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Add a trial version

Provide your customers with a free trial version for a safe and controlled way to test your algorithm before making a purchase. A well-designed trial showcases your product value, protects your intellectual property and ultimately drives higher sales.

Note

While you have to provide a trial version when publishing a new product in Store, this guide covers trial rules, limitations, adding a trial to an already published product and updating trial versions.

Trial limitations

Common limitations implemented in the code of trial versions for each algorithm type include:

  • Demo-only operations
  • Backtesting-only operations
  • Daily profit cap
  • Hardcoded symbol and period
  • Hardcoded parameters
  • Reduced functionality
  • Hardcode symbol and period
  • Time-limited operations
  • Reduced functionality
  • Time-limited operations

Follow these steps to add your preferred limitations to a trial version:

  1. Duplicate your algorithm to create a new copy.
  2. Code limitations in the new copy.
  3. Save and build the new algorithm.

Trial rules

Consider the following best practices when offering a trial:

  • Ensure that the trial demonstrates real value. A trial that is too restrictive may discourage potential buyers.
  • Clearly describe what the trial product offers and outline its limitations in the release notes to set proper expectations.
  • Whenever the paid product changes significantly, update the trial to reflect improvements.

Trial limitations ensure that potential buyers can test the general behaviour, logic and quality of your algorithm, but cannot fully replicate the functionality of the paid version.

Warning

Do not upload trial versions as separate products in cTrader Store; instead, use the trial version functionality for your main product.

After publishing a product in Store, never delete the original .algo file from your cloud storage in any cTrader app. Otherwise, you will lose access to the source code, and future versions of your product will no longer be linked to the original algorithm.

Add a trial

For an existing product, open Your products in your Store account, click the More icon next to the product, then select Publish trial.

Now, provide the required details on the Publish trial page.

  • Select from Cloud – select the trial version of your algorithm from cloud storage.
  • Algorithm name – select the trial version of your algorithm by name from the list.
  • Upload new – upload the trial version of your algorithm as an .algo file (maximum 10 MB) after exporting it from cTrader.
  • Trial limitations – specify the limitations users will experience when using the free trial version compared to the full paid version.

Note

The Type field is locked when publishing a trial because the algorithm type of an existing product is already defined.

Click the Publish button once you are finished.

Update a trial

cTrader Store allows you to easily replace the existing trial version with a new one when necessary.

Open Your products in your Store account, click the More icon for an existing product, then select Update trial.

On the Update trial page, follow the same steps as when adding a trial.