If you’re unsure about how licensing works for the SSIS PowerPack on a development machine, this article provides clarification and recommended best practices.
License Requirements for Development Machines
Just to clarify, SSIS PowerPack is licensed per machine, but a license is not always required during development:
- License NOT Required:
If you’re developing or debugging SSIS packages inside Visual Studio (SSIS Designer), you do not need a license key on your development machine. - License Required:
If you execute SSIS packages via command line tools (e.g., DTEXEC) or schedule them using SQL Agent Jobs on your development machine, then a valid license is required.
Choosing the Right Version for Development
You can install either:
- The latest trial version of SSIS PowerPack, or
- The same version currently installed on your production server.
However, version compatibility is critical. Designing packages with a newer version on your dev machine and deploying them to a server running an older version may cause unexpected errors.
Recommendation: Keep both development and server environments on the same PowerPack version to avoid deployment issues.
Options to Maintain Version Compatibility
You have two main options:
- Use the Latest Version on Both Machines
- Install the latest trial version on your development machine.
- Update your production server to the same version to prevent compatibility issues.
- Match the Server’s Existing Version
- Download the same version currently installed on your server and install it on your development machine.
- Use your order number along with your license key or machine code to download the appropriate installer.
Helpful Resources
- Download Latest or Older Versions of SSIS PowerPack
How to download FULL version (latest or older build) - Check Installed Version
How to check the version of my SSIS PowerPack - Release Notes
SSIS PowerPack Release Notes
What Happens After the SSIS PowerPack 30-day Trial Expires on My Workstation?
If you’ve installed the Trial Edition of SSIS PowerPack, you may notice a “Trial Edition” label within the user interface. Once the 30-day trial period expires, here’s what you can expect:
- After expiration, your installation automatically converts to the Developer Edition.
- The Developer Edition allows you to continue designing and debugging packages within Visual Studio (SSIS Designer)—no license key is required for this usage.
- However, executing packages outside of Visual Studio (e.g., via SQL Agent Jobs, command line, or third-party schedulers) will fail once the trial expires, unless a valid license is applied.
This behavior ensures that development work can continue even after the trial ends, while enforcing licensing for runtime usage.
For detailed licensing guidelines, please refer to the article:
Do I need a SSIS PowerPack license for Developer’s Workstation, and what happens after the Trial expires
We hope this clears up any confusion around licensing and environment setup. If you have further questions or need help determining the right version for your setup, please feel free to contact us. We’re happy to assist!