# Sell Your Plugins: what it doesn't do, and FAQ

> The limits of Sell Your Plugins, and answers to common questions.

## What it doesn't do

- It doesn't take payments or bill subscriptions itself. Pair it with a payment gateway; with Payments via Polar, subscription renewals extend licenses automatically.
- A key belongs to one product. A bundle of several products issues one key per product.
- Its admin API and the My Account endpoints are for its own screens, not a public API. Your plugins use the four endpoints in [The update API](/docs/license-manager/update-api/).

## FAQ

### What happens if I lose ELM_ENCRYPTION_KEY?

Stored license keys can no longer be shown or emailed. Licenses keep validating, because sites are matched by a hash of the key, not the key itself. Keep the key with your database backups.

### Can I change ELM_ENCRYPTION_KEY?

Don't. **Settings › Encryption key** reports keys that were encrypted with a different key. Keys stored by older builds can be moved to the constant with **Re-encrypt now** or `wp elm reencrypt`.

### My store runs on nginx.

Add `location ^~ /wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/ { internal; }` to your server block and reload nginx, so zip files can only be fetched through signed links. WooCommerce's `.htaccess` protection doesn't apply on nginx. **Tools › Site Health** checks it for you.

### Can customers free a seat themselves?

Yes, from **My Account › Licenses**. Your plugin can also offer it: the drop-in updater's `deactivate()` frees the site's seat.

### Where do I enter my license key for Sell Your Plugins itself?

Under **WooCommerce › Licenses › Settings**, in the License card at the bottom.

Checked against ZealDen Sell Your Plugins 1.1.4 on main, 19 October 2026.