Mathworks Installation Help
Mathworks Installation Help
Mathworks Installation Help
Installation Help
R2023b
How to Contact MathWorks
Phone: 508-647-7000
iii
Install Documentation on Network Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
iv Contents
Step 4. Review Software License Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Step 5. Select License File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Step 6. Select Destination Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Step 7. Select Options (Windows Systems Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Step 8. Confirm Selections and Install . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
v
1
You can install MATLAB, Simulink, and accompanying toolboxes and blocksets on your personal
computer for Windows®, Linux®, and Mac platforms.
For students, staff, and faculty on your university’s Campus-Wide License, go to the Campus-Wide
License portal provided by your university. You can search for this portal online or find the address
through your university's IT department. From the portal, under Get MATLAB and Simulink, click
Sign in to get started to sign in or create your account using your university email address.
If you are at a community college, technical college, or another institution that does not have a
Campus-Wide License, you might have received an email from your organization that you are linked
to a license. Sign in or create your MathWorks Account from the MathWorks website using your
academic email.
Commercial Staff
For employees using a company license, sign in or create a new MathWorks Account from the
MathWorks website using your company email address. If your organization manages licenses using a
license server, then your IT department might provide you with additional information or files needed
to complete the installation.
Individuals
If you bought a license or got a trial directly from the MathWorks Store, then sign in to the
MathWorks Account you used to purchase the license.
Install Products
From the MathWorks Downloads page, select the release you want to install and the platform of the
computer that you are installing on. When the download is complete, follow the instructions for your
operating system to complete the installation.
• Windows — Double-click the downloaded executable and follow the prompts to install products.
• Linux — Unzip the downloaded installer files and navigate to the unzipped folder. Then, run the
install script.
xhost +SI:localuser:root
sudo -H ./install
xhost -SI:localuser:root
sudo is required only when you install products to a folder where you do not have write
permissions, which might include the default installation folder. The xhost commands are
1-2
Install MATLAB and Simulink Products
required only when installing products as the root user with sudo. These commands temporarily
provide the root user access to the graphical display required to run the installer.
• macOS — Unzip the downloaded DMG file and double-click it to mount the virtual disk. Then,
double-click the executable and follow the prompts to install products. If you installed MATLAB for
macOS Apple silicon, you must also install a Java® runtime on your Mac. To get a compatible
runtime, see MATLAB on Apple Silicon Macs.
MATLAB and any additional products you selected are installed to these folders by default.
•
•
•
If you need to install additional products later, use the Add-On Explorer in MATLAB. On the Home
tab and, in the Environment section, click the Add-Ons icon.
To access additional resources for which you are licensed, go to matlab.mathworks.com and sign in to
your MathWorks Account. Resources include MATLAB Online™ (access MATLAB from a web browser)
and online training (self-paced interactive courses).
If you lose your internet connection while installing, try rerunning the installer. If you continue to
have connection issues, then try one or more of the following:
• Temporarily disable antivirus software and internet security applications on your computer during
installation. These applications can slow the installation process or cause it to appear
unresponsive.
• Create a more reliable internet connection, such as by moving closer to the router or using an
Ethernet cable.
For additional suggestions on diagnosing internet connection issues, see Why do I get a connection
error when installing or activating MATLAB or other MathWorks products?
During installation, the MathWorks installer temporarily stores files in the tmp folder of your
platform. If you get an error that your tmp folder is not large enough to complete the installation, you
1-3
1 MathWorks Product Installation
can change where the installer stores these files. See How can I change the temp directory the
MATLAB installer uses?
Licensing Issues
During installation, the license you want to select might not be listed. Alternatively, you might be
prompted to enter an Activation Key and not have the option to select a license.
If MATLAB does not start up after installation, check that your computer meets the MATLAB system
requirements for your platform.
If your system meets the requirements, try following the potential solutions listed in the MATLAB
Answer for your platform.
1-4
Download Products Without Installing
After you download the installer and products, you can install MathWorks products from the
download location at any time. If you are using a File Installation Key, make sure the downloaded
product files include the installer file and are in a location that an off-network computer can access.
Note To download the installer and product files, you must be using a computer connected to the
internet.
To download the product installer, you must have a MathWorks Account or access to one. If you have
an individual license, a MathWorks Account was created for you during your purchase.
If you do not have a MathWorks Account, select one of the following procedures determined by your
situation:
If you are planning to install products on an offline machine, make sure the offline system meets
System Requirements for MATLAB.
If you lose internet connection while downloading, you will need download again. If you continue to
have connection issues, consider creating a more reliable internet connection (either moving closer to
the router or using an Ethernet cable) or changing machines.
For additional suggestions on diagnosing internet connection issues, see this MATLAB Answer.
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1 MathWorks Product Installation
• You can use any alphanumeric character and some special characters, such as underscores.
• You cannot use non-English characters.
• Folder names cannot contain invalid characters and the destination cannot be named “private.”
