Emberly DocsLicense & Branding
What you can customise for free, what a license adds, and how license keys work.
Emberly is free to self-host. A license is only needed to remove Emberly's branding, or to run Emberly as a hosted service for other people. Licenses are sold at licenses.embrly.ca.
Free Branding
Every instance can set:
- Site name and description, in Admin → Settings → License & branding. The name is used in the page title, navigation and emails.
- Favicon, in Admin → Settings → Appearance.
- Footer: you can hide the site footer, in Admin → Settings → License & branding.
Unlicensed instances show a small "Powered by Emberly" credit, even with the footer hidden, and keep the Emberly logo.
What a License Adds
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| White-label | Upload your own logo, remove the "Powered by Emberly" credit, and use your name in emails and link previews. |
| Hosted service | Allows Cloud mode (EMBERLY_RUN_CLOUD=true): billing, custom domains, squads, Discovery and managed storage. Required to offer Emberly to others as a service. |
Installing a Key
- Buy a license at licenses.embrly.ca. You enter the domains your instance runs on, such as
files.example.comor*.example.com. - Copy the key from the email or from your portal.
- Open Admin → Settings → License & branding, paste the key and click Save. It should show your license as Active. Upload your logo there.
You can set the key as an environment variable instead, for example to manage it with the rest of your deployment:
A key in the environment takes priority, and the admin panel then shows it as set on the server.
The key must match the host in APP_URL. localhost always works, so you can test a key locally.
How Keys Are Checked
Keys are signed. Emberly checks the signature on your own server, so your instance keeps working if licenses.embrly.ca is unreachable.
Once a day, a licensed instance checks in with licenses.embrly.ca. It sends the key, a random instance ID, the domain and the Emberly version. The check-in:
- Picks up the renewed key when your subscription renews, so you never have to paste a new one.
- Counts how many servers use the key, which is limited by your plan.
- Learns whether the key was cancelled or revoked.
Unlicensed instances never check in.
Offline Servers
If your server can't reach the internet, turn check-ins off:
You then need to copy a new key from your portal after each renewal.
When a Key Stops Working
| Status | What happens |
|---|---|
| Expired | Licensed features switch off until a renewed key arrives. Everything else keeps working. |
| Wrong domain | The APP_URL host isn't one of the key's domains. Change the domains in your portal and the next check-in fixes it. |
| Revoked | Licensed features switch off. |
Your files, users and settings are never affected.
Managing Your License
Sign in at licenses.embrly.ca/portal with your email to:
- Copy your key
- Change its domains
- See which servers use it
- Open Stripe billing to update your card, download invoices or cancel
The Elastic License 2.0
In short, you can:
- Run, modify and self-host Emberly for yourself, your team or your company
- Fork it and contribute changes
You can't:
- Offer Emberly to third parties as a hosted or managed service without a hosted-service license
- Remove or work around license key checks
The LICENSE file has the full terms.