Documentation – Getting Started

Net: Product Overview

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The present article introduces Aspose.BarCode for .NET and its main concepts, as well as general technical details that are important to start working with the library. Here, you can find the description of its purpose, functionality, key features, input and output image formats, important classes, and supported platforms.

Product Description

Aspose.BarCode for .NET is a multifunctional component library implemented through Managed code on C# to address various barcode processing tasks. It allows deploying generation and recognition functionality for different barcode types (linear and matrix) at any angle in a fast and easy way. This library enables compatibility with most of the existing barcode specifications and standards, supporting over 80 symbologies (1D, 2D including QR codes, and postal ones). The detailed listing of all available barcode types is provided in Supported Barcode Types.

The barcode library can be used for development in different ways: through a console application, a web appication, .Net MAUI mobile application, Windows Forms, or Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). For developers who want to create barcodes in the backend, the library provides the corresponding class BarcodeGenerator. Alternatively, using GUI controls in Aspose.BarCode for .NET, developers can drag and drop controls onto Windows Forms and set properties in the GUI-based mode. Finally, it supports the WPF framework to facilitate the development of WPF-based barcode applications.

Aspose.BarCode for .NET benefits from important characteristics that make it an efficient, flexible, and easy-to-use tool. First, it is a fully functional library that enables both generating and reading barcodes. Moreover, barcodes can be saved in various high-quality image formats including two vector ones. The other key advantage is that the library allows recognizing barcodes even of very low quality or being significantly distorted. Accordingly, the recognition precision is high for most of the available barcode types.

Full-featured demos and code samples written in C# are provided to give developers a better understanding of the library and its capabilities.

Main Features

Aspose.BarCode for .NET supports multiple features to address specific business needs. It is noteworthy that it enables a wide range of functionality for setting an efficient barcode processing system. One of the most important functions is the possibility to customize the appearance parameters of generated barcodes, such as background color, bar color, rotation angle, X-dimension, image quality, resolution, captions, size, and others. Moreover, this library provides rich barcode reading and imaging functionality.
The main features include:

Barcode generation and recognition of 80+ symbologies (including QR codes)
Reading 1D and 2D barcodes at any angle and from any image quality
Wide range of options to manipulate barcode image appearance (size, resolution, height, background color, bar color, rotation angle, X-dimension, image quality, captions, wide-to-narrow-ratio, and others)
Customizing recognition engine variables to reach the best trade-off between reading speed and quality
Specifying image areas to scan barcodes
Generating barcodes with specific parameters, such as error correction mode, ECI, or embedded metadata
Image rotation at any angle
Label printing
Saving to or loading from stream or file
Encoding and decoding non-English characters in 2D types
and many others.

The full list of features can be found in Product Features.

System Compatibility

Aspose.BarCode for .NET supports any 32-bit or 64-bit operating system having installed: .NET framework 2.0 or later / .Net Core 3.1 or later with Aspose.Drawing.Common (.Net 10 included) / any other .NET framework supporting the fist two ones. The library can be used in any .NET application, including WinForms, WPF, ASP.NET, Mono, .Net MAUI, and .NET Core. More technical details on this subject are provided in System Requirements.

Licensing

License is required to obtain access to the advanced functionality of Aspose.BarCode for .NET. The evaluation mode allows generating barcodes without any restrictions; however, a watermark is placed on the resulting image. Moreover, barcode recognition is available without limitations only for Code39 barcodes; for all other symbologies, 30% of the resulting text will be masked. More information about how to buy and set the license is provided in Licensing. If you want to try Aspose.BarCode for .NET, you can request a temporary license for 30 days. Please refer to How to get a Temporary License for details.

Library Contents

Aspose.BarCode for .NET includes two main classes: BarCodeReader to perform barcode scanning and recognizing, BarcodeGenerator to provide barcode generation according to the desired format requirements. A namespace denoted as ComplexBarcode serves to work with specific barcodes, such as Swiss QR Code, MaxiCode, and HIBC LIC.

