Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing

ID 683472
Date 9/30/2024
Public
Document Table of Contents

B. Document Revision History for Intel® FPGA Software Installation and Licensing

Document Version Quartus® Prime Version Changes
2024.09.30 24.3
  • Renamed Disk Space Requirements as Disk Space and Memory Requirements and revised the topic to include memory requirements.
  • Added a note to Intellectual Property (IP) Cores Licenses.
  • Revised the existing information and added a new section for no-cost IP licenses in Acquiring Free, No-Cost Licenses.
  • In several topics, switched the mgcld daemon to saltd daemon and the related environment variable from MGLS_LICENSE_FILE to SALT_LICENSE_SERVER.
  • Added a note in Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software and Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition Software License about the errors observed when using the old mgcld daemon.
  • Enhanced the instructions in Using CLI Commands.
  • Revised the images in the following topics:
    • Getting Started With the Quartus® Prime Installer GUI
    • Modifying the Installer Settings
    • Installing Intel® FPGA Software Through Quartus® Prime Installer
    • Setting up a Fixed License
  • Added Viewing IP Core License Data.
  • Revised the requirements in Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements.
  • Revised the tools list in Software Available in the FPGA Software Download Center.
2024.07.08 24.2
  • Added Acquiring Free No-Cost License.
  • Added Refreshing License Server Token Automatically.
  • Renamed Downloading Individual Executable Files as Downloading Software and Device Support Files
  • Removed the following topics and merged their information in Downloading Software and Device Support Files.
    • Downloading .tar Files
    • Downloading Device Support
    • Downloading Additional Software
  • Revised the information in Installing Programming Cable Drivers.
  • Renamed Installing Drivers on RHEL 8 and Above and Ubuntu Versions 18 and 20 OS to Installing Drivers on RHEL 8/Ubuntu 18 and Above Versions.
  • Revised the information in Installing Drivers on RHEL 8/Ubuntu 18 and Above Versions.
  • Revised Operating System Requirements to include Ubuntu 22.04 requirements.
2024.04.09 24.1
  • Removed the support for AXI3 BFM in Siemens EDA* AXI Verification IP Suite License (Intel FPGA Edition).
2024.04.01 24.1
  • Removed libnsl from Operating System Requirements.
  • Updated FLEXlm license manager software version to 11.19.5.0 in Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software.
  • Added support for generating bitstream with "Start the 30-day evaluation period with no license file" option in Evaluating the Quartus® Prime Software.
  • Enhanced Quartus® Prime Software License to include information about the 90-day evaluation license.
  • Revised the information in the following topics:
    • Downloading Software Using the Quartus® Prime Installer
    • Accessing the Quartus® Prime Installer
    • Getting Started With the Quartus® Prime Installer GUI
    • Modifying the Installer Settings
    • Using CLI Commands
  • Removed Nios® II Embedded Design Suite License topic as Nios® II has been deprecated.
  • Removed in Nios® II EDS License from Summary of Intel FPGA Software Licenses Required.
  • Removed the requirements for Ubuntu Enterprise Linux in Operating System Requirements.
  • Removed Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL 1) on Windows Requirements for Nios II EDS.
2023.12.04 23.4
  • Updated the number of default parallel download threads and its range in Modifying the Installer Settings and Using CLI Commands.
  • Added Installing and Uninstalling a Software Patch.
  • Updated the instructions in Accessing the Quartus® Prime Installer.
2023.10.02 23.3
  • Major reorganization of topics done in all chapters.
  • Removed references to Intel FPGA SDK for OpenCL™.
  • Split the Downloading and Installing Intel FPGA Software into separate chapters as Downloading the Intel FPGA Software and Installing the Intel FPGA Software.
  • Merged About Intel FPGA Software License Files and Using the Intel FPGA Self-Service Licensing Center chapters with Licensing Intel FPGA Software chapter.
  • Renamed Types of Intel FPGA Software Licenses as Summary of Intel FPGA Software Licenses Required.
  • Renamed Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL) on Windows Requirements as Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL 1) on Windows Requirements for Nios® II EDS.
  • Merged Intel Quartus Prime Software License and Intel Quartus Prime Lite Edition Software License topics.
