About WatchGuard Compliance Reporting Licenses

WatchGuard Compliance Reporting provides additional reports in WatchGuard Cloud. After you purchase and activate a Compliance Reporting license, you allocate users to include data from their devices in the reports you generate.

We strongly recommend that you enable ThreatSync+ NDR for network traffic monitoring. ThreatSync+ NDR provides the network data required by these reports. For more information on ThreatSync+ NDR, go to About ThreatSync+ NDR.

To make sure that Compliance Reporting reflects device data from all ThreatSync+ NDR users, we recommend that the number of users in your WatchGuard Compliance Reporting license matches the number of users in the ThreatSync+ NDR license. For example, if you purchase a ThreatSync+ NDR license for 250 users, then purchase a WatchGuard Compliance Reporting license for 250 users.

License Types

Compliance Reporting is licensed for each user and provides access to the reports in WatchGuard Cloud.

There are four types of licenses:

Term Licenses

A term license has a set number of users and a set duration, or term. For example, you might purchase a license for 100 users that expires after three years. The license expires the day after the expiration date at 00 UTC.

Subscription Licenses

A subscription license enables you and your managed accounts to add users with no allocation limits. You can set a limit on the accounts you manage. With a subscription license, WatchGuard bills you monthly based on the number of users you have allocated. For more information, go to About Subscription Licenses.

Trial Licenses

Trial licenses of Compliance Reporting are available to Service Provider and Subscriber accounts in WatchGuard Cloud. Trial licenses expire after 30 days but you can renew them one time for another 30 days. For information, go to Extend a Trial – Service Providers.

NFR Licenses (Service Providers only)

A Not for Resale license includes a set number of users and typically has a three-year term. NFR licenses are available to Service Providers only.

Allocation Types

When Service Providers allocate users from a license to their managed accounts, they select an allocation type which specifies how the managed account can use the users.

Term Allocation

When you allocate users as a term allocation, the managed account can allocate a specific number of users to an account for a set duration or term from a term license or MSSP points.

Subscription Allocation

When you allocate users as a subscription allocation, the managed account can allocate a specific number of users or an unlimited number of users. WatchGuard bills the account monthly based on the number of active users.

Linked to License

When you allocate users as Linked to License, the quantity and expiration date of the allocated users are linked to the quantity and expiration date of your term license.

Term License Activation

You can activate licenses on the Activate Licenses page on the WatchGuard website. For more information, go to Activate a WatchGuard Compliance Reporting License.

After you activate a WatchGuard Compliance Reporting license, from Support Center, on the ThreatSync+ page, you can review the activated licenses for your account. Click the name of a license to view the details and history of that license.

Licenses work differently for WatchGuard Cloud Subscriber and Service Provider accounts.

Subscribers

Subscriber accounts can only have one product license. When a Subscriber account activates a new license key in the Support Center, it is used to modify the current active license. You can use a new license to add users or extend the license expiration.

Service Providers

Service Providers can have many product licenses. When a Service Provider activates a new license key, they can use it to modify an active license or add a new, separate license. After activation, the license appears in the Service Provider inventory in WatchGuard Cloud, but the expiration date of the license is tracked separately.

License Renewals

To renew a license or modify an existing license, you purchase a new license and activate it. When you activate the new license, you select whether to add users or extend your current license. When you add users to your active license or extend it, the new license merges with your active license and the two licenses are co-termed.

Co-terming consolidates or merges your term licenses to synchronize renewal dates. When you co-term licenses, a new expiration date is calculated based on the updated users count and the term length of the license you activated. If you add users, the number of users you purchased is added to your current inventory. For example, if you have 50 users and purchase a term license for 100 users, your final count after you activate your new license is 150 users.

If you have an active subscription license, when you renew a term license, your subscription usage count reduces automatically so that only the users in excess of your termed license are billed as subscription users.

When you extend your license, if you purchased the same number of users that you currently have, your license is extended for another period (one or three years). If you purchased more users than are in your current inventory, your inventory immediately updates to match the number of users you purchased the license for.

To renew with fewer users, purchase a license for the desired number of users and choose Extend License when you activate your license key. Remember that active network devices up to two times the number of users in the license.

When you renew the license for fewer users, we recommend that you do so close to your expiration date. If you activate the license key before your expiration date, your license count reduces immediately. This could limit the number of users available for your managed accounts and your account could become overallocated.

If you have an active subscription license, when you renew or upgrade a term license your subscription usage is automatically updated so that only the users in excess of your termed licenses are billed as subscription users.

License Expiration

Compliance Reporting licenses expire on the expiration date at 00:00 UTC. After a Compliance Reporting termed license expires, there is a seven-day grace period.

If you renew your license before the grace period ends, no further action is required.
If you do not renew your license before the grace period ends, access to Compliance Reporting reports is disabled.

For accounts with active subscription and term licenses, termed licenses that expire do not cause your access to stop. When a termed license expires, users in excess of your termed licenses are billed as subscription users.

Overallocation

Compliance Reporting is licensed for each user and provides access to the reports in WatchGuard Cloud. Service Provider accounts could become overallocated when an account they manage allocates more users than there are available in the license. When a Service Provider account becomes overallocated, access to Compliance Reporting is disabled.

To identify accounts that are over their limit, review Subscriber dashboards and audit logs. When an account is overallocated, we recommend that you reduce the number of allocated users (deallocate), or increase the number of users in the license.

Devices Exceed License

Compliance Reporting will report on device data for up to two times the number of users in the license. The reports include device data for up to two times the number of users in the license. For example, if your license is for 250 users, then reports include data from up to 500 active network devices. If the number of devices exceeds the number available for the licensed users, Compliance Reporting only reports on the licensed number of devices.