation if the licence is being moved.

The message appears after restoring a backup

A restored backup may contain old licence details or an old website address.

After restoring:

1. Check Settings > General.
2. Confirm the website address is correct.
3. Open Knowledge Base > Licence.
4. Remove outdated saved details.
5. Re-enter the purchase email and product key.
6. Activate the licence.
7. Clear all caches.

Do not edit licence values directly in the WordPress database unless instructed by support.

The message appears on a staging website

A staging copy can contain the licence information copied from the live website.

This may cause the activation to be connected to the wrong domain.

Use the licence on the intended live website and remove it from staging where appropriate.

Do not publish the staging site with the same licence details without checking the activation status.

The message appears only occasionally

An intermittent error usually points to a connection problem rather than incorrect details.

Possible causes include:

• Temporary hosting network errors
• DNS delays
• Firewall rate limiting
• Server timeouts
• Temporary licence service maintenance

Check the Licence screen again later.

If the problem continues, ask the hosting provider whether outgoing requests are failing intermittently.

Licence checks are cached

After a successful activation, SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base can cache the active licence result.

This reduces unnecessary licence requests.

A previously saved result may take a short time to refresh after:

• Renewing a subscription
• Updating payment details
• Reactivating a licence
• Correcting an expired subscription

Open the Licence screen and run the activation again to force a fresh check where available.

Do not publicly share the full product key

Treat the product key as private account information.

Do not post it in:

• Public support forums
• Social media
• Website comments
• Screenshots
• Public GitHub issues
• Knowledge base articles
• Videos

Someone else could copy and misuse it.

Contacting SoftwareRoad support

Contact support when:

• The purchase email is correct
• The full product key is correct
• The Monthly or Yearly subscription is active
• The website can make outgoing HTTPS requests
• The problem continues after trying again
• The licence worked before and suddenly stopped
• The website was recently moved
• The Licence screen reports a server error

Include enough information to investigate the problem without publishing private licence details.

Information to include

Send support:

• Purchase email
• Website address
• SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base version
• WordPress version
• PHP version
• Exact error message
• Whether the licence worked before
• Whether the website was recently moved
• Whether the subscription is Monthly or Yearly
• Any relevant hosting error

You can include the purchase email privately in the support request.

Do not send the full key publicly

When contacting support privately, follow the instructions provided by SoftwareRoad.

Do not include the full product key in a public message.

If you need to identify it initially, you can mention only the final few characters, for example:

Key ending in JKLM

Support may request the full key through a secure private channel if it is required.

Take a screenshot safely

A screenshot of the Licence screen can help, but hide or blur:

• Most of the product key
• Private customer information
• Payment information
• Server credentials
• Other sensitive WordPress information

Keep the error message visible.

Do not send WordPress administrator passwords

SoftwareRoad support should not need your WordPress administrator password simply to check whether a subscription and product key exist.

Never send passwords through normal email.

If temporary website access is genuinely needed, use a separate temporary account and remove it after the issue is resolved.

After successful activation

When the licence is recognised, check that:

• The Licence screen shows Active
• The knowledge base homepage loads
• Articles and categories are available
• REST API routes respond where required
• Search works
• Analytics features work
• The temporarily unavailable message is gone

Clear the website cache if public pages still show the inactive message.

Licence recognition checklist

Before contacting support, check that:

• The purchase email matches the order
• The WordPress administrator email has not been used by mistake
• The complete product key has been copied
• There are no spaces before or after either field
• The product key is on one line
• Similar letters and numbers have not been confused
• The key belongs to SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base
• The Monthly or Yearly subscription is active
• The website can make outgoing HTTPS requests
• Security and firewall settings are not blocking the request
• WordPress Site Health does not show connection errors
• The website domain is correct
• The licence is not still active on an old staging site
• WordPress and server caches have been cleared
• Activation has been tried again after any temporary server error
• The full product key has not been shared publicly

The SoftwareRoad Knowledge Base licence should activate once the purchase details are correct, the subscription is active and the website can reach the licence service.