Evaluation and Licensing

GemBox.Presentation works in four different modes:

  • Free mode - free of charge, limited to five slides.
  • Trial mode - free of charge, random parts of text on slides are scrambled, a promotional header is added to slides.
  • Time Limited mode - free of charge, limited to 30 days.
  • Professional mode - requires purchase of a license key, no limitations.

All modes use the same GemBox.Presentation DLL, so there is no need to reinstall the component when switching modes.

The first thing to do when coding with GemBox.Presentation is to instruct the component as to which mode will be used. This is accomplished by calling the ComponentInfo.SetLicense(String) method with the specific license key parameter:

  • FREE-LIMITED-KEY, to use the component in Free mode.
  • The temporary license key that you receive after sending us a request for Time Limited mode.
  • The professional license key that you receive after purchasing GemBox.Presentation to use the component in Professional mode.
Important

The ComponentInfo.SetLicense method must be called before using any other class from the GemBox.Presentation component.

Tip

The ComponentInfo.SetLicense method can be called multiple times. What is important is that it is called with the same license key. Ideally, it should be called at the start-up of your application. For example, it can be called in a Main method, an application start-up event or a static constructor of your main class.

Evaluation

You can evaluate GemBox.Presentation free of charge for an unlimited time period. Just download the component, install it and use it in Free mode.

The Free mode delivers the same performance and set of features as the Professional mode with the following limitations:

If you want to evaluate GemBox.Presentation performance beyond the first five slides, then handle the ComponentInfo.FreeLimitReached event and set the FreeLimitEventArgs.FreeLimitReachedAction to FreeLimitReachedAction.ContinueAsTrial as in this following code snippet:

// Set license key to use GemBox.Presentation in Free mode.
ComponentInfo.SetLicense("FREE-LIMITED-KEY");

// Continue to use the component in Trial mode when Free limit is reached.
ComponentInfo.FreeLimitReached += (sender, e) => e.FreeLimitReachedAction = FreeLimitReachedAction.ContinueAsTrial;

// Here goes your application-specific code.

This option will enable you to read/write an entire presentation with the following limitations imposed after the first five slides:

  • When loading a presentation, random parts of text on slides after the fifth one will be scrambled but still readable.
  • When loading or saving a presentation, a promotional header text box will be added to every slide after the fifth one.

Licensing

If you have evaluated the component and are satisfied with it, you can purchase a license key to use the component in Professional mode without any limitations.

After the purchase is complete, the only thing you need to do is to replace FREE-LIMITED-KEY with your purchased license key in the ComponentInfo.SetLicense(String) method call.

Note

There is no other installer or DLL for the Professional mode. You should continue to use the reference to the existing GemBox.Presentation DLL in your project when switching to Professional mode.

Professional mode also includes technical support with prompt bug fixes. For more information, see Technical Support.