Downloading on Windows for Linux or macOS If you download the installer on Windows for
installation on Linux, before you install on the target machine, you must transfer the files to the
machine without compressing them in a file, such as a ZIP archive. Otherwise, you get an error after
uncompressing the ZIP archive because Windows can't reliably recreate the symbolic links that were
created prior to compression. See this MATLAB Answer for details and solutions.
• To make a particular product available for installation on the target computer, check the box next
to its name. MATLAB is selected by default.
• If you do not want to have a particular product available for installation on the target computer,
clear the check box next to its name.
• If any of your selected products have a dependency on a product that was not selected, you will
get a Product Dependencies warning and you will be asked to add the dependent products.
Dependent products are optional and you can choose to add or not add them. However, while you
are still able to install the selected products without dependent products, you may not be able to
access all the functionality you require.
1-6
Download Products Without Installing
When the software is installed, the products available for installation will depend on what is allowed
on the license.
Verify that the folder containing the product files includes the following:
• The installer file for the target platform in the root of the folder:
• Windows— setup.exe
• Linux—install
If you plan to run the installer using the root account, see this MATLAB Answer: Why can't I
install MATLAB with the root account in Linux?
• macOS (Intel processor)—InstallForMacOSIntelProcessor
• macOS (Apple silicon)—InstallforMacOSAppleSilicon
• An archives subfolder
If the archives subfolder contains less than three files, you might be missing required files and
must download the files again.
Next Steps
The procedure you follow depends on whether or not the target computer is connected to the
internet.
• With internet connection: use the procedure in “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products” on
page 1-2
• Offline: use the procedure in “Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer” on page 1-8
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer” on page 1-8
1-7
1 MathWorks Product Installation
To prepare for this workflow, you must get the following items:
• A File Installation Key and license file. See “Step 1. Get License File and Installation Key”.
• The product installer and product files using the procedure in “Download Products Without
Installing” on page 1-5. Make sure you move the installation files along with the license file and
file installation key to the target computer.
Downloading on Windows for Linux or macOS If you download the installer on Windows for
installation on Linux or macOS, when you install on the target machine, you will get an error
because Windows can't reliably recreate the symbolic links that are included with the UNIX®
installers. See this MATLAB Answer for details and solutions.
You must have the correct permissions to install MathWorks software. If you have questions about
permissions, ask your system administrator.
You can install multiple releases on the same machine. For example, you can have both R2022a and
R2022b, or R2022b and the prerelease of R2023a. Each release must be installed into its own folder.
To change the tmp folder for installation, see MATLAB Answer How can I change the temp directory
the MATLAB installer uses?
Consider disabling antivirus software and security applications on your computer during installation.
These applications can slow the installation process or cause it to appear unresponsive (or to hang).
Connection Errors
If you get connection errors while running the installer for an offline workflow, then you most likely
do not have all the installation files required to install MathWorks products using a File Installation
Key. Using a computer connected to the internet, go to “Download Products Without Installing” on
page 1-5 to restart the workflow from the beginning.
1-8
Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer
1 Sign in to your MathWorks Account and click the license you want to use.
2 Go to the Install and Activate tab. If you have not activated a computer for this license yet,
click Activate to activate the license, download the license file, and get the file installation
key.
If you have already activated the license, and you have the file installation key, you can click
the download arrow or email icon under Get License File instead.
3 Download and save these items on removable media (for example, a USB stick).
4 Copy the license file and file installation key to the target computer.
• Network license users can get the network license file and FIK from their license or network
administrator and copy them to their machine.
• Administrators can get a copy of the network license file from the server hosting the network
license manager and the file installation key (FIK) from License Center (do not give your users the
license file downloaded with the FIK).
• If you are using a trial license, go to https://www.mathworks.com/licensecenter/trials.
Windows
C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2023b
Linux
/usr/local/MATLAB/R2023b
Note You must install MathWorks products to a directory where you have write permissions. Root
privileges are not required to run the installer unless you want to install to the default directory.
1-9
1 MathWorks Product Installation
• To launch the installer and install to a directory where you have write permissions, execute:
./install
If the installer fails to launch as root, it might not have access to the graphical user interface
that you need for installation. Try this workaround:
xhost +SI:localuser:root
sudo -H ./install
xhost -SI:localuser:root
This allows the root user to access the running X server, launches the installer, and then
removes the root user from accessing the X server.
1-10
Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer
4 If your computer has been configured to use a proxy server for internet access, enter the user
name and password to continue with a standard installation. Contact your system administrator
for proxy server credentials.
The native Apple silicon MATLAB requires that a Java runtime be installed on your Mac. To obtain a
compatible Java runtime, see MATLAB on Apple Silicon Macs
• If the product files are not found by the installer, you will get an error before you enter the File
Installation Key. This message includes instructions for downloading the necessary files.
• If you get a message saying that the key is invalid, check to make sure you entered the key
correctly. If necessary, get a new File Installation Key.
• If you get a message saying that the key is invalid for the release you are trying to install, see your
administrator or go to the License Center to get the files for the File Installation Key you have. If
you are using a trial license, go to https://www.mathworks.com/licensecenter/trials.