  • Revised the instructions in Signing Up for an Evaluation or No-Cost License.
  • Removed the topics Development Kits Containing the Intel Quartus Prime Software and University Program Software Licenses and merged their information with Summary of Intel FPGA Software Licenses Required.
  • Removed the occurrences of RHEL 7 as Intel no longer supports this version.
  • Added the following new topics:
    • Before You Begin
    • Navigating Content
    • Downloading Design-Specific Software Components
    • Prerequisite Knowledge and Training
    • Acronyms
    • Quartus® Prime Design Suite Overview
    • Verifying the Quartus® Prime Release
    • Other Intel FPGA Software Requirements
    • Determining the Download Type
    • Downloading Software Using the Quartus® Prime Installer
    • Accessing the Installer
    • Getting Started With the Quartus® Prime Installer GUI
    • Modifying the Installer Settings
    • Using CLI Commands
    • Downloading Copyleft Licensed Software
    • Downloading Copyleft Licensed Software
    • Downloading Other Intel® FPGA Software
    • Installing Intel® FPGA Software Through Quartus® Prime Software Installer
    • Next Steps After Installing and Licensing the Software
    • Additional Resources
    • Training
    • Troubleshooting License File Issues
    • Troubleshooting Installation Issues
2023.07.05 23.2 Made minor corrections to the script in Setting Quartus® Prime Environment Variables.
2023.06.26 23.2
  • Revised the instructions in Quartus® Prime Software License and Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition Software License.
  • Updated the image in Signing Up for an Evaluation or Free License.
2023.04.03 23.1
  • Updated product family name to “Intel Agilex 7.”
  • In Questa*-Intel FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel FPGA Starter Edition Software License, added a note about Questa*-Intel FPGA Edition software not supporting companion licenses.
2023.01.31 22.4
  • Added a new appendix to provide detailed instructions for using the Intel FPGA Self-Service Licensing Center.
  • Moved few licensing center related topics from the Licensing FPGA Software chapter to the Using the Intel FPGA Self-Service Licensing Center appendix.
  • Reorganized few topics within the Licensing FPGA Software chapter to improve the logical flow.
2022.12.19 22.4
  • Maintenance release.
2022.09.26 22.3
  • Added Ashling RiscFree* IDE for Intel® FPGAs in Software Available in the FPGA Software Download Center.
  • Added frequently asked questions on the front page of this guide.
  • Revised the requirements in Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements.
2022.06.21 22.2
  • Added a note about upgrading the daemon software for floating license server in Obtain Necessary Hardware Information.
  • Updated an image in the Request a License File from the Self Service Licensing Center.
  • Updated the FLEXlm license manager server software version to 11.18.2.0 in Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software.
  • Removed Microsoft Internet Explorer browser and updated its deprecation notice in Software Requirements.
  • Merged the topics Installing Drivers on Red Hat Enterprise Linux Systems and Installing on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 or Above and updated the topic title.
  • Updated the instructions in Installing on RHEL 7 or Above and Ubuntu Versions 18 and 20 OS.
  • Removed the lib32ncurses5 software prerequisite package for Ubuntu and replaced it with libncurses5-dev:i386 in Software Requirements.
  • Added information about specifying Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition software license using the mgcld license daemon and included a note about using Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition software license with Remote Desktop in Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel® FPGA Starter Edition Software License.
2022.03.28 22.1
  • Updated the instructions to access memory recommendations in Minimum Hardware Requirements.
  • Added a deprecation notice for Microsoft Internet Explorer version 11.0 in Software Requirements.
  • Updated the instructions to download software from the FPGA Software Download Center in the following topics:
    • Downloading and Installing Intel FPGA Software
    • Downloading Individual Executable Files
    • Downloading .tar Files
    • Adding Device Support and Other Intel FPGA Software to Existing Installation
    • Updating Intel FPGA Software
  • Made minor command syntax change in the file names in Installing Intel FPGA Software at the Command Prompt.
  • Updated the image of FPGA Self-Service Licensing Center page in Request a License File from the Self Service Licensing Center.
  • Added instructions to generate the license and set up the license in Questa*-Intel FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel FPGA Starter Edition Software License.