Class BarCodeReader

Aspose.BarCode for .NET contains class BarCodeReader that is aimed at handling barcode image recognition. BarCodeReader has the following basic settings. First, it is required to specify the symbology type in the constructor of class BarCodeReader and call the BarCodeReader.ReadBarCodes() method to read barcodes from an image. Then, class BarCodeReader applies computer vision algorithms to extract machine-readable tags from the captured image.
In Aspose.BarCode for .NET, image reading and identifying barcode regions can be performed for all recognized barcodes in an image. Before reading, barcodes have to be distinguished from other text lines/objects in the image by detecting their edges. To implement this, the BarCodeReader.ReadBarCodes() method is used. Then, the region of a barcode is identified using BarCodeResult.Region that returns the recognized region and the barcode angle.
Class BarCodeReader provides the following features to achieve the best possible trade-off between recognition speed and quality depending on specific requirements:

Multi-threading support. This feature involves additional processor cores to speed up algorithm calculations, where possible.
Barcode type selection. Specifying required barcode types instead of setting DecodeType.AllSupportedTypes allows reducing recognition time.
Quality settings. This group of options allows customizing the barcode reading engine according to the type of image and possible distortions. Disabling some options allows increasing recognition speed while their activation improves recognition quality.
Region selection. It is possible to select target regions in which barcode images might be located so that the reading engine will read barcode data only from the selected regions.

Class BarcodeGenerator

One of the key features of Aspose.BarCode for .NET is to perform barcode generation. To create a barcode label, it is necessary to specify symbologies, set code text (information to be encoded to a barcode image), customize appearance-related properties. Class BarcodeGenerator supports various 1D and 2D barcode types (including QR codes). It encapsulates both types of barcodes into one unified interface. Developers can create an instance of this class, set properties as required, and then save the generated barcode image to any location according to the customized settings. In the general case, two main parameters need to be initialized: CodeText to define data contents to be encoded and EncodeTypes to set the barcode symbology. Developers can assign any symbology to the EncodeTypes property out of pre-defined barcode types supported by class BarcodeGenerator.

ComplexBarcode

Namespace ComplexBarcode allows generating barcode documents to work with complex barcodes. At present, it supports Swiss QR Code and Royal Mail 2D Mailmark symbologies. Swiss QR Code is used to manage QR bills in payments that replace previous payment slips. Swiss QR Code contains all necessary payment information required to initiate payments or to process a QR invoice. ComplexBarcode contains classes SwissQRBill and SwissQRCodetext that enable various functions to work with Swiss QR codes, such as getting or setting the account number of a creditor, alternative payments schemes, payment amount, currency, etc.

Examples

Below you can see some code samples for simple operations, such as generating Code 128 barcodes or recognizing a barcode from a file or stream.

Generate Barcodes using Code 128

// instantiate object and set different barcode properties
BarcodeGenerator generator = new BarcodeGenerator(EncodeTypes.Code128, "1234567");
generator.Parameters.Barcode.XDimension.Millimeters = 1f;

// save the image to your system and set its image format to PNG
generator.Save(dir + "output.png", BarCodeImageFormat.PNG);

Read Barcodes from File

// Read a barcode image file from directory using DecodeType.EAN13
using (BarCodeReader reader = new BarCodeReader(dataDir + "Scan.png", DecodeType.EAN13))
{
    foreach (BarCodeResult result in reader.ReadBarCodes())
    {
        // Read symbology type and code text
        Console.WriteLine("Symbology Type: " + result.CodeType);
        Console.WriteLine("CodeText: " + result.CodeText);
    }
}

Read Barcodes from Stream

using (FileStream lStream = new FileStream(dataDir + "Scan.png", FileMode.Open, FileAccess.Read, FileShare.Read))
{
    using (BarCodeReader reader = new BarCodeReader(lStream))
    {
        //other way to set
        reader.SetBarCodeImage(lStream);
        foreach (BarCodeResult result in reader.ReadBarCodes())
            Console.WriteLine("BarCode CodeText: " + result.CodeText);
    }
}

Net: Supported Barcode Types

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Aspose.BarCode for .NET supports over 80 different barcode types used in a variety of industries, namely, 1D (linear), 2D (including QR codes), and postal symbologies. The detailed information about generating barcodes using various barcode standards can be found in section Generation Specifics for Symbologies

Linear barcode types, or 1D barcodes, correspond to the first generation of one-dimensional barcodes (1D) that are used to represent information by varying the widths and spacings of parallel lines. Some 1D symbologies allow encoding only numbers, while others permit encoding also letters.

