Adding a Pro License to your Server
This guide explains how to set up Netmaker Professional, which offers advanced business features beyond the Community Edition. Explore the comparison and pricing details on our pricing page.
Netmaker Professional builds on the Community Edition with advanced features tailored for business needs.
Key Differences
The Community Edition (CE) offers a solid foundation for VPN deployments, including features like an integrated DNS server, relay support, full-tunnel gateways, and egress to external networks. It’s open-source and well-suited for developers and teams looking for flexibility and control in their setup.
The Professional Edition extends these capabilities with features designed for enterprise needs. It includes support for identity provider (IDP) and OAuth integrations, network traffic metrics, advanced access controls, and role-based user management. It also supports Remote Access Clients, including the Netmaker Desktop app and Mobile RAC, making secure access even more convenient.
For a detailed overview of features in both the Pro and Community Editions, check it out here.
Pro-Specific Functionalities
User Management
In the Community Edition (CE), only admin users can be created.
The Professional Edition allows the creation of non-admin users, enabling role-based access and more granular control—ideal for managing teams and remote access gateways.
Remote Access Clients
Seamless remote connectivity via the Netmaker Desktop app and Mobile RAC (Remote Access Client).
Enables secure access to your network from any laptop or mobile device—perfect for remote work scenarios.
Failovers
Automatically reroutes traffic through user-defined failover node when direct peer-to-peer communication is blocked, ensuring reliable connectivity even behind strict firewalls.
Enhanced Access Control Lists (ACLs)
Allows you to define detailed communication rules between nodes.
Combine with user-level permissions to enhance network security and segmentation.
Tag Management
Group and organize devices using custom tags.
Simplifies network organization and streamlines large-scale operations.
Network Metrics
Collects key performance data such as latency, throughput, and connection status.
Viewable directly in the Netmaker UI and exportable to Grafana via Prometheus for custom dashboards.
Identity Provider (IDP) Integration
Supports integration with external identity providers like Google Workspace, Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD), and others.
Allows users to authenticate using their existing organizational credentials for seamless and secure access.
OAuth Integration
Enables secure, password-less login using trusted OAuth providers like Google or GitHub.
Audit Logs
Tracks user activity and system events across key components.
Essential for security monitoring, compliance audits, and issue resolution.
Obtain License
Sign up
Go to https://account.netmaker.io/signup and enter your email address and set a password. You also have the option to continue using your Google, GitHub, or Microsoft account.
We recommend taking advantage of the 7-day free trial. For business emails, no credit card is required: https://account.netmaker.io/signup#business
Tenant creation (on-premise setups)
After verification, you will be redirected to the deployment page. For on-premise setups, tenants are created only upon request. To request a tenant, please fill out the form at https://www.netmaker.io/contact
Once your tenant has been created, click Manage Tenant, then click Manage to view its details.
Set Up Your Netmaker Pro Server
Initially, you will need the License Key and Tenant ID, which can be found under the Settings tab.
Once you have your license key and tenant ID, you can get the nm-quick installer and run it:
Follow the prompts for a pro edition server and provide the License Key and Tenant ID when prompted.
Upgrade from Community Edition to Pro
You can upgrade from an existing community server to a pro server using the same script, or upgrade manually.
Manual upgrade
On your netmaker server, add the following to your netmaker.env file:
Change
SERVER_IMAGE_TAGin netmaker.env to<version>-ee, for example:
Change the
INSTALL_TYPEfromcetopro.Download the docker-compose pro override file:
No changes need to be made to that file; it uses the configs listed in your netmaker.env file.
Restart Netmaker services:
When you browse to your self-hosted Netmaker via dashboard.<YOUR_BASE_DOMAIN>, you should see the professional UI and a new Dashboard.
(Optional) Setup your server for Prometheus and Grafana
If you would like to use Netmaker’s custom Prometheus exporter and Grafana dashboard, your docker-compose.override.yml file will already include those sections.
In netmaker.env, enable the following:
This will enable the metrics exporter and Prometheus integration for use with Grafana dashboards.
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