  • Updated the following topics entirely:
    • Managing Licensed Users
    • Renewing a License
    • Managing a Computer Profile
    • Transferring a License File to Another Computer
    • Adding Floating Seats
  • Updated the license setup image in Finding the NIC ID in the Intel Quartus Prime Software.
  • Updated the software requirements for RHEL 8 in Software Requirements.
2021.12.13 21.4
  • Modified the topic titles from Questa*-Intel FPGA Edition Software License and Intel Quartus Prime Lite Edition and Questa*-Intel FPGA Starter Edition Software License to Questa*-Intel FPGA Edition and Questa*-Intel FPGA Starter Edition Software License and Intel Quartus Prime Lite Edition Software License, and merged some of their information.
  • Updated Software Requirements and Installing Intel FPGA Software at the Command Prompt topics to suggest that the Intel Quartus Prime software needs administrator privileges on Windows for installation.
2021.10.04 21.3
  • Added a note about additional information available for setting up JTAG server connection over SSH in Installing and Configuring jtagserver on Windows and Installing and Configuring a Local JTAG Server (jtagd) on Linux.
  • Changed all occurrences of "ModelSim - Intel FPGA Edition" to "Questa - Intel FPGA Edition".
  • Changed all occurrences of Mentor Graphics to Siemens EDA.
  • Renamed "Mentor Graphics AXI Verification IP Suite (Intel FPGA Edition)" to "Siemens EDA AXI Verification IP Suite (Intel FPGA Edition)".
  • Renamed all occurrences of "ModelSim - Intel FPGA Starter Edition" to "Questa*-Intel FPGA Starter Edition".
  • In Software Available in the Download Center, changed MD5 Message Digest Algorithm to SHA-1.
  • Updated Intel Quartus Prime Environment Variables topic with additional information for PATH variable and added a sample script to setup the environment.
  • In Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements, updated the OS requirements.
  • Updated the licensing details in Licensing Intel® FPGA Software.
  • UnderChapter 4, Licensing FPGA Software Walkthrough section, removed Activate Product topic and updated the instructions in Request a License File from the Self-service Licensing Center.
  • Updated the Ubuntu OS prerequisites in Software Requirements.
  • Updated the details for Questa in Specifying the License for the Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition Software.
  • Changed alteramtivsim and alteramtivlog to intelqsim and intelqsimstarter and removed a note about alteramtivsim and alteramtivlog license subscriptions in FEATURE and INCREMENT Lines.
2021.06.21 21.2
  • Updated the Red Hat Enterprise Linux versions to 7 and 8 in Software Requirements and ModelSim* - Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements.
  • Added Questa*-Intel® FPGA Edition to the list in Software Available in the Download Center.
  • Added a note about the Quartus® Prime software installer in Installing Intel FPGA Software at the Command Prompt.
  • Added a note about the --install-lic option for --accept_eula in Command-Line Options.
  • Added Windows 10 method of starting the Intel® FPGA software in Starting the Quartus® Prime Software.
  • Removed the topic Installing on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 as RHEL 6 is no longer supported.
  • Added Windows 10 method of adding device support in Adding Device Support and Other Intel FPGA Software to Existing Installation.
  • Added Windows 10-specific instruction to Uninstalling on Windows* .
  • Made minor updates to requirements in Intel® High Level Synthesis Compiler Software Requirements.
  • Updated the license sample in FEATURE and INCREMENT Lines.
  • Updated the license sample in Floating Network License Example.
  • Updated the license sample in Fixed PC Software Guard License Example.
  • Removed Windows 7 support.
2021.03.29 21.1
  • Updated Installing Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL) on Windows* to include an additional package that is necessary when building a custom library with Nios® II EDS.
  • Updated the requirements in Minimum Hardware Requirements and Software Requirements topics.
2020.12.14 20.4
  • Updated the list of Ubuntu prerequisite packages in Software Requirements.
  • Renamed the topic Installing and Configuring a JTAG Server and its subtopics.
  • Updated the topics Installing and Configuring jtagserver on Windows and Installing and Configuring a Local JTAG Server on Linux completely.
  • Document maintenance updates.
2020.09.28 20.3
  • Removed the occurrences of SoC EDS from the guide.
  • Added additional instructions in Installing Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL) on Windows* .