DataBar barcodes (former RSS-14) are 1D and 1D staked barcodes, which were developed to efficiently encode GS1 Application Identifier data.

Matrix barcodes, also known as 2D barcodes, have been introduced as a two-dimensional way to encode information. Two-dimensional (2D) barcodes are generated using various symbols and shapes. This barcode type is considered to be more efficient, as such barcodes contain more data per unit area, and most of them are self-correctable.

Postal barcodes are specific symbologies used by postal services in different countries.

HIBC barcodes encode data in special format which is used in Health Industry. As transport, the barcodes use other 1D and 2D barcodes and encode data as Alpha-Numeric.

GS1 barcodes use other 1D and 2D barcodes to encode GS1 Application Identifier data.

Barcode Family	Barcode Types
1D Numeric (Linear)	Codabar, Code11, Code128, DataLogic2of5, EAN13, EAN14, EAN8, IATA2of5, ISBN, ISMN, ISSN, ITF14, ITF6, Interleaved2of5, ItalianPost25, MSI, Matrix2of5, OPC, PZN, PatchCode, Pharmacode, SCC14, SSCC18, Standard2of5, UPCA, UPCE
1D Alpha-Numeric (Linear)	CodablockF, Code128, Code16K, Code32, Code39Extended, Code39Standard, Code93Extended, Code93Standard, VIN
DataBar (RSS-14)	DatabarExpanded, DatabarExpandedStacked, DatabarLimited, DatabarOmniDirectional, DatabarStacked, DatabarStackedOmniDirectional, DatabarTruncated
2D	Aztec, CompactPdf417, DataMatrix, DotCode, HanXin, MacroPdf417, MaxiCode, MicroPdf417, MicroQR, Pdf417, QR, RectMicroQR(rMQR), Swiss QR Code
Postal	AustraliaPost, AustralianPosteParcel, DeutschePostIdentcode, DeutschePostLeitcode, DutchKIX, Mailmark, Mailmark 2D, OneCode, Planet, Postnet, RM4SCC, SingaporePost, SwissPostParcel
HIBC	HIBCAztecLIC, HIBCAztecPAS, HIBCCode128LIC, HIBCCode128PAS, HIBCCode39LIC, HIBCCode39PAS, HIBCDataMatrixLIC, HIBCDataMatrixPAS, HIBCQRLIC, HIBCQRPAS
GS1	GS1Aztec, GS1CodablockF, GS1Code128, GS1CompositeBar (GS1 Composite barcode), GS1DataMatrix, GS1DotCode, GS1HanXin, GS1MicroPdf417, GS1QR, UpcaGs1Code128Coupon, UpcaGs1DatabarCoupon
Other	MicrE13B(recognition only)

Net: Product Features

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

General Features

Pure managed .NET library.
Supports modern .NET platforms including .NET Framework, .NET, and .NET Core.
Works across a wide range of platforms supported by .NET and .NET MAUI, including Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, and iOS.
Compatible with other Aspose products for extended document workflows.
Optimized for high-throughput barcode generation and recognition.
Supports multi-core processing where applicable.
Designed for batch processing and server-side scenarios.
Supports common raster image formats for input and output: BMP, JPEG, GIF, TIFF, and PNG.
Supports vector image formats for output: SVG, EMF, and PDF.
Supports a wide range of international barcode standards and symbologies.
Supports GS1 standards and industry-specific barcode formats.
Simple licensing model suitable for development and production environments.
License can be embedded and protected within the application.

