AGISOFT METASHAPE LICENSING GUIDE
Compare Standard and Professional, understand Node-Locked and Floating licensing, and identify the correct commercial or Educational configuration for your workflow.
03
DECISIONS TO MAKE
EDITION
Standard or Professional
LICENSE MODEL
Node-Locked or Floating
USE RIGHTS
Commercial or Educational
CLEAR OPTIONS. OFFICIAL LICENSES. EXPERT GUIDANCE.
Drone Emotions Srl is an Agisoft Authorized Reseller and Training Center. We support professionals, companies, universities and public organizations in selecting an appropriate Metashape configuration.
START WITH THE WORKFLOW
Edition, license model and permitted use answer different questions. Selecting them separately prevents paying for unnecessary capabilities or choosing a configuration that does not match the real installation environment.
Decide whether the project requires core image-based 3D reconstruction or the geospatial, multisensor, measurement, automation and scalable-processing capabilities of Professional.
Determine whether the software will be assigned to one workstation at a time or shared through a Floating license server according to the required number of simultaneous sessions.
Choose a commercial license for general professional use or an Educational license only when the purchaser and intended use satisfy Agisoft’s eligibility and non-commercial-use requirements.
STANDARD OR PROFESSIONAL
Both editions create detailed 3D content from photographs. Professional adds the reference, mapping, multisensor, measurement, automation and distributed-processing tools required by advanced geospatial and organizational workflows.
Designed for users whose principal objective is transforming photographs into dense point clouds, textured 3D models and panoramas without a complete geospatial production workflow.
✓ Photogrammetric image alignment
✓ Dense point-cloud generation
✓ Mesh generation and photorealistic texturing
✓ Panorama stitching
✓ Batch processing for supported operations
Typical fit: objects, artifacts, people, interiors and creative 3D reconstruction where survey-grade referencing, GIS outputs or distributed processing are not required.
Built for georeferenced mapping, surveying, inspection, research, multisensor processing, advanced measurements, automation and large-scale production environments.
✓ All core Standard reconstruction capabilities
✓ GCPs, checkpoints, coordinate systems and georeferencing
✓ Georeferenced orthomosaics, DSMs and DTMs
✓ LiDAR, laser scans and multispectral imagery
✓ Measurements, classification and advanced analysis
✓ Python and Java tools, network and cloud processing
Typical fit: drone mapping, surveying, engineering, mining, construction, agriculture, forestry, cultural heritage, scientific research and organizational deployments.
Use this summary to identify the likely edition, then confirm version-dependent details against the current official Agisoft feature comparison before ordering.
| Workflow capability | Standard | Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Image alignment and camera calibration | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dense point clouds, meshes and textures | ✓ | ✓ |
| Panorama stitching | ✓ | ✓ |
| GCPs, checkpoints, EPSG systems and georeferencing | — | ✓ |
| Georeferenced orthomosaics, DSMs and DTMs | — | ✓ |
| Point classification and advanced geospatial measurements | — | ✓ |
| LiDAR and terrestrial laser-scan workflows | — | ✓ |
| Multispectral and thermal processing | — | ✓ |
| Batch processing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Python scripting and Java integration | — | ✓ |
| Network processing and Agisoft Cloud processing access | — | ✓ |
| Node-Locked perpetual license | ✓ | ✓ |
| Floating perpetual license | — | ✓ |
QUICK DECISION GUIDE
These examples identify the usual starting point. Dataset, output, infrastructure and contractual requirements should still be reviewed before purchase.
If the objective is a textured model, point cloud or panorama and the workflow does not require GCPs, coordinate systems, orthomosaics or DEMs, Standard may be sufficient.
Likely choice: Standard
Projects involving GCPs, checkpoints, EPSG coordinate systems, georeferenced orthomosaics, DSMs, DTMs, volumes or survey validation require Professional.
Likely choice: Professional
Workflows using laser scans, LiDAR point clouds, thermal imagery, multispectral bands or vegetation indices should be designed around Professional.
Likely choice: Professional
Advanced scripting, stand-alone integration, headless workflows and customized production pipelines require the Professional toolset.
Likely choice: Professional
Distributed calculations over processing nodes and access to Agisoft Cloud processing are Professional capabilities. Infrastructure and licensing must be planned together.
Likely choice: Professional
Eligible institutions, students and teaching or research staff can consider Educational licensing. The edition still depends on the technical workflow.
Likely choice: Educational Standard or Professional
NODE-LOCKED OR FLOATING
The license model does not replace the edition decision. Standard is available as Node-Locked; Professional can be supplied as Node-Locked or Floating.