The destination folder must be on an absolute path. MathWorks recommends that you install
MathWorks products in their own folder. If you select the top-level drive, you will be asked to confirm
your selections.
• You can use any alphanumeric character and some special characters, such as underscores.
• You cannot use non-English characters.
• Folder names cannot contain invalid characters and the destination cannot be named “private.”
If you make a mistake while entering a folder name and want to start over, click Restore Default.
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1 MathWorks Product Installation
Changing the tmp directory for installation To change the tmp folder for installation, see
MATLAB Answer How can I change the temp directory the MATLAB installer uses?
• To install a particular product, check the box next to its name. MATLAB is selected by default.
• If you do not want to install a particular product, clear the check box next to its name.
• If any of your selected products have a dependency on a product that was not selected, you will
get a Product Dependencies warning and you will be asked to add the dependent products.
Dependent products are optional and you can choose to add or not add them. However, while you
are still able to install the selected products without dependent products, you may not be able to
access all the functionality you require.
• Required products must be installed.
• Windows — You can choose to put shortcuts for starting MATLAB in the Start menu and on the
desktop.
• Linux — You can specify whether you want to create symbolic links to the matlab and mex
scripts. Specify a folder to which you have write access and that is common to all the user paths
on this computer, such as /usr/local/bin.
When the installation is complete, note if the installer shows you any additional steps required to
complete configuration, and click Finish. If additional steps are required, complete them before
running MATLAB.
If you are installing server products, see “Install MATLAB Server Products”.
License or System Administrators Only If you run into unrecoverable errors, or if your
organization has complex license mixing issues, consider performing an ISO download instead. See
How do I download a MATLAB ISO archive?
1-12
Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer
See Also
Related Examples
• “Download Products Without Installing” on page 1-5
• “Install Documentation on Permanently Offline Computers”
1-13
1 MathWorks Product Installation
• Additional Products and Toolboxes — Additional products contain functionality that can be used in
conjunction with MATLAB and Simulink.
When you purchase additional products to add to a license you already own, rerun the installer to
add those products to your existing installation. This procedure is exactly the same as when you
installed your original products for the first time.
• Single installation — See the instructions in “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products” or
“Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer”.
• Multiple installations — Administrators, select a procedure from “Install Products on Client
Machines”.
• Add-Ons — Add-ons extend the capabilities of MATLAB by providing additional functionality for
specific tasks and applications, such as connecting to hardware devices, additional algorithms,
and interactive apps.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install Products”
1-14
Install Documentation
Install Documentation
By default, when using MATLAB, you access product documentation on the web. This reduces the
installation footprint.
To use documentation when your computer is not connected to the internet—either temporarily or
permanently—you can install the documentation on your machine.
• The documentation installer installs documentation for every product installed on your machine
for the release of MATLAB you are using to install the documentation. If you have multiple
releases of MATLAB on the same machine, run the installation procedure from each of those
MATLAB versions.
• If MATLAB was installed using a Designated Computer or Network license, you can install the
documentation just one time to have it be available to all users on that license using the machine.
• The amount of disk space the documentation requires depends on how many documentation sets
you are installing. As of R2023a, if you install every documentation set for every product that
MathWorks provides, the total disk space required is just under 10 GB.
When you are ready to begin, select a procedure from the following table.
Scenario Workflow
Your machine is usually connected to the internet “Install Documentation for Offline Use”
when using MATLAB but you work offline
occasionally.
Your machine is not connected to the internet “Install Documentation on Permanently Offline
when using MATLAB. Computers”
For administrators: You want to make the “Install Documentation on Network Server”
documentation available on the network server.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products”
• “Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer”
• “Install MATLAB on Multiple Computers Using Silent Installation”
1-15
1 MathWorks Product Installation
If the computer you use is permanently offline, see “Install Documentation on Permanently Offline
Computers”.
1 Open MATLAB.
2 On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Preferences.
3 In the left pane of the Preferences dialog box, click MATLAB, and then click Help.
4 Under Documentation Location, select Installed locally.
5 Click Install Documentation.
MATLAB installs the documentation in the support package root folder. To find the support
package root, use the function matlabshared.supportpkg.getSupportPackageRoot.
6 Restart MATLAB.
7 Verify that MATLAB opens the locally installed documentation. At the MATLAB command prompt,
enter: doc
On the documentation home page that opens, place your cursor on one of the links and check the
format of the URL that appears in the bottom-left corner. If the URL is a local file path (for
example, file:///C:/ProgramData/MATLAB/...), then MATLAB is opening the local
documentation.
To update installed documentation after adding or removing products, or to install the most recent
documentation, repeat this procedure.
1 Open MATLAB.
2 On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Preferences.
3 In the left pane of the Preferences dialog box, click MATLAB, and then click Help.
4 Under Documentation Location, select Web, on mathworks.com.
5 Restart MATLAB.
6 Verify that MATLAB opens the web documentation. At the MATLAB command prompt, enter: doc
On the documentation home page that opens, place your cursor on one of the links and check the
format of the URL that appears in the bottom-left corner. If the URL is a web path (for example,
https://www.mathworks.com/help/...), then MATLAB is opening the web documentation.
