What is Agisoft? #
Agisoft LLC is a software company founded in 2006 and based in St. Petersburg, Russia. It builds image-processing software on computer vision and digital photogrammetry: measuring and modeling real objects from overlapping photographs.
Its main product is Agisoft Metashape. Metashape turns aerial, close-range and satellite images into point clouds, 3D models, digital elevation models and georeferenced orthomosaics.
Until January 2019 the product was called Agisoft PhotoScan. Agisoft renamed it with version 1.5, and licensed PhotoScan users moved to Metashape for free. You’ll still find both names in purchase records, installer folders and asset registers. Treat them as one product line when you reconcile.
Metashape comes in two editions:
- Standard Edition covers photogrammetric triangulation, dense point clouds, textured 3D models and panorama stitching.
- Professional Edition, often shortened to Metashape Pro, adds the mapping and surveying work. Agisoft lists DSM/DTM generation, georeferenced orthomosaics, LiDAR support, multispectral imagery, network processing across several computers, cloud processing, and a Python and Java API.
As of September 2026 the current release is Metashape 2.3.2. Around it sit two free tools (Agisoft Viewer and Texture De-Lighter), a Python 3 module and a Java library for automation, Agisoft Cloud for online processing, and the Agisoft License Server.
Which license types does Agisoft support? #
Agisoft software licensing is perpetual. An Agisoft license isn’t time-limited, and each one includes 12 months of email support and free updates through version 2.x.x. Inside that model you’ll meet five license types.
- Node-locked license. One license activates Metashape on one machine. You can move it to another computer after you deactivate it. Don’t make a habit of it: Agisoft warns that excessive activation and deactivation can get a user blocked in its activation system.
- Floating license. Floating licenses are Professional Edition only. You can install Metashape on as many computers as you need, but concurrent use stops at the number of licenses you bought. One machine acts as the license server and hands licenses out across the network. Agisoft doesn’t publish floating prices. You buy through a reseller or ask Agisoft sales for a quote.
- Educational license. An Agisoft educational license is for accredited educational institutions, their students and employees. The software is technically identical to the commercial version, in node-locked and floating form, but commercial use is strictly prohibited.
- Service Provider License. Running Metashape Professional inside an automated processing service takes a separate license. Agisoft rents it annually, one license per machine, or bills it monthly on the machine hours used. The minimum contract is one year.
One product, two license servers #
The license manager behind a floating license depends on the Metashape version.
Metashape Professional 1.8 and earlier use Reprise License Manager (RLM), version 12.0 or higher. By default the RLM server listens on port 5053 and its web admin panel on port 5054.
Metashape Professional 2.0 and later use Agisoft’s own Agisoft License Server, a separate download for Windows, Linux and macOS. It listens on port 5842 by default, with a web interface at the same address. Clients find it in one of three ways: automatic broadcast on UDP port 5353 inside the same network, an AGISOFT_FLS environment variable, or a small .lic file that names the host and port.
So if one team still runs 1.8 and another moved to 2.x, you have two license servers for one product. Check both before you count licenses.
Borrowed licenses #
A Metashape Professional user can borrow a floating license for 1 to 30 days and work offline. It goes back to the pool when the user returns it or the period expires. Until then, Agisoft says, the administrator can’t retrieve it with server tools, even if the laptop is lost. Agisoft’s own advice is not to borrow for longer than needed.
Which applications does Agisoft license, and who uses them? #
Agisoft licenses its own software. The Agisoft License Server serves Metashape Professional floating licenses, and Agisoft’s documentation doesn’t describe it serving any other vendor’s product.
| Produit | What it does | License options |
|---|---|---|
| Metashape Professional | Photogrammetry for mapping, surveying and 3D modeling | Node-locked, floating, educational, 30-day trial, Service Provider License |
| Metashape Standard | Textured 3D models, dense point clouds, panoramas | Node-locked, educational |
| Agisoft Cloud | Online processing, storage and sharing | Free plan or commercial subscription |
| Agisoft Viewer, Texture De-Lighter | Standalone viewing and texture tools | Free |
| Agisoft License Server | Serves Metashape Professional 2.x floating licenses | Separate download |
Agisoft names these application areas for Metashape Professional: archaeology, film and visual effects, game development, urban planning and city-scale modeling, agriculture through multispectral imagery, infrastructure inspection including powerline detection, and satellite imagery analysis.
That spread matters when you allocate licenses. Orthomosaics, elevation models and network processing appear on Agisoft’s Professional feature list, not its Standard one. Survey and GIS teams will ask for Professional. A team that only builds textured 3D models may manage with Standard.
How Open iT supports your work with Agisoft #
Here’s how the Agisoft collection works:
An Open iT utility reads the Agisoft License Server’s usage log, a SQLite database whose data directory is shown on the Help page of the server’s web interface.
It runs every hour, sampling at 5-minute intervals, and sends the data to the Open iT Core Server each night.
What that gives you for Agisoft license management:
- A utilization trend of licenses in use, available and denied, so you see when the pool runs dry
- License efficiency: how long each license was actually used, and which ones sat idle
- A heatmap of demand by day of week and hour of day
- A real-time view of licenses in use and available
- Usage by host, user and user group, for chargeback
If part of your estate still runs Metashape 1.8, Reprise License Manager is on Open iT’s supported list too, so both servers can report in one place.
Foire aux questions #
What is Agisoft Metashape?
Agisoft Metashape is photogrammetry software from Agisoft LLC. It turns aerial, close-range and satellite images into point clouds, 3D models, elevation models and orthomosaics. It was called Agisoft PhotoScan until version 1.5 in January 2019.
Does Agisoft Metashape use RLM?
Only up to version 1.8. Metashape Professional 1.8 and earlier use Reprise License Manager (RLM) 12.0 or higher for floating licenses. Version 2.0 and later use the Agisoft License Server, on port 5842 by default.
How long can you borrow a Metashape floating license?
From 1 to 30 days. The license returns to the pool when the user returns it or the period expires. The administrator can’t retrieve it earlier.
Can Agisoft license usage be tracked centrally?
Yes. Open iT LicenseAnalyzer reads the Agisoft License Server’s usage database every hour and reports Agisoft usage alongside your other license managers.
Know how many Metashape licenses you need #
Two numbers decide your next Metashape Professional purchase. The floating licenses you own, which your license server shows. LicenseAnalyzer gives you the second number. Peak concurrent use, idle licenses, hours of use by user and team. You’ll see whether the pool runs dry on Monday mornings or sits half empty all month. That’s the list you take into the renewal.
