The 30-Day Trial
Updated July 17, 2026
The 30-Day Trial
Hiberden's trial is the full product for 30 days: every feature on, no card, nothing held back. It exists so you can prove the whole workflow (archive, verify, restore, even tape) on your own data before you pay.
How the trial starts
The trial does not start when you download or install Hiberden. It starts only when you opt in.
The first time you try to archive without a license, the app asks for your email and offers to start the trial:
"Start your free 30-day trial to archive. Enter your email so we can remind you before it ends. Restoring and verifying always work, with or without a license."
Enter your email and the 30 days begin. The trial is stored locally and works offline; there is no account to create.
Once the trial is running, a chip in the app header shows "Trial: N days left" so you always know where you stand. You can also see your trial status on the License tab in Settings.
What expiry blocks, and what it never blocks
When the 30 days are up, archiving is blocked: writing new archives, organizing, moving, and deleting. The app says so plainly:
"Your trial has ended. Enter a license key to keep archiving... Restoring and verifying always work without one."
That second sentence is the important one. Restore and verify always work, with or without a license. This is contractual, not a courtesy: it is written into section 3 of the EULA. Everything you archived during the trial remains fully restorable and verifiable after it ends. An expired trial never holds your data hostage.
The clock is per-machine and never resets
The trial clock belongs to the machine and only moves forward. The 30 days count down in real time from the day you start the trial, whether or not a license is active in between. Removing a license never resets the clock and never restores unused trial time: after removal, the machine has whatever time is left on the calendar, which may be none, and never a fresh 30 days.
Evaluating tape with no hardware
You do not need an LTO drive to evaluate the tape side of Hiberden. The built-in virtual tape drive runs the entire tape workflow (write, span, verify, restore) with no hardware attached. The trial plus the virtual drive is a complete evaluation of Verified 3-2-1 archiving, including tape, at zero cost.
The virtual drive is for evaluation only; treat it as a rehearsal, not as protected storage.
When you are ready to buy
Buy a license at hiberden.app/register. The key arrives by email, and activation takes one paste in Settings. See Activating your license for the steps.