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Install Documentation for Offline Use
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install Documentation on Permanently Offline Computers”
• “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products”
1-17
1 MathWorks Product Installation
If you typically work with MATLAB while connected to the internet and only occasionally work offline,
see “Install Documentation for Offline Use”.
Prerequisites
• In this procedure, you download a documentation ISO (Windows and Linux) or DMG (macOS)
image and mount it on the offline machine. Knowledge of IT concepts is recommended, but not
required.
• The computer you use to download the documentation must have an internet connection.
• To download the documentation, you must have a MathWorks Account. Installing the
documentation on the offline computer does not require a MathWorks Account.
• Both the computer you use to download the documentation and the offline computer must have
more than 10 GB of available disk space to accommodate the size of the documentation ISO or
DMG image.
• MATLAB must already be installed on the offline computer.
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Install Documentation on Permanently Offline Computers
Note Perform these steps from the command line for your operating system. Do not run these
commands from MATLAB.
1 From the operating system command line, navigate to the folder within the mounted image that
contains the documentation installer.
cd mountedDocImage/bin/arch
Windows
Syntax:
Example:
If the matlabrootfolder path includes spaces, enclose the path in double quotes, as shown in
the example.
Linux or macOS
Syntax:
Example:
By default, mpm installs the documentation to the support package root folder within MATLAB. To
find the support package root, use the function
matlabshared.supportpkg.getSupportPackageRoot.
To specify a different location for the documentation, use the --destination option. If you
mount the documentation ISO or DMG image in a location other than where MATLAB is installed,
such as a network drive, use the --source option to provide the complete path to the installer
files.
Windows
.\mpm install-doc --matlabroot=matlabrootfolder --source=docinstallfolder --destination=destinationfolder
1-19
1 MathWorks Product Installation
Linux or macOS
./mpm install-doc --matlabroot=matlabrootfolder --source=docinstallfolder --destination=destinationfolder
Note If the error Conflicting release versions appears during installation, verify that
the documentation ISO or DMG image is for the same release as the MATLAB software installed
on the offline machine. The release name is included in the filename of the ISO or DMG image.
3 Unmount the documentation ISO or DMG image. If you need to reclaim the disk space, delete the
image.
1 Open MATLAB.
2 On the Home tab, in the Environment section, click Preferences.
3 In the left pane of the Preferences dialog box, click MATLAB, and then click Help.
4 Under Documentation Location, select Installed locally.
5 This step is required only if you installed the documentation somewhere other than the default
location by using the --destination flag.
Update the documentation root so that MATLAB points to where you installed the documentation.
a Open the MATLAB startup.m file. If this file does not exist, create a blank file with this
name. Commands specified in this file run when MATLAB starts up. For more details on
startup.m files, see .
b In your startup.m file, add this line to set the documentation root to the new
documentation location. newDocInstallFolder is the path to the folder where you
installed the documentation.
docroot('newDocInstallFolder/help')
c Restart MATLAB.
• If the documentation home page opens, place your cursor on one of the links on the page that
opens and check the format of the URL that appears in the bottom-left corner. If the URL is a local
file path (for example, file:///C:/ProgramData/MATLAB/...), then MATLAB is opening the
local documentation.
• If a blank page opens, or if the documentation home page URLs display web paths (for example,
https://www.mathworks.com/help/...), then MATLAB is still opening the web
documentation. Update MATLAB to point to the locally installed documentation, as described in
“Configure MATLAB to Use Installed Documentation”.
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Install Documentation on Permanently Offline Computers
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install Documentation for Offline Use”
• “Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer”
• “Install Documentation on Network Server”
1-21
1 MathWorks Product Installation
Defaulting to web documentation is the best way to ensure that your users are getting the most up to
date documentation for their installed products. However, if you need to provide access to
documentation for your users with machines that can't access the internet, you can choose to install
documentation on a network server that all of your users can access instead of installing
documentation on individual machines. The advantages to this setup are that:
Note Make sure MATLAB is installed on the network server. You don’t have to have it running, nor
does it even need to be in use, but MATLAB must be installed.
In addition, make sure that the MATLAB installed on the network server includes ALL the toolboxes
and add-ons that clients may use so that the documentation installer knows what product
documentation sets to install. If you omit a product your users are accessing, they do not get the
documentation for that product.
Replace newDocInstallFolder with the path to the network folder where you installed the
documentation.
Alternatively, give this part of the instructions to your users to have them do it themselves.
3 Restart MATLAB on each user machine (or have the user do it).
Access the documentation as you normally would, online or offline. If MATLAB still tries to open
documentation on the web, go to the Home tab, and in the Environment section, click Preferences
and select MATLAB > Help. Under Documentation Location, select Installed locally.
Notes
• To revert back to documentation on the web, go to the Home tab, and in the Environment
section, click Preferences and select MATLAB > Help. Under Documentation Location, select
Web, on mathworks.com.
