> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.authforge.cc/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Activation requests

> How a customer on an air-gapped machine sends their HWID to you as a .authforge-request file, and how you mint a bound .authforge file from it. This is not the grace period.

This walkthrough is for machines that **never** reach AuthForge. It is unrelated to the [grace period](/concepts#activation-and-the-grace-period). If the machine can connect even occasionally, use online `login()` instead.

There is one offline licensing product: a cloud-minted `.authforge` file. An **activation request** (`.authforge-request`) is only how the customer gets their HWID to you without email destroying it. The request is not signed, is not a license, and does not mint anything.

## 1. Customer: write a request file

At first run (or from About / Settings / Support), the app writes a `.authforge-request` next to itself, or to a path you choose. No network, no app secret, no `login()`.

<CodeGroup>
  ```python Python theme={null}
  client.write_activation_request("machine.authforge-request")
  ```

  ```js Node.js theme={null}
  client.writeActivationRequest("./machine.authforge-request");
  ```

  ```go Go theme={null}
  os.WriteFile("machine.authforge-request", []byte(client.CreateActivationRequest(authforge.ActivationRequestOptions{})), 0600)
  ```

  ```rust Rust theme={null}
  std::fs::write("machine.authforge-request", client.create_activation_request(Default::default()))?;
  ```

  ```csharp C# theme={null}
  File.WriteAllText("machine.authforge-request", client.CreateActivationRequest());
  ```

  ```cpp C++ theme={null}
  std::ofstream out("machine.authforge-request");
  out << client.CreateActivationRequest();
  ```
</CodeGroup>

The customer emails you the file (or pastes the whole armored text, `BEGIN`/`END` lines included). Tell them not to type the HWID by hand. See [Finding a machine's HWID](/guides/finding-hwid).

## 2. Operator: drop it in the mint dialog

1. Open the license (Applications -> app -> Licenses -> license page) and click **Mint .authforge file**.
2. Paste the request or click **Upload .authforge-request**. The dashboard parses it **in the browser** — there is no extra API call and no extra credit.
3. Confirm the decoded fields (HWID, OS, created-at, app id). A damaged file shows *this request file was damaged in transit, ask the customer to resend*. A request for a different app is rejected before you mint.
4. A customer with several machines can send several files. Add each one; they accumulate up to 16 HWIDs on one mint.
5. Pick an expiry, click **Mint & download**. 1 credit is charged. Send them the `.authforge` file.

## 3. Customer: drop the `.authforge` next to the app

They put the file where your app looks for it and call `loginFromFile`. The SDK verifies it locally with your app public key, app id, and the same HWID the request contained. It never contacts AuthForge.

If this returns `hwid_mismatch`, the file was bound to a different SDK's fingerprint or the HWID was transcribed by hand. Ask for a new request from the **same** SDK; do not re-mint to the old string. See the [offline license files](/features/offline-license-files) page for the rest of the verify order.

## What this is not

* **Not the grace period.** Grace is signed *session* continuation after one online `/auth/validate`. It is held in memory only. Raising the grace cap does not help a machine that never connects.
* **Not a public minting endpoint.** The client never receives a `.authforge` file from AuthForge. You mint; you send the file.
* **Not a second offline licensing product.** The request has no authority. Anyone who can type a HWID into the dialog can equally forge a request.