Will it ever be possible to release a license/toolbox that is no longer necessary without exiting MATLAB completely?

I am curious to know if MATLAB has a built in command that will allow any user to release a specific license/toolbox without exiting MATLAB completely. Or if this is a feature we will see in the future. I have read a few forum posts about this subject. But it seems that the main subject matter is that many other software companies have this feature, and MATLAB does not.

The main concern is that there is a limited number of licenses within a company (more specifically a toolbox that has been used), and some engineers may not be able to access a specific toolbox because another is in use. Yet, in some cases, a specific toolbox (i.e. the Curve Fitting Toolbox) may be used once by an engineer, and then he/she may not need it again.

Is it possible to release this toolbox back to the main network for other engineers to use without exiting MATLAB completely? Or will this feature be added in the future? Furthermore, is there a shell command/command line argument that can be used to do this as well?

Answer 1

[Walter Roberson]

It is not possible at this time from within MATLAB.

There is an external utility that can release a license. When I was admining MATLAB licenses, the Terms and Conditions disallowed releasing licenses under the circumstances you describe; I have not gone back to have a look to see whether those provisions are still in the license.

I am not able to comment on Mathworks' future plans; if I knew the plans, I would be under Non-Disclosure Agreement, but this is not a topic that Mathworks and I have discussed so I have no information to refuse to release.

The main concern is that there is a limited number of licenses within a company (more specifically a toolbox that has been used

Historically, Mathworks' response to that situation would be to say that means that you should purchase more licenses.

The nuisance of having to track down the current user of the license, find them in their office, and have them save and quit MATLAB and restart, is kind of the point: if that is something that is "expensive" for you, then you should get more MATLAB licenses, the theory goes.

[Steven Manz]

I see. Is there any way I can stay updated on this topic just in case there are new developments? @Walter Roberson

[John D'Errico]

First, there highly likely won't be changes in this policy. It has been a long standing policy, and TMW will see no reason to change what seems to work. Second, as long as you are following the question, you will be notified. So make sure you are following it. But since it is your question, that should be automatic.

[Walter Roberson]

You could read through

fullfile(matlabroot, 'license_agreement.txt')

to see what the current terms say on the matter. Mathworks does sometimes make subtle changes to the agreement.