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Install Documentation on Network Server
• To update installed documentation after adding or removing products, or to make sure you have
the most recent documentation, repeat this procedure.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install Documentation”
• “Install MATLAB on Multiple Computers Using Silent Installation”
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1 MathWorks Product Installation
To set up the server instance, use either the command line or the dashboard interface.
To set up the server instance, see Set Up MATLAB Web App Server.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products”
1-24
2
It is a good practice to install the network license manager before installing MATLAB. Doing so
makes it easier to verify your MATLAB installations, because you can confirm the client computers
are accessing the license server correctly at the time of installation.
Select a procedure from the Administer Network Licenses category to install and run the network
license manager.
After you have installed the network license manager, select a procedure for installing MATLAB.
• Do not expose the commands to run the network license manager to the Internet or an untrusted
network.
• Start the network license manager so that local administrator access is required to run the
shutdown procedure.
Users:
2-2
Plan Your Network License Manager Installation and Configuration
See Also
Related Examples
• “Update Network License Manager Software”
• “Administering Network Named User Licenses”
• “Administering Concurrent Licenses”
• “License Requirements for MATLAB on Cloud Platforms”
2-3
2 Install Products on a Network License
In general, you do not need to modify the network license file on the server or on the client
computers. However, in some situations, you must edit the license file:
• When you change the license server name (for example, if the license is now being hosted on a
new server).
• When you change the port number (for example, if the port address for the server has changed).
See How do I migrate my MATLAB clients to a new license server when the license server
changes?.
• When you update the network installation with a new license file. See MATLAB Answer How Do I
Update the License File Used By the License Manager?
• Each INCREMENT line identifies a product, the number of keys available for the product, and other
information. (The INCREMENT lines in your license file might not include every element shown in
the example.)
• The backslash (\) character indicates that the line continues onto the next line.
• The lines that begin with a pound sign (#) are comments. The MathWorks installer uses the
information in these comment lines such as license server host ID or Internet address when it
processes the license file during installation.
# BEGIN---------------BEGIN---------------BEGIN
# MATLAB license passcode file.
# LicenseNo: 123456 HostID: 6C4B905F446E
#
# R2021b
#
INCREMENT MATLAB MLM 46 30-jan-2025 13 FDC7243F4976 \
VENDOR_STRING=vi=0:at=200:ae=1:lu=300:lo=CN:ei=1234567:lr=1:2p=0: \
DUP_GROUP=UH asset_info=123456 ISSUED=21-Nov-2021 BORROW=720 \
NOTICE=product=MATLAB SN=123456 SIGN="00C8 0547 EFDF 50D7 B9CE \
4C9D 3348 561B E9E3 6CCA 7986 C2F6 38C8 794F EE84"
INCREMENT SIMULINK MLM 46 30-jan-2025 1 7DE4D05FF067 \
VENDOR_STRING=vi=0:at=200:ae=1:lu=300:lo=CN:ei=1234567:lr=1:2p=0: \
DUP_GROUP=UH asset_info=123456 ISSUED=21-Nov-2021 BORROW=720 \
NOTICE=product=SIMULINK SN=123456 SIGN="00BE C534 0A32 1821 \
AFCE D040 2085 3E00 9005 4983 7EFB 875F E4A7 FEE6 9548"
License Processing
When you install the network license manager or MATLAB software, the installer processes the
network licenses for use on the server and client machines, respectively:
2-4
Update or Modify Network License Files
• Makes a copy of the network license file named license.dat, processes the file to add the
SERVER and DAEMON lines, and puts this copy in the /etc folder where you are installing the
network license manager.
• The SERVER line identifies the server host and port number. The DAEMON line identifies the name
of the network license manager daemon.
• For Network Named User licenses, when the installer creates an options file during installation, it
also adds the Options= syntax to the DAEMON line in your license file. This syntax specifies the
path name of the options file.
For example, if your server is named thunderball and its MAC address is 03:42:f8:1b:b2:72, the
SERVER and DAEMON lines in your license file would look like this:
First, you must copy the license.dat file configured during the installation of the network license
manager and put it either on the client machine or somewhere network accessible before you can run
the installer.
Then, during installation, the installer creates a copy of license.dat, and processes it to remove the
INCREMENT lines and the DAEMON line in the license file, leaving the SERVER line. It also adds the
statement USE_SERVER to the file. This line points the client to the network license file on the server,
which contains all the passcodes for the products.
It names this configured file network.lic and puts the file in matlabroot\licenses.
Note Do not give users the license file you download from License Center. They can install only with
the license file that was specially configured during the installation of the network license manager.
1 The license file specified on MATLAB startup command line using the -c option. The -c option
overrides the entire search order and uses only what was specified on the command line. This is
the only path MATLAB searches.
2 Environment variables MLM_LICENSE_FILE and LM_LICENSE_FILE.
3 The profile folder of the person starting the program
4 The \licenses folder in the MATLAB installation for files named license.dat or any file with
the extension .lic.
When MATLAB is checked out from a network license server, all toolbox checkouts in that same
session will also come from that license server. If a license file on the path is not a server license (that
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2 Install Products on a Network License
is, it is a standalone license file for Individual, Designated Computer, or Trial), toolboxes can still be
checked out from that file or from the license server.
