IronBarcode License Setup in web.config

ByChaknith Bin

March 20, 2024

Updated June 22, 2025

This problem has been resolved in the 2024.3.2 version of IronBarcode.

Exception: Unhandled exception. IronSoftware.Exceptions.LicensingException: IronBarcode must be licensed for development.

For older IronBarcode versions, specifically those between versions 2023.4.1 and 2024.3.2, there is a known licensing issue in:

ASP.NET projects
.NET Framework version >= 4.6.2

The key stored in a Web.config file will NOT be picked up and used by the product.

Workaround

To address this issue, it is recommended to retrieve the license key from the Web.config file using ConfigurationManager in the code, and then apply it to the License.LicenseKey property.

Example:

<configuration>
  ...
  <appSettings>
    <add key="IronBarCode.LicenseKey" value="IRONBARCODE-MYLICENSE-KEY-1EF01"/>
  </appSettings>
  ...
</configuration>

<configuration>
  ...
  <appSettings>
    <add key="IronBarCode.LicenseKey" value="IRONBARCODE-MYLICENSE-KEY-1EF01"/>
  </appSettings>
  ...
</configuration>

XML

With the XML file provided above, we can use ConfigurationManager to retrieve the license key value and pass it to the IronBarCode.License.LicenseKey property.

using System.Configuration;
// Retrieve the license key from appSettings in the Web.config file
string licenseKey = ConfigurationManager.AppSettings["IronBarCode.LicenseKey"];

// Apply the retrieved license key to the IronBarCode LicenseKey property
IronBarCode.License.LicenseKey = licenseKey;

using System.Configuration;
// Retrieve the license key from appSettings in the Web.config file
string licenseKey = ConfigurationManager.AppSettings["IronBarCode.LicenseKey"];

// Apply the retrieved license key to the IronBarCode LicenseKey property
IronBarCode.License.LicenseKey = licenseKey;

Imports System.Configuration
' Retrieve the license key from appSettings in the Web.config file
Private licenseKey As String = ConfigurationManager.AppSettings("IronBarCode.LicenseKey")

' Apply the retrieved license key to the IronBarCode LicenseKey property
IronBarCode.License.LicenseKey = licenseKey

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Chaknith Bin

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Software Engineer

Chaknith works on IronXL and IronBarcode. He has deep expertise in C# and .NET, helping improve the software and support customers. His insights from user interactions contribute to better products, documentation, and overall experience.