Activation

Last modified: June 12, 2025

After installing dbForge Data Compare for SQL Server, you need to activate the application—even for the trial version. You can activate Data Compare for SQL Server in one of the following ways: directly within the application, offline using a license file, or via the command line.

Activate in the application

This activation happens online and requires an active internet connection.

To activate Data Compare for SQL Server within the application:

1. Open dbForge Data Compare for SQL Server.

The Product Activation dialog appears automatically.

2. Enter the activation key.

Tip

You can find the activation key in the email from Devart or on the Customer Portal.

Use the activation key (a long alphanumeric string), not the license ID (formatted as XXXX-XXXX-XXX).

3. Click Activate.

Activate offline

If online activation within the application fails (for example, if there’s no internet connection), you can manually activate Data Compare for SQL Server offline using a license file downloaded from the Devart website.

To activate Data Compare for SQL Server offline:

1. After activation within the application fails, click manual activation in the Product Activation dialog.

2. Choose how to get the activation request text:

• Copy to Clipboard – Copies the request text.
• Save to File – Saves the request as a .txt file.

3. Go to the Manual Product Activation page, paste the request text into the form, then click Download License.

The .lic license file is downloaded.

4. In the Product Activation dialog in Data Compare for SQL Server, click Load License.

5. Select the .lic file, then click Open.

Activate via the command line

1. Open Command Prompt.

2. Navigate to the folder where the product executable file is located.

The default path is C:\Program Files\Devart\dbForge Data Compare for SQL Server.

3. Run the following command, replacing <activation_key> with your actual key.

datacompare /activate /key:<activation_key>