By default, MATLAB installs the license file on the client computer in the \licenses folder in the
MATLAB client installation folder. However, you can override that location in one of either of the
following ways:
• Specify the path to the license file on the command line during MATLAB startup using the -c
option.
The -c option overrides the entire search order, including environment variables, and uses only
what was specified on the command line. This is the only path MATLAB searches.
You can specify a list of paths to search. When using the -c option, keep in mind the following:
• If the path to your license file contains a space, enclose the path name in quotation marks.
• If you are specifying more than one license file, make sure to enclose the entire list of license
files in quotation marks.
• Set environment variable.
MLM_LICENSE_FILE specifies the location of the license file for MathWorks products. MATLAB
searches for this environment variable first.
Note Although you can set the environment variable LM_LICENSE_FILE, use of this variable is
discouraged as it affects all Flex-enabled products. Instead, use <VENDOR>_LICENSE_FILE.
Note If you use the environment variable MLM_LICENSE_FILE, you must delete matlab/
licenses/network.lic.
Note Do not follow this procedure to upgrade to a new release of MATLAB. To upgrade to a later
release, see “Get New MATLAB Release”.
1 Go to the License Center on the MathWorks website and sign in to your account.
2 Select the licenses you want to update.
3 Click Install and Activate.
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Update or Modify Network License Files
4 Get the license file for the server you are updating.
5 Stop the network license manager.
6 Open both the existing license on the server and the new license in an editor. You are going to
copy most of the new license into the old license with these instructions:
a In the existing license, delete all content except the SERVER and DAEMON lines at the top
of the file.
b In the new license, copy all content starting from below the SERVER and DAEMON lines to
the end.
c Paste the copied content into the existing license below the SERVER and DAEMON lines.
d Save the existing license. You can store the new license as a backup, remembering that the
SERVER and DAEMON lines must be replaced with those specific to your organization.
7 If you have an options file, depending on how it is configured, you may have to update it. If you
do not have an options file, skip this step.
8 Start the network license manager.
You can perform a status inquiry to confirm that the license file has been updated. The following
support article contains instructions for performing a status inquiry: "Monitor the Usage of Licenses
or Keys".
See Also
External Websites
• License Center
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2 Install Products on a Network License
Prerequisites
You need a File Installation Key to use the installer properties file (installer_input.txt). For
information on how to get a File Installation Key, see “Install MathWorks Products on Offline
Computer”.
If you need to install only a subset of products on the target computers, use the MathWorks installer
to download a separate installer containing those products.
1 Go to MathWorks Downloads, select the release and platform of the computer you are using to
perform the download, and download the installer.
2 Run the downloaded installer, sign in to your MathWorks Account, and accept the license
agreement.
3 Under Advanced Options, select I want to download without installing.
4 Specify where you want to download the installer, the platform of the target computers, and the
products you want to include in the download. Then, download the installer containing the
product files.
5 Copy the installer to a location that each target computer can access, such as a local folder on
each target computer or a network share.
If you need to install all products on the target computers, download the ISO (Windows, Linux) or
DMG (Mac) image containing all products. To download an ISO or DMG, you must be a license
administrator.
1 Go to MathWorks Downloads, and from the I Want To menu, select Get ISOs and DMGs. This
link is visible only if you are signed in as a license administrator.
2 Select the release and update of the ISO or DMG you want to download.
3 Under Get ISOs and DMGs for MATLAB and Simulink Products, select the platform of the
target computers (not the computer you are using to perform this download) and download the
ISO or DMG.
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Install MATLAB on Multiple Computers Using Silent Installation
4 Using the standard process for your operating system, mount the downloaded ISO or DMG image
to a folder.
5 Copy the installer to a location that each target computer can access, such as a local folder on
each target computer or a network share.
• destinationFolder — Specify the path to the folder where you want to install products.
You must specify the full path. Specifying a relative path might cause the installer_input
file to be read incorrectly. This table shows sample destination folders for each operating
system.
The comments section for each parameter defines all allowed values for the parameters are
defined in the comments section for each parameter. Use these comments to specify the
remaining parameters.
4 Save your changes to the file.
On Windows, run the setup.exe application with the -inputFile option. For example:
On Linux or macOS, run the install script with the -inputFile option. For example:
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2 Install Products on a Network License
The installation log file is named mathworks_%username%.log and the activation log file is named
aws_%username%.log. In both cases, %username% is the username of the person running the
installer.
To locate your log files, see Where Are the MATLAB Installation and Log Files Located?
2-10
Have End Users Install Products
Note If you arrived at this topic because of the error "Network License File Required" and you have
already linked the network license to your MathWorks Account, contact your administrator to get a
copy of the network license file, and then return to the installer.
Note These instructions are to help the user on the network license install on their own machine. If
you are an administrator installing software for your end users, see “Install Products on Client
Machines”. Otherwise, see instructions below for giving your users the items they need to install
successfully.
License Requirements
All network license users must have a configured copy of the network license (license.dat) on
their machine or accessible from a network share before they can install products.