  • Made the following updates in Software Available in the Download Center:
    • Added Intel® High Level Synthesis Compiler and Intel® FPGA Power and Thermal Calculator to the software list.
    • Included Intel Agilex and eASIC™ N5X devices.
    • Added a note about discontinuation of older releases.
  • Removed the topic Installing on Red Hat Enterprise 4 or Earlier Versions.
  • Changed the topic title Installing on Red Hat Enterprise 5 and 6 to Installing on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 since Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 version is no longer supported.
  • Modified description about the license entitlements and removed the mention of Intel® FPGA SDK for OpenCL™ in the additional software list in Licensing Intel® FPGA Software.
  • Updated the HLS requirements in Intel® High Level Synthesis Compiler Software Requirements.
  • Added SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 to the list in ModelSim* - Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements.
  • Updated the $QSYS_ROOTDIR directory to ${installdir}/qsys/bin in Quartus® Prime Environment Variables.
  • Removed Red Hat Linux Enterprise 5 in ModelSim* - Intel® FPGA Edition Software Requirements and Software Requirements topics.
  • Added an entry for Windows in Software Requirements.
2020.07.13 20.2
  • Added a note about having multiple license versions running on a system in Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software.
  • Removed all occurrences of the ALTERAD_LICENSE_FILE environment variable since it is deprecated and should no longer be used.
2020.06.22 20.2
  • Updated the processor requirements in Minimum Hardware Requirements.
2020.04.13 20.1
  • Added CPU requirements to Minimum Hardware Requirements.
  • Removed a step about Akamai DLM3 in Downloading Individual Executable Files since it is no longer supported.
  • Updated step 6 (which described download options) completely in Downloading .tar Files.
  • Updated step 5 (which described download options) completely in Adding Device Support and Other Intel FPGA Software to Existing Installation.
  • Updated step 5 (which described download options) completely in Updating Intel FPGA Software.
2019.12.16 19.4
  • Updated the Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software topic completely.
  • Corrected typo in Installing Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL) on Windows*.
  • Minor correction in the title of Installing Programming Cable Drivers .
  • Removed some repetitive topics under Starting the Quartus® Prime Software.
2019.09.30 19.3
  • Added "Checking the IP License Status" topic.
  • Added footnote for Nios II EDS changes in Software Available in the Download Center and added cross-reference links. Added the same information in Nios® II Embedded Design Suite License topic.
  • In Environment Variables topic, added PATH variable section and moved text related to $QSYS_ROOTDIR beneath this section.
  • Updated a note in FEATURE and INCREMENT lines about mixed language support.
  • In Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software topic, added a link to the License Daemon Downloads page and updated the FLEXlm software version to 11.16.1.0.
  • Added a new topic Installing Windows* Subsystem for Linux* (WSL) on Windows*.
2019.06.27 19.1
  • Removed the topic Set Up a Floating Network License on a Local Computer since it was outdated.
  • Renamed "Mentor Graphics* Verification IP (VIP) Altera Edition" to "Mentor Graphics AXI Verification IP Suite (Intel FPGA Edition)".
  • In License File Header topic, updated the license header sample to remove references to Altera.
  • In Obtain Necessary Hardware Information, added Linux OS support for fixed licenses.
  • Added footnote about Remote Desktop limits to "Specifying the License for the ModelSim* - Intel® FPGA Edition Software."
2019.04.01 19.1
  • In Quartus® Prime Environment Variables, added LC_ALL variable to the list to explain the Perl warning observed if there is a mismatch in the locale setting.
  • In Software Available in the Download Center, added footnote about RSA Data Security, Inc. MD5 Message-Digest Algorithm.
  • In Software Requirements topic, updated RHEL, Ubuntu, and SUSE package details.
  • Global changes:
    • Rebranded Altera URLs to Intel URLs.
    • Rebranded myAltera to My Intel along with the related screenshots.
2018.09.24 18.1.0
  • Added statement that the Quartus® Prime software installer does not support spaces in the installation path.
  • Renamed Installation Directory topic to Installation Path.
2018.05.07 18.0.0
  • Reorganized content.
  • Moved content about getting hardware information to Appendix.
