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Version: 0.6 (Latest)

Installation

Instructions​

To start using LakeXpress, first request a trial: you receive the download link and a free 30-day license file by email. Customers download the same package.

Once downloaded, unzip LakeXpress to a directory of your choice.

Expand-Archive -Path .\LakeXpress-Full-win-x64.zip -DestinationPath .\LakeXpress

Save the license file you received by email (TRIAL-LakeXpress-….lic, or SUBSCRIPTION-LakeXpress-….lic for customers) as %APPDATA%\LakeXpress\license.lic:

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force "$env:APPDATA\LakeXpress" | Out-Null
Copy-Item .\*-LakeXpress-*.lic "$env:APPDATA\LakeXpress\license.lic"

LakeXpress does not run without it. For other ways to provide it, see License Information.

You can verify the installation by checking the version:

.\LakeXpress.exe --version

The output shows the version and the date the binary was built, for example LakeXpress 0.6.3 (build 2026-11-10T14:30:06Z).


Next step: LakeXpress needs a database of its own to store its configurations and run history. See Set up the LakeXpress DB.

What's Included​

There is a single package per platform, for the trial and for subscriptions (the license file makes the difference). It has the following layout:

Package layout
  • LakeXpress/
    • LakeXpress.exeMain executable
    • README.txtQuick reference
    • LakeXpress-sbom.*Software Bill of Materials (JSON, XML) and checksums
    • engine/
      • FastBCP.exeauto-discoveredBundled FastBCP engine
Bundled FastBCP Engine

The package includes the FastBCP engine in the engine/ directory, found automatically: no need to specify --fastbcp_dir_path. It is the FastBCP version this LakeXpress release was tested with. Your LakeXpress license also licenses it: no separate FastBCP.lic is needed.

To use another FastBCP installation, pass its folder with --fastbcp_dir_path.

FastBCP version​

Before each export (sync, sync[export], run), LakeXpress checks the FastBCP engine:

FastBCP not configured, or no executable in the configured directory
Exit code 30FASTBCP_NOT_FOUNDthe export stops
Version older than 1.4.0
Exit code 34FASTBCP_VERSION_UNSUPPORTEDthe export stops
Version 1.4.0, the one bundled and tested with this LakeXpress release
OKthe export runs
Version newer than 1.4.0, another 1.4.x patch included
Warningthe export continues
Version cannot be determined
Warningthe export continues

LakeXpress requires FastBCP 1.4.0 or later. Older versions export Timepartition tables incorrectly: they skip rows whose date is NULL, and with week granularity they export some rows twice.

sync[publish] does not run FastBCP and skips this check. See Exit Codes.

License Information​

LakeXpress needs a license file to run, including during the free trial: the trial request emails you a 30-day trial license.

Where LakeXpress looks for the license​

LakeXpress takes the first license it finds, in this order:

  1. LAKEXPRESS_LICENSE environment variableset this for CI/CD or containerized deployments
  2. --license TEXTCLI argument: pass the license content directly
  3. --license_file PATHCLI argument: point to a license file
  4. Default file locations
    • ~/.lakexpress/license.lic (Linux)
    • %APPDATA%/LakeXpress/license.lic (Windows)
    • ./license.lic (current directory)

See the CLI Reference for details.

FastBCP and ADBC licenses​

The license file also carries the FastBCP and ADBC driver licenses: keep the whole file as delivered. LakeXpress passes them to FastBCP for each export through a private temporary file that it removes at the end of the run. You do not need a separate FastBCP.lic.

Missing or incomplete license​

No valid license found
Exit code 13LICENSE_ERRORLakeXpress stops
A source extracted through ADBC (the default for SQL Server, PostgreSQL and Teradata; Oracle with use_adbc: true), a license without the ADBC driver block, and neither ARPEIO_ADBC_LICENCE nor ARPEIO_ADBC_LICENCE_FILE set
Exit code 13the export stops
FastBCP rejects its licence during the export (missing or expired)
Exit code 13the run stops at the first table and starts no other
License issued before October 26, 2026, with no FastBCP block
WarningFastBCP uses its own FastBCP.lic, as before; request an updated license to drop it
--help and --version
OKno license needed
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