License Key vs. Script Key
Environment
| Version | Product | Author |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 or later | Telerik Document Processing | Desislava Yordanova |
Description
This article explains the difference between the Telerik license key and script key and identifies when to use each one. You can download both files from the License Keys page in your Telerik account. They are not the same thing, and they apply to different licensing scenarios.
License Key
Starting with Q2 2025, the Document Processing libraries must be activated with a license key file. The telerik-license.txt file used by the Telerik licensing mechanism (Q2 2025 or later) must be located in one of the following paths:
%AppData%\Telerik\telerik-license.txt(preferred)—This makes the license available to all Telerik applications.- Project root folder (scoped to that project)—This makes the license available to this particular project.
The Telerik.Licensing NuGet package must be installed in your project. It automatically locates the license file and uses it to activate the product. You do NOT deploy the file to production. It is personal, and you must never commit it to source control.
Missing or invalid keys cause build warnings and runtime watermarks (See License Activation Errors and Warnings).
Script Key
If your project does not use NuGet packages and the Telerik assemblies are referenced manually (DLLs in /bin), you must activate licensing through a script key. This approach is typical for .NET Framework projects and requires a reference to Telerik.Licensing.Runtime.dll.
A script key is a long encoded string inserted into your project with the assembly attribute:
[assembly: Telerik.Licensing.EvidenceAttribute("<your-script-key-here>")]Alternatively, you can validate the license by calling the TelerikLicensing.Register("script key") method as early as possible in your project before any Telerik-related code executes.