  • Added how to install USB drivers for Red Hat Enterprise systems.
  • Added software requirements for Intel® High Level Synthesis (HLS) Compiler.
  • Added information about specifying more than one licensing server.
  • Removed references to automatic web license retrieval.
  • Removed instructions to set environment variables on Linux and Windows.
  • Created a Licensing Intel FPGA Software Walkthrough topic.
  • Updated the supported Red Hat Linux version number (5, 6 and 7 instead of 5 and 6).
2018.04.16 17.1.0 Updated licensing information for ModelSim - Intel FPGA Edition software
2017.11.06 17.1.0
  • Fixed outdated links from topic: "Using the Self-Service Licensing Center"
  • Added topics: "Installing Intel FPGA Software at the Command Prompt" and "Downloading and Installing Intel FPGA Software on Multiple Systems"
  • Removed command-line information from "Additional Installation Procedures"
2017.07.19 17.0.0
  • Removed "How to Contact Us" topic
2017.05.08 17.0.0
  • Included new free licensing mode for Intel Quartus Prime Pro Edition software, which supports Intel Cyclone 10 GX devices only.
  • Removed all references to Solaris, which is no longer supported.
  • Added make as a required Linux library.
2016.10.31 16.1.0
  • Removed all references to Talkback feature.
  • Changed instances of Altera to Intel FPGA.
2016.05.02 16.0.0 Removed instructions on downloading .iso files, which are no longer supported.
2015.11.02 15.1.0 Updated to reflect the new Quartus Prime Lite, Standard, and Pro Edition software.
2015.05.04 15.0.0
  • Reorganized the document.
  • Added a quick start for fixed, single user licenses.
2015.03.09 14.1.1
  • Updated the supported Red Hat Linux version number (5 and 6 instead of 6 and 7)
  • Changed recommended screen resolution from 768 x 1024 to 1024 x 768
2014.12.15 14.1.0
  • Updated RPM package prerequisite information for Red Hat Linux Enterprise 7 and ModelSim-Altera Edition software and SoC EDS on systems running Red Hat Linux Enterprise 7
  • Added Microsoft redistributable package requirements for ModelSim-Altera Edition
  • Updated FLEXlm license server version to 11.11.1
  • Updated available software in the "Altera Software" topic
  • Removed references to Windows XP and Windows Server 2003
  • Updated terminology in the "Adding Floating Seats" topic
  • Updated instructions for the "Setting Windows Environment Variables" topic
  • Added a firewall example to the "Modifying the Network License File" topic
2014.18.08 14.0a10.0
  • Updated RPM package prerequisite information for Red Hat Linux Enterprise 6 and ModelSim-Altera Edition software and SoC EDS on systems running Red Hat Linux Enterprise 6
June, 2014 14.0.0
  • Updated "Cables and Ports" topic.
  • Updated "Upgrading or Setting Up a License Manager Server" topic.
  • Updated "Quartus II General Environment Variables" topic.
  • Updated "Download and Installation Prerequisites" topic.
  • Removed references to 32-bit Quartus II software.
  • Added "Downloading and Installing Altera Software Updates" topic.
  • Updated "Rehosting a License" topic.
  • Updated 32-bit libraries in "Download and Installation Prerequisites" topic.
  • Updated "Modifying the Network License File" topic.
Nov, 2013 13.1.0
  • Added references to Altera SDK for OpenCL in "Altera Software" topic.
  • Updated information about downloading .tar files in "Installation Options" topic.
  • Removed note about installing software separately from "Installing Device Family Support" topic.
May, 2013 13.0.0
  • Removed references to the TCP/IP protocol in "More Download, Installation, and Setup Procedures" topic.
  • Removed references to SOPC Builder in "Supported Software Subscriptions" topic.
  • Removed the "Individual Software Files" topic, and "Using the 64-Bit Version of the Quartus II Software for Linux" topic.
  • Updated Altera Complete Design Suite DVD information in "Altera Software" topic.
  • Removed reference to Windows Vista in "Cables and Ports" topic.
  • Updated downloading, installing, and uninstalling Altera software information in "Altera Download Center" topic.
  • Updated information about installing the FLEXlm software in "Upgrading the FLEXlm License Manager Server Software" topic.