• Administrators – Before your network users install MATLAB, give them a copy of license.dat
from the network license manager. This network license file was processed during the installation
of the network license manager for your organization, meaning it contains the correct SERVER line
for the network license server you are using. To learn more about how the network license is
processed during installation, see “License Processing”.
Do not give users a copy of the original license file you received in the licensing email. They
cannot use the licensing information in this form — it does not include the correct SERVER line.
Also, do not forward to users the licensing email you received from MathWorks.
• MATLAB Users – You must get a copy of license.dat from your license or network
administrator before you can install MathWorks products.
Select a Procedure
Consult the following table to determine which procedure to use.
Multiple Releases You can install multiple releases on the same machine. For example, you can
have both R2022a and R2022b, or R2022b and R2023a.
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2 Install Products on a Network License
1 Contact your administrator to get the network license number you should use.
2 To link the license to your MathWorks Account, follow the instructions in Link an additional
license (you may have to sign in first).
If you do not have a MathWorks Account, you can create one at the linked page.
3 Get a copy of your organization's network license file from your administrator and copy this
license file to the machine where you are planning to install.
If you select this option, you can follow the online installation procedure as documented in “Install
MATLAB and Simulink Products” with the following difference:
During the online installation, when prompted, specify the network license linked to your account.
The installer recognizes it as a network license and prompts you for the license file. Enter the path to
the license file and click Next to continue installing.
Option #2: Use License File and File Installation Key to Install
For this workflow, your computer can be connected to the Internet or offline. If your machine is
offline, you must use this workflow.
1 Contact your administrator to get a copy of the network license file (see “License Requirements”)
and a file installation key (FIK).
2 Copy the network license file and FIK to the machine where you are planning to install MATLAB.
3 Follow the procedures in “Download Products Without Installing” and “Install MathWorks
Products on Offline Computer”. If your administrator downloaded the installer, ask them to give
you access to the files.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Install MATLAB and Simulink Products” on page 1-2
• “Install MathWorks Products on Offline Computer” on page 1-8
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Activate MATLAB Installation Manually
Activation Overview
Activation is a process that verifies licensed use of MathWorks products. This process validates the
license and ensures that it is not used on more computers or by more users than allowed by the
license option you selected. Normally, activation is performed during installation, and there is no
separate action for the end user.
However, there may be occasions to manually activate the software, for example, if the activation
during installation fails for some reason, or if the installation was performed using a File Installation
Key and no license was supplied.
This topic describes how to activate the software manually should you need to.
You can follow these procedures also if you are an end user who has been asked to activate MATLAB
software that was not installed by you.
• To perform an online activation from within MATLAB, the computer must be connected to the
Internet.
• To perform an offline activation from within MATLAB, you must have a license file.
• If you are using an individual license, use an online machine to go to License Center to get the
license file (if you don't know what type of license you have, you can find that out in License
Center).
1 On the Home tab, in the Resources section, click Help > Licensing.
2 Select Activate Software.
• Windows Systems — in the search box on the taskbar, enter "Activate" to bring up the Activate
MATLAB application.
• macOS Systems — Double-click the activation application icon in the MATLAB application
package. To view the contents of the MATLAB application package, right-click (or Ctrl+click) the
package and select Show Package Contents.
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2 Install Products on a Network License
• Navigate to your MATLAB installation folder and open the activation application.
Note The license file (offline) workflow is started automatically if the computer is offline. However, if
the computer is connected to the Internet, it starts the online workflow.
• To switch to the license file workflow, from Advanced Options, select I want to use a
license file.
• To switch from the license file workflow to the online workflow, from Advanced Options, select I
want to link to a license.
Online Workflow
1 Enter the email address you use for your MathWorks Account.
If you do not have a MathWorks Account, you can create one at this time.
2 Select a license from the list of licenses linked with your MathWorks Account and then click
Next.
3 Make sure the selections are correct and then click Activate.
1 If you are prompted for your email address, under Advanced Options, select I want to use
a license file.
2 Enter the path to the license file and then click Activate.
What's Next?
You are now ready to begin using MathWorks software.
2-14
3
Install and run the network license manager for Network Named User and Concurrent licenses.
3 Install Network License Manager
You must install the license manager and have it running before you install MATLAB software on
client systems. For information about installing MathWorks software on client systems, see “Plan Your
Network License Manager Installation and Configuration” on page 2-2.
You need to install the network license manager only one time at a site.
Whichever option you selected, remember to save the license file to the server where you will be
installing the network license manager.
Click Continue.
For this workflow, you can skip steps 2 and 3 in License Center and continue following these
instructions.
• Windows Systems
If you click Run when you select the installer on the MathWorks website, the installer starts
automatically. If you saved the installer instead, double-click the self-extracting installer file in
3-2
Install Network License Manager Offline
the folder where you saved it. The name of the self-extracting installer file is
matlab_release_$ARCH, where release is the release you are installing (for example
R2020a) and $ARCH is the selected architecture.