A rehostable license assigned to one computer at a time. It can be transferred to another computer through the appropriate deactivation and activation procedure.
✓ Available for Standard and Professional
✓ Appropriate for a dedicated workstation
✓ Perpetual and transferable between computers
It does not create a shared pool for multiple simultaneous users.
A license server distributes access to installed Professional workstations. The number of simultaneous Metashape sessions is limited by the number of Floating seats purchased.
✓ Available for Professional only
✓ Suitable for teams and shared computer labs
✓ One seat permits one simultaneous session
Workstations must be able to communicate with the configured license server. Network and security requirements should be assessed before deployment.
Example: a five-seat Floating license allows up to five concurrent Professional sessions. It does not limit the number of computers on which the client application can be installed, provided access is managed through the license server and remains within the purchased concurrency.
COMMERCIAL OR EDUCATIONAL
Educational licenses are technically identical to the corresponding commercial edition. Their discounted status is based on purchaser eligibility and strict non-commercial-use conditions, not reduced software functionality.
Agisoft may request documentation confirming that the institution, student, teacher or researcher satisfies the applicable Educational requirements.
✓ Accredited educational institution
✓ Eligible student or teaching/research employee
✓ Teaching, learning or non-commercial research use
✓ Proof of eligibility available if requested
Not permitted: commercial or revenue-generating work performed under an Educational license.
ORGANIZATIONAL CONFIGURATIONS
One principal workstation and no shared concurrency requirement.
Usually Node-Locked
Several users or workstations need flexible access with defined concurrency.
Usually Professional Floating
Shared teaching computers require eligibility review, seat planning and license-server design.
Often Educational Floating
Large datasets require coordinated workstation, processing-node and license planning.
Professional architecture review
PURCHASE WITH CLARITY
If the correct configuration is not obvious, Drone Emotions can review the intended users, computers, concurrency, project outputs and Educational eligibility before the order is placed.
Identify users, computers, data types, expected deliverables and whether simultaneous access is required.
Select edition, license model, number of seats and commercial or Educational status.
Provide the required billing and end-user information and, where applicable, eligibility documentation.
The official license information is delivered electronically after order processing and validation.
Authorized reseller notice: Agisoft Metashape is developed by Agisoft LLC. This website is operated by Drone Emotions Srl, an independent Agisoft Authorized Reseller and Training Center, and is not the official Agisoft LLC corporate website.
LICENSING QUESTIONS
These answers cover the most common decisions. Current Agisoft license terms and the selected product conditions remain decisive.
The Node-Locked and Floating licenses described on this page are perpetual and are not time-limited. The update and support entitlement supplied with an order is governed by the current Agisoft terms and the conditions stated for the selected product.
Yes. A Node-Locked license is rehostable and can be transferred by correctly deactivating it on the current computer and activating it on the replacement computer. The license remains assigned to one computer at a time.
No. One Floating seat permits one simultaneous Metashape Professional session. Two simultaneous users require two Floating seats, and the same principle applies to larger teams.
No. Floating licensing is available for Agisoft Metashape Professional only. Standard is supplied as a Node-Locked license.
No. An Educational license is technically identical to the corresponding commercial edition. The difference concerns eligibility and permitted use: Educational licenses are restricted to eligible educational users and non-commercial activities.
Yes. A licensed copy of Metashape Standard can be upgraded to Professional. Contact Drone Emotions with the existing license details to confirm the current upgrade route and commercial conditions.
No. Floating licensing manages concurrent access to Metashape Professional. Network processing distributes calculations across processing nodes. They solve different requirements and should be designed together when both shared access and distributed processing are needed.
Metashape Professional provides access to the Agisoft Cloud processing workflow, but cloud storage, collaboration and processing are governed by the current Agisoft Cloud plans and usage conditions. They should not be treated as unlimited resources included automatically with the desktop license.
Tell us the intended application, expected outputs, number of users, number of computers, required simultaneous sessions, operating environment, expected dataset size and whether the purchaser may qualify for Educational licensing.
VERIFY BEFORE ORDERING
Product features and licensing conditions can evolve. Use the official Agisoft documentation as the primary source for current version-dependent behaviour and legal terms.
Review Agisoft’s current definitions for Node-Locked, Floating and Educational licensing.
Verify the company operating this website and its Agisoft Authorized Reseller and Training Center status.
Connect licensing decisions with training, deployment planning and project-specific workflow development.
NOT SURE WHICH LICENSE YOU NEED?
Drone Emotions can help identify an appropriate edition, license model and seat configuration for an individual workstation, professional team, university laboratory or distributed processing environment.
Drone Emotions Srl
Agisoft Authorized Reseller & Training Center
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