Barcode Generation Features

The BarcodeGenerator class provides flexible and reliable barcode generation capabilities.
Generate a wide range of 1D and 2D barcode symbologies, including linear, matrix, stacked, postal, GS1, and industry-specific formats.
Manage barcode size and layout, including X-dimension (module width), bar height, margins and quiet zones, auto-sizing, and scaling.
Customize barcode appearance, including foreground and background colors, rotation to any angle, borders and frames, and captions with configurable font, alignment, and positioning.
Generate barcodes with high-resolution output suitable for printing and screen display.
Configure symbology-specific parameters, such as error correction levels (for 2D barcodes), columns, rows, and encoding modes where applicable, as well as checksums and supplemental data for supported 1D barcodes.
Export generated barcodes to raster image formats (BMP, JPEG, GIF, TIFF, PNG) and vector formats (SVG, EMF, PDF).
Generate barcode images fully in memory or save them directly to files or streams.
Embed barcodes into Word and PDF documents via Aspose.Words and Aspose.PDF.
Use visual components for barcode generation in WinForms and WPF applications.

Barcode Recognition Features

The BarCodeReader class enables detection and recognition of barcodes from images, image streams, and files.
Recognize a wide range of 1D and 2D barcode symbologies, including linear, matrix, stacked, postal, GS1, and industry-specific formats.
Detect and read barcodes at any orientation, including rotated and skewed images.
Read multiple barcodes from a single image.
Restrict recognition to specific image regions to improve performance and accuracy.
Validate checksums for supported 1D and postal barcode types.
Retrieve detailed recognition results, including barcode type, decoded text, and barcode location.
Process images in common raster formats (BMP, JPEG, GIF, TIFF, PNG).
Support batch processing and high-throughput recognition scenarios.
Scan barcodes from multi-page TIFF images via System.Drawing or Aspose.Drawing.Common.
Scan barcodes from PDF documents via Aspose.PDF.
Select predefined recognition modes optimized for different scenarios, such as fast detection, high accuracy, or degraded image conditions.
Adjust recognition parameters to handle low-quality or noisy images, complex backgrounds, small or dense barcodes, and inverted or low-contrast barcodes.
Improve recognition performance by limiting expected barcode types and applying appropriate quality presets.

Complex Barcode Features

The ComplexBarcodeGenerator and ComplexCodetextReader classes enable generation and recognition of complex barcodes based on structured domain models, rather than manual composition of barcode text.
Support complex standards that require strict payload structure, field validation, and formatting rules (for example, Driving License ID Code or Swiss QR Code).
Parse and interpret complex barcode payloads into strongly typed structured data representations.
Validate encoded data against format and checksum rules defined by the corresponding complex barcode specification.
Eliminate manual handling of low-level encoding details such as field separators, control codes, and field ordering.
Support round-trip workflows, converting structured data into barcode images and recognized barcode data back into structured objects.

Net: Supported Image Formats

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Aspose.BarCode for .NET allows rendering and recognizing barcodes from five raster image formats. Additionally, it supports rendering barcodes to vector output-only formats.

Input / Output	Output Only
JPEG	EMF
TIFF	SVG
PNG	PDF
BMP
GIF

Net: System Requirements

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Aspose.BarCode for .NET is a robust and reliable library for barcode generation and recognition written in managed C#. Using this library, developers can add barcode generation and recognition functionality to their Microsoft .NET applications in a fast and easy manner. It is compatible with any type of x86 or x64 (32-bit or 64-bit) .NET application (including WinForms, WPF, .Net MAUI and .NET Core). The library supports all versions of the Microsoft .NET from .NET Framework 2.0 to .Net 10.

Supported Operating Systems

The barcode library supports any 32-bit or 64-bit operating system with the installed .NET framework 2.0 or later / .Net Core 3.1 or later with with Aspose.Drawing.Common (.Net 10 included).

Operating System	Compatible Versions
Microsoft Windows	Microsoft Windows 10 or later: x64 / x86
Microsoft Windows Server	Microsoft Windows Server 2016 and later: x64 / x86
Linux	Any Linux x64 or x86 with installed .Net (Mono, .Net Core)
MacOS	Any MacOS x64 or x86 with installed .Net (Mono, .Net Core)
Android	Any supported with .Net MAUI
iOS	Any supported with .Net MAUI
Tizen	Any supported with .Net MAUI

Supported Frameworks

Aspose.BarCode for .NET can be used to create any type of x86 or x64 (32-bit or 64-bit) .NET application. Supported .NET frameworks are outlined below.

