For admins: How concurrent license seats are allocated

Who this article is for

This article is for ATLAS.ti users and administrators working with multi-user or campus licenses who want to understand how license seats are shared among users. Please note, the only ATLAS.ti licenses that cannot be shared are student licenses and ATLAS.ti Web-only licenses.

What are license seats

• ATLAS.ti multi-user and campus licenses use a concurrent seat model, meaning a fixed number of seats can be used at the same time
• Each seat = one active user at a time
• Concurrent usage refers to how many users are using ATLAS.ti Windows, Mac, or Web at the same time

How seats are shared

• You can invite more users than available seats; users simply take turns using the software

  Example:

  • A 1-user license can have 10 people invited to the license, but only 1 seat (active user) can be used at a time
  • A 5-user license can have 10 people invited to the license, but only 5 seats (active users) can be used at a time
• A single-user license still follows this system (it simply has 1 seat and can be shared, but only one person can use it at a time)
• The only ATLAS.ti licenses that cannot be shared are student licenses and ATLAS.ti Web-only licenses.

When a seat is occupied

• A seat is occupied when a user opens ATLAS.ti (Windows, Mac, or Web) and the license is validated
• The seat remains in use as long as the user is actively using the software

When a seat is released

• A seat is automatically released when the user closes the app, logs out, or frees the seat
• Once released, the seat returns to the shared pool and can be used by another user

Combining multiple licenses into one pool

If an administrator activates multiple licenses of the same type under the same account, their seats are combined into a single license pool.

For example:

• Two licenses with 1 seat each → 2 seats available in the pool
• One 5-seat license → 5 seats available in the pool

All invited users share seats from this combined pool.

How to manage multi-user or campus licenses

Administrators can manage users, monitor seat usage, and control license access from the ATLAS.ti account management portal: https://my.atlasti.com. From this page, administrators can invite users, manage licenses, and view how seats are being used.

When to contact support

Contact ATLAS.ti Support if:

• Seats appear to remain occupied even after all users have closed ATLAS.ti and logged out.
• Users cannot start ATLAS.ti even though the account portal shows that seats should be available.