Shared licenses for server software such as Plesk, CloudLinux and Imunify360 are supplied by a third party rather than issued by the software vendor to you, which is why they cost a fraction of direct licences. The software works with full functionality and receives updates, but the vendor will not recognise your server as licensed and will not give you support, and the licences are usually non-refundable. They can make sense for cost-sensitive hosting businesses; a direct licence is the safer choice where vendor support, verification or compliance matter.
What a shared license is
Server software vendors sell licences per server, usually tied to the server’s IP address and often priced by the number of accounts or domains. A shared licensing system is run by a supplier who provides activation for your server through its own arrangement. At Tremhost, these are shared licences supplied by Tremhost that receive official vendor updates.
The Tremhost order pages state the terms plainly. With a shared licence:
- The software keeps the full functionality of the original licence.
- Support from the official vendor is not available. Technical help comes from Tremhost instead.
- Your server’s IP address will not be recognised by the vendor as holding a valid licence.
- Licences are digital goods, and all sales are final and non-refundable.
Shared versus direct: the trade-offs
Reasons to consider a shared license
- Cost: unlimited-account licences at a fixed low monthly price, which matters most when you run several servers.
- Predictable pricing: Tremhost’s licence order pages state that each billing cycle renews at the price shown.
- Payment options: US dollars by EcoCash, InnBucks, ZimSwitch, Omari, Visa, Mastercard or cryptocurrency, which helps where paying foreign vendors by card is difficult.
- Free installation and the ability to change the licensed IP from the client area on many products.
Reasons to buy direct
- Vendor support: you can open tickets with the people who build the software.
- Verification: a customer, auditor, insurer or partner may require a licence the vendor can confirm.
- Procurement rules: government bodies, banks and other regulated organisations often must buy software from the vendor or an authorised partner.
- Refunds and terms: direct purchases come with the vendor’s own commercial terms.
Tremhost shared license prices
Verified on tremhost.com in November 2026, in US dollars:
- Plesk (Web Host Edition): $5 a month for a VPS, $6 for a dedicated server. Longer terms reduce the monthly cost, for example $34 a year for a VPS.
- CloudLinux: $6 a month, $69 a year, or $250 lifetime.
- Imunify360: $5 a month, $34 a year, or $190 lifetime.
- cPanel and WHM: $5 a month for a VPS, $6 for a dedicated server, with unlimited accounts.
- LiteSpeed: $5 a month for 2 cores, $8 for 4, $12 for 8, $15 for unlimited cores.
- Bundles: the Plesk VPS bundle adds CloudLinux, Imunify360 and LiteSpeed for $15 a month; the cPanel VPS bundle adds those plus JetBackup for $12 a month.
All products are listed on the Tremhost licences page.
What each of these tools does
- Plesk: a control panel for Linux and Windows servers, managing websites, email, databases, DNS and security from one interface. Web Host Edition adds unlimited domains and reseller and customer management.
- CloudLinux: an operating system for hosting servers that isolates each account with its own resource limits, so one busy or compromised account does not slow the rest.
- Imunify360: a security suite for Linux web servers with firewall, malware scanning and cleanup, and protection for PHP applications.
- LiteSpeed: a web server that can replace Apache, with built-in caching that suits PHP and WordPress.
Questions to ask any licence supplier
- Is this a direct licence from the vendor, an authorised partner licence, or a shared licence?
- Will the vendor recognise my server as licensed?
- Who supports me if the licence or software stops working, and during which hours?
- Do updates come from the vendor’s official update channel?
- What happens to the price at renewal?
- Can I move the licence to a new IP address?
- Is there any refund if the licence does not work on my server?
Tremhost’s answers: shared licences supplied by Tremhost; not recognised by the vendor; support from Tremhost by ticket, WhatsApp on +263 73 563 9917 or booked call, Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 17:00 CAT; official vendor updates; renewals at the price shown; IP changes from the client area on listed products; no refunds.
An alternative: let someone else hold the licences
If you would rather not manage licences at all, a managed cPanel VPS from $80 a month includes the server with cPanel and WHM, LiteSpeed, CloudLinux and Imunify360 installed, licensed and maintained by Tremhost technicians, plus daily backups and free migration.
Frequently asked questions
Are shared licenses legal to use?
That depends on the vendor’s licence terms and your jurisdiction. If this matters to your organisation, read the vendor’s end-user licence agreement and take advice, or buy direct.
Will the software be missing features?
Tremhost’s terms state that its shared licences keep the full functionality of the original licence.
Can I switch from a shared license to a direct one later?
Generally yes. Buy a direct licence from the vendor or an authorised partner and activate it on your server, then cancel the shared licence at the end of its term.
Next step
Compare every licence and billing term, and read each order page’s terms, on the Tremhost Plesk licence page and the licences overview.
