Zero Downtime Licensing
With zero downtime licensing, which was introduced in Tableau Server version 2021.1, you can apply most licensing changes to Tableau Server without needing to restart when licence end dates, capacity or installed features are changed.
When should you restart Tableau Server?
When you apply a licence update that does not require a restart, Tableau Server displays the following message: Updated Licensing details are being applied across Server. However, there are some situations when applying a licence update that require you to restart Tableau Server. For example, if you are activating or deactivating a product key that reduces features or changes the allowed data source connections, you'll need to restart Tableau Server after making your changes. When a restart is required, Tableau Server will display the following message: Restart Server to apply updated Licensing details. The following table lists the times when licence changes require you to restart Tableau Server.
| Licence change | Restart required? |
|---|---|
| Extending a licence term | No |
| Adding or reducing user licence capacity | No |
| Adding core licence capacity | No |
| Reducing core licence capacity | Yes |
| Adding a Data Management or Advanced Management licence | No |
| Removing a Data Management or Advanced Management licence | Yes |
| Changing allowed data sources | Yes |
| Expired product key | Yes |