Framework	Supported Versions	Additional Requirements
.NET Framework	2.0 / 3.5 / 4.0 / 4.6 / 4.7 / 4.8
.NET Standard	2.0	Aspose.Drawing.Common 25.11.0+ / System.Text.Encoding.CodePages 9.0.2+
.NET Core	3.1 / .Net 6.0 / .Net 8.0	Aspose.Drawing.Common 25.11.0+ / System.Text.Encoding.CodePages 9.0.2+
.NET Core	.Net 9.0. / .Net 10.0.	Aspose.Drawing.Common 25.11.0+

Note on 32-bit (x86) Environments

Aspose.BarCode fully supports 32-bit (x86) applications. However, it is recommended to use a 64-bit (x64) environment when possible.

Due to the inherent memory limitations of 32-bit processes, barcode recognition performance may be reduced in scenarios that require significant computational or memory resources, including:

processing large or high-resolution images,
PDF and document-based workflows,
batch or bulk recognition operations,
multi-threaded or server-side applications.

For improved performance, stability, and scalability, use of a 64-bit environment is advised.

Development Environments

Aspose.BarCode for .NET can be used to create applications in any development environment that is based on the .NET platform. The following environments are supported explicitly:

Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
Microsoft Visual Studio 2011
Microsoft Visual Studio 2012
Microsoft Visual Studio 2013
Microsoft Visual Studio 2015
Microsoft Visual Studio 2017
Microsoft Visual Studio 2019
Microsoft Visual Studio 2022
Microsoft Visual Studio 2026

Net: Installation

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

In this article, new users can find information and brief tutorials about how to install Aspose.BarCode for .NET and start using its classes in a .NET project. There are three ways to deploy Aspose.BarCode for .NET: adding a NuGet package (simple and fast), referencing an Aspose.BarCode package in a project (more flexible) or installing the library manually from the archive (to perform custom installation). In each case, to start working with code without limitations, it is required to set the license first. You can see how to do that in Licensing.

Below you can walk through all available installation modes and select the one that is the most appropriate in your case. If you have any specific questions or problems with installation, please check how to contact Technical Support.

Using NuGet Package

Installing Aspose.BarCode for .Net through NuGet is the most convenient way to download and deploy Aspose .NET APIs. Execute the steps listed below to complete the installation automatically.

Create a new project using .NET Framework or .NET Core in Visual Studio 2019.
In Solution Explorer, make a right mouse click on References and select Manage NuGet Packages.

In the NuGet Package Manager window, go to the Browse tab, type “Aspose.barcode” in the text box, and click the Install button.

The library has been downloaded and installed successfully.

Referencing Aspose.BarCode Package in Project File

This option suggests adding a reference to a NuGet package through editing the source file of a project (*.csproj). Follow the steps below to launch the installation in this way:

Create a new project with .NET Framework or .NET Core in Visual Studio 2019.
Open the project file (*.csproj) and add the following code:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">
	<!--Reference to Aspose.Barcode-->
	<ItemGroup>
		<PackageReference Include="Aspose.BarCode" Version="23.3.1" />
	</ItemGroup>	
	<!--Reference to .Net Core libraries if .Net Core application-->
	<ItemGroup Condition="$(DefineConstants.Contains(NETCOREAPP))">
		<PackageReference Include="Aspose.Drawing.Common" Version="23.3.0" />
		<PackageReference Include="System.Text.Encoding.CodePages" Version="7.0.0" />
	</ItemGroup>	
</Project>

The library has been installed and referenced in your project successfully.

Manual Installation of Aspose.BarCode Library from Archive

This installation mode is introduced for experienced users who would like to perform the customized installation. It allows manually setting up the library from the corresponding archive. Follow the instructions below to deploy Aspose.BarCode for .NET in this manner.

Create a new project using .NET Framework or .NET Core in Visual Studio 2019.
Download the archive with the library for various .NET frameworks from here.
As soon as the download has been completed, select the required library and copy it into the project folder or the folder with libraries.
In Solution Explorer, make a right mouse click on References and select Add Reference.

Go to the Browse tab and click the Browse button.

Select the required library version and click the OK button.

The library has been installed successfully.