To restart the installer later, click setup.exe. This file is located in the top level of the folder
where you extracted the files.
• macOS Systems
Double-click the dmg file that you downloaded from the MathWorks website. Double-click
InstallForMacOS.app.
• Linux Systems
Use the unzip command to extract the files from the archive file that you downloaded from
the MathWorks website. After extracting the files, execute the installer command:
./install
Note To view the end user license agreement at any time after installation, execute the following
command in the MATLAB Command Window:
If the installer cannot find the host ID in the license, you will get a message instructing you to
manually add the host ID after you finish installing.
The destination folder must be on an absolute path. MathWorks recommends that you install the
network license manager in its own folder. If you select the top-level drive, you will be asked to
confirm your selection.
• You can use any alphanumeric character and some special characters, such as underscores.
• You cannot use non-English characters.
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3 Install Network License Manager
• Folder names cannot contain invalid characters and the destination cannot be named “private.”
If you make a mistake while entering a folder name and want to start over, click Restore Default.
To review the default network license manager configuration settings, click View Default Settings.
If you choose not to configure the network license manager service, you can do it later.
Note If you have an existing network license manager that you want to continue to use until you
install the new one, do not check Configure as service. The installer still installs the network license
manager files. After installation, you can stop your existing license manager and start your new
license manager.
When the installation is complete, note if the installer shows you any additional steps required to
complete configuration, and click Close. If additional steps are required, complete them before
installing and running MATLAB on client machines.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Plan Your Network License Manager Installation and Configuration” on page 2-2
3-4
Install Network License Manager Using Internet Connection
Install the network license manager on a computer connected to the internet. You must install the
license manager and have it running before you install MATLAB software on client systems. See “Plan
Your Network License Manager Installation and Configuration” on page 2-2.
You need to install the network license manager only one time at a site.
Whichever option you selected, remember to save the license file to the server where you will be
installing the network license manager.
Click Continue.
For this workflow, you can skip steps 2 and 3 in License Center and continue following these
instructions.
When you select an installer on the website, you receive the files that the installer needs to run
on your selected platform, not the license manager files. The installer downloads the files that it
needs from MathWorks during installation.
2 Start the installer.
• Windows Systems
If you click Run when you select the installer on the MathWorks website, the installer starts
automatically. If you saved the installer instead, double-click the self-extracting installer file in
the folder where you saved it. The name of the self-extracting installer file is
matlab_release_$ARCH, where release is the release you are installing (for example
R2020a) and $ARCH is the selected architecture.
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3 Install Network License Manager
To restart the installer later, click setup.exe. This file is located in the top level of the folder
where you extracted the files.
• macOS Systems
Double-click the dmg file that you downloaded from the MathWorks website. Double-click
InstallForMacOS.app.
• Linux Systems
Use the unzip command to extract the files from the archive file that you downloaded from
the MathWorks website. After extracting the files, execute the installer command:
./install
3 When the installer prompts you to sign in, click Advanced Options > I want to install network
license manager.
Review the software license agreement and, if you agree with the terms, select Yes and click Next.
Note To view the end user license agreement at any time after installation, execute the following
command in the MATLAB Command Window:
>> edit( fullfile(matlabroot, 'license_agreement.txt') )
If the installer cannot find the host ID in the license, you will get a message instructing you to
manually add the host ID after you finish installing.
The destination folder is where you want to install the network license manager. Accept the default
installation folder, or click Browse to select a different one. If the folder does not exist, the installer
creates it.
The destination folder must be on an absolute path. MathWorks recommends that you install the
network license manager in its own folder. If you select the top-level drive, you will be asked to
confirm your selection.
• You can use any alphanumeric character and some special characters, such as underscores.
• You cannot use non-English characters.
• Folder names cannot contain invalid characters and the destination cannot be named “private.”
If you make a mistake while entering a folder name and want to start over, click Restore Default.
3-6
Install Network License Manager Using Internet Connection
To review the default network license manager configuration settings, click View Default Settings.
If you choose not to configure the network license manager service, you can do it later.
Note If you have an existing network license manager that you want to continue to use until you
install the new one, do not check Configure as service. The installer still installs the network license
manager files. After installation, you can stop your existing license manager and start your new
license manager.
When the installation is complete, note if the installer shows you any additional steps required to
complete configuration, and click Close. If additional steps are required, complete them before
installing and running MATLAB on client machines.
See Also
Related Examples
• “Plan Your Network License Manager Installation and Configuration” on page 2-2
3-7
3 Install Network License Manager
To avoid any potential issues with license file operation, consider upgrading the network license
manager software whenever you upgrade MATLAB software.
• Linux and macOS Systems — Use the lmdown command. For additional information, see “Using
Command-Line Utilities”.
• Windows Systems — Remove the existing service to prevent any conflicts.
If you already have the network license manager installed and configured, you can download new
network license manager daemons directly to your server instead of using the MathWorks installer to
install the latest version of the software. The license manager daemons include:
3-8
Update Network License Manager Software
See Also
Related Examples
• “Start Network License Manager”
• “Monitor Network License Manager”
3-9