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    Adding the License Key to CI Services

    This article describes how to set up and activate your Kendo UI for jQuery license key across a few popular CI services by using environment variables or secrets.

    The following general requirements apply to all CI/CD environments:

    • Regardless of the CI/CD tool you use, the step that installs the project dependencies must be executed before the step that activates the license.
    • The license activation step requires the @progress/kendo-licensing package to be downloaded and set up in your local environment or CI/CD pipeline.
    • To activate the license, you need a securely stored license key, either in your environment variables or in the CI/CD tool's secret management. Hardcoding license keys into the build script is strictly discouraged.
    • The CI pipeline configurations are not executable. They merely outline the specific sequence of steps.

    Creating an Environment Variable

    Each platform has a different process for setting environment variables. Some popular examples are listed below.

    Starting with the 2025 Q1 release, the name of the environment variable changes from KENDO_UI_LICENSE to TELERIK_LICENSE and the downloaded file changes from kendo-ui-license.txt to telerik-license.txt. This change is required as all Telerik UI and Kendo UI products now use the same licensing mechanism with a common license key. See the Handling License Key File Name and Environment Variable Name Changes in the 2025 Q1 Release KB article for more details.

    GitHub Actions

    1. Create a new Repository Secret or an Organization Secret. Set the name of the secret to TELERIK_LICENSE and paste the contents of the license key file as a value.
    2. After running npm install or yarn, add a build step to activate the license:
    steps:
        # ... Install modules before activating the license.
        - name: Install NPM modules
          run: |
            npm install
        - name: Activate Kendo UI License
          run: npx kendo-ui-license activate
          # Set a working directory if the application is not in the repository root folder:
          # working-directory: 'ClientApp'
          env:
            TELERIK_LICENSE: $
        # ... Run an application build after the activation of the license.
        - name: Build Application
          run: npm run build --configuration production

    GitLab CI/CD Pipelines

    1. Go to Settings > CI/CD > Variables in your GitLab project.
    2. Add a new variable named TELERIK_LICENSE and paste the content of the downloaded license key file as a value.
    3. After running npm install or yarn, add a build step to activate the license.
    yaml# .gitlab-ci.yml file
    variables:
      NODE_ENV: production
    setup_dependencies:
      stage: setup
      script:
        - echo "Installing dependencies..."
        - npm install
      # ...
    activate_license:
      stage: activate
      script:
        - echo "Activating Kendo UI license..."
        - npx kendo-ui-license activate
      environment:
        name: production
      variables:
        TELERIK_LICENSE: $TELERIK_LICENSE
      # ...

    Azure Pipelines (YAML)

    1. Create a new User-defined Variable named TELERIK_LICENSE. Paste the contents of the downloaded license key file as a value.
    2. After running npm install or yarn, add a build step to activate the license.

    The following example provides the syntax for Windows build agents.

    pool:
      vmImage: 'windows-latest'
    steps:
    # ... Install modules before activating the license.
    - script: call npm install
      displayName: 'Install NPM modules'
    - script: call npx kendo-ui-license activate
      displayName: 'Activate Kendo UI License'
      # Set a working directory if the application is not in the repository root folder:
      # workingDirectory: 'ClientApp'
      env:
        TELERIK_LICENSE: $(TELERIK_LICENSE)
    # ... Run an application build after the activation of the license.
    - script: call npm run build --configuration production
      displayName: 'Build Application'

    The following example provides the syntax for Linux build agents.

    pool:
      vmImage: 'ubuntu-latest'
    steps:
    # ... Install modules before activating the license.
    - script: npm install
      displayName: 'Install NPM modules'
    - script: npx kendo-ui-license activate
      displayName: 'Activate Kendo UI License'
      # Set a working directory if the application is not in the repository root folder:
      # workingDirectory: 'ClientApp'
      env:
        TELERIK_LICENSE: $(TELERIK_LICENSE)
    # ... Run an application build after the activation of the license.
    - script: npm run build --configuration production
      displayName: 'Build Application'

    Azure Pipelines (Classic)

    1. Create a new user-defined variable named TELERIK_LICENSE. Paste the contents of the downloaded license key file as a value.
    2. Before the NPM build task, add a new Bash task to the Agent job.
    3. Change the step to inline and use the following command:
    bash

    Azure Devops Classic Step 2

    # Activate the license
    npx kendo-ui-license activate

    Azure Devops Classic Step 3