Net: Technical Support

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Free Technical Support

Free technical support for Aspose.BarCode for .NET can be obtained through Free Support Forum that can help not only with resolving technical issues but also with getting advice to solve any business problem. Moreover, in this forum, you can share your feedback and raise requests to add new product features. Over 190,000 registered users have received assistance through this communication channel.

Blog

Aspose.BarCode Product Family Blog publishes news about recently added features, fixes, technical articles, tips, and tutorial videos. In this blog, you can always get information about the most recent releases and important announcements from Aspose developers.

Free Consulting

If you want to solve a business problem using Aspose products and seek more information about ways to do that, you can ask for advice through Free Consulting service. As soon as a developer available at the moment reads your question, you will be reached out and will get help with understanding the code and the ways to employ Aspose APIs to fulfill your business requests.

Paid Technical Support

If you need to resolve your problem in the shortest time possible, you can always use Paid Support Helpdesk service. Issues and questions registered through Paid Support are placed at the top of the issue list and are taken into consideration by Aspose developers at the shortest notice.

Paid Consulting

In case if you think that solving your business problem requires adding new features or a combination of features to Aspose.BarCode for .NET or you want to get professional help with implementing particular functions, you can refer to Paid Consulting service at any time. Aspose developers will take care of solving development tasks while you can focus on reaching your business objectives.

Net: Licensing

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

Aspose.BarCode for .NET without the license can be used to generate barcode labels without restrictions; in this case, a watermark will be placed on the resulting barcode image (words “Aspose”). Moreover, the unlicensed version of the library allows reading all types of barcodes; however, only the Code39 symbology can be used without limitations; for all other barcode types, 30% of the decrypted text will be masked with " * “. All other actions with barcodes through Aspose.BarCode for .NET require setting the license first. The license activates access to the entire functionality of the library so that you can perform barcode generation and recognition without any limitations and watermarks.

How to Obtain License

If you want to try the fully functional version of Aspose.BarCode for .NET, you can request a 30-day temporary license. Please refer to How to get a Temporary License? for more information. To obtain the possibility of using the library without limitations, a commercial license is required. You can get all information about pricing and conditions here.

How to Install License

The license is a plain-text XML file that contains various information, such as the product name, the number of developers to access the license, subscription expiry date, and other details. The file is digitally signed, so it must not be modified, as adding an extra line break into the file invalidates the license. You need to set the license before generating barcodes without a watermark. You only have to set the license once per application (or process).

License setting can be performed by calling the SetLicense method of class Aspose.BarCode.License. This must be done before executing any actions with the library. The SetLicense method can be invoked in different ways: in the initialization section of an application (or a web application), using Singleton, or through a file/stream.

The details on how to set the license using these methods are provided below in this article.

Using Singleton

The best approach is to implement the license through lazy initialization using Singleton in the key points of code. See below how to do that by adding several lines of code to your project.

internal class LicenseSingleton
{
    private static LicenseSingleton _instance = new LicenseSingleton();
    private LicenseSingleton()
    {
        // init the license
        (new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense(@"{path}Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic");
    }

    public static void SetLicense()
    {
        LicenseSingleton local = _instance;
    }
}
	
	//lazy initialization before using the library
	LicenseSingleton.SetLicense();

From File or Stream

License setting can be also performed from a file or stream, as demonstrated below.

Setting the license from file

//set path to file
(new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense(@"{path}Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic");

Setting the license from stream

System.IO.MemoryStream ms = new System.IO.MemoryStream();
//load license data to stream
//set position to 0 to start reading from beginning
ms.Position = 0;
//set license as stream
(new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense(ms);

From Application Resource

The other way to add the license into an application is to include it as an embedded resource into one of the assemblies that call Aspose.BarCode for .NET. In this way, the license can be embedded into an application as a resource and then loaded from the resource as a stream. See below how license setting can be performed in this mode.

Embedding License as Resource

<ItemGroup>
	<EmbeddedResource Include="{path}Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic" LogicalName="Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic"/>
</ItemGroup>

Loading License as Stream

using (System.IO.Stream stream = System.Reflection.Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().GetManifestResourceStream("Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic"))
	(new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense(stream);

Additional Installation Ways

The license can be configured using the name of the corresponding file or embedded resource. If the license name is passed to the SetLicense method without specifying the full path, the library will search it in the following locations:

Root directory of the .exe file
Folder that contains the Aspose.BarCode.dll library
Folder that contains the assembly calling Aspose.BarCode.dll
Embedded resources of the application where the resource name matches with the specified license name

//license name, file, or resource
(new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense("Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic");

Protection from License Theft

If you share your software with the license applied outside of your organization without implementing any protection, unauthorized access to the license can become possible. To avoid this risk, we recommend encrypting the license source file. See below the example of how to implement such protection.

//load the license from a file to stream
System.IO.MemoryStream originalStream = null;
using (System.IO.FileStream fs = new System.IO.FileStream(@"{path}Aspose.Total.Product.Family.lic", System.IO.FileMode.Open))
{
    byte[] buf = new byte[fs.Length];
    fs.Read(buf, 0, buf.Length);
    originalStream = new System.IO.MemoryStream(buf);
}

//ENCRYPT LICENSE FILE
//encription key
byte[] encriptionKey = { 0x01, 0x02, 0x03, 0x04, 0x05, 0x06, 0x07, 0x08 };
//initialization vector
byte[] ivKey = { 0x09, 0x10, 0x11, 0x12, 0x13, 0x14, 0x15, 0x16 };
System.IO.MemoryStream encryptedStream = null;
using (System.Security.Cryptography.DES des = System.Security.Cryptography.DES.Create())
{
    //set intialization value and key
    des.Key = encriptionKey;
    des.IV = ivKey;
    //encrypt
    System.IO.MemoryStream dataStream = new System.IO.MemoryStream();
    using (System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStream csEncrypt = new System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStream(dataStream, des.CreateEncryptor(),
        System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStreamMode.Write))
    {
        //file length
        csEncrypt.Write(System.BitConverter.GetBytes((int)originalStream.Length), 0, 4);
        //file data
        csEncrypt.Write(originalStream.ToArray(), 0, (int)originalStream.Length);
    }
    encryptedStream = new System.IO.MemoryStream(dataStream.ToArray());
}

//DECRYPT LICENSE FILE
//same encription key and initialization vector
System.IO.MemoryStream decryptedStream = null;
using (System.Security.Cryptography.DES des = System.Security.Cryptography.DES.Create())
{
    //set the intialization value and the key
    des.Key = encriptionKey;
    des.IV = ivKey;
    //decrypt
    System.IO.MemoryStream dataStream = new System.IO.MemoryStream(encryptedStream.ToArray());
    dataStream.Position = 0;
    using (System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStream csDecrypt = new System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStream(dataStream, des.CreateDecryptor(),
        System.Security.Cryptography.CryptoStreamMode.Read))
    {
        //read length
        byte[] buffLen = new byte[4];
        csDecrypt.Read(buffLen, 0, buffLen.Length);
        int dataLen = System.BitConverter.ToInt32(buffLen, 0);
        //read data
        byte[] buf = new byte[dataLen];
        csDecrypt.Read(buf, 0, buf.Length);
        decryptedStream = new System.IO.MemoryStream(buf);
    }
}

//set license
(new Aspose.BarCode.License()).SetLicense(decryptedStream);

Set Metered License

Aspose.BarCode for .NET allows developers to apply the metered key. It is a new licensing mechanism that can be used along with one of the existing licensing methods. The customers who want to be billed based on the usage of the API features can apply metered licensing. For more details, please refer to Metered Licensing FAQ.

New class Metered has been introduced to apply the metered key. The sample code demonstrating how to set metered public and private keys is provided below.

    // set metered public and private keys
    Aspose.BarCode.Metered metered = new Aspose.BarCode.Metered();

    // Access the setMeteredKey property and pass the public and private keys as parameters
    metered.SetMeteredKey("*****", "*****");
    
    // DO PROCESSING
    
    // get the metered data amount
    decimal amount = Aspose.BarCode.Metered.GetConsumptionQuantity();
    
    // Display information
    Console.WriteLine("Amount Consumed : " + amount.ToString());