License Setup

This page briefly describes the pSeven licensing system and provides instructions on obtaining a license file and registering a license with the existing pSeven installation.

Licensing System

pSeven supports two licensing models, standalone and server-based (three-server redundancy is also supported). A standalone license is bound to a specific computer host and allows running pSeven only on this host. A server license is also bound to a specific host, but this host provides licenses to a number of computers and in most cases does not run pSeven itself. The computers running pSeven (clients) have to connect to the server over a network to receive license. A three-server license is a special type of server license bound to a set of three server systems. Three-server configuration provides failover protection: one server becomes master, other two act as a backup to ensure license availability.

Standalone licensing model requires a license file which has to be stored on the same computer that runs pSeven. This model does not require a network connection. To register a standalone license, you can specify the path to a license file during installation (see Installation Guide — License Setup). If you have skipped this step, see section Standalone License Registration to register the license manually.

Server-based licensing model requires a dedicated FlexNet license server. A server license is registered (imported) on a server and should not be copied to client computers — see Server Configuration for details. To set up pSeven clients for using a server license, you can specify the license server IP address and port during installation (see Installation Guide — License Setup). If you have skipped this step, see section Client Configuration.

The main advantage of a server license is that it can provide a license pool. The license server operates this pool, dynamically allocating licenses to network nodes running pSeven: a license is checked out from the pool when a user starts pSeven on any given node and checked back in when the application closes. This way, a pool of ten licenses, for example, can support a community of hundred users — as long as no more than ten pSeven instances are running simultaneously over the network. To compare, using 10 standalone licenses limits you to running pSeven on 10 specific nodes only, and each node requires its own license which cannot be used on another node.

Obtaining a License

A pSeven license is a text file with a .lic extension. This file is associated with a license server, a server triad, or a standalone computer by means of a FLEXnet host ID. In order to obtain a new license, you will have to determine the host ID first.

For a standalone license, you will need the host ID of the computer where you install pSeven. One simple way is to run the pSeven installer and note the ID it reports at the License Setup step. You can then skip this step to continue with the installation and register the license later (see Standalone License Registration for instructions), or cancel installation and wait until you receive the license file. You can also use a license management utility to find the host ID (see section Host ID).

For a server license, you will need the host ID of the license server (all three servers in the case of a three-server license). If it is not known, see section Host ID for instructions.

Once you have the host ID, submit a license request to get your .lic file (see License Request).

Host ID

The host ID is a specific string identifying this host in the license management system. The ID is required at the time you send a license request to DATADVANCE.

A simple method to find the host ID is to run the pSeven installer which reports the ID at the License Setup step (see Installation Guide). Alternatively, you can use lmutil — a license management utility which can be downloaded from DATADVANCE. In case neither pSeven installer nor lmutil can determine your host ID, it is also possible to find the ID manually.

If pSeven must not be installed on the host (for example, it is a license server), download lmutil from the download page at www.datadvance.net and save it to a temporary location.

Once you have located lmutil, run it with the lmhostid -ether option. The output is a short message containing the host ID.

Note

On rare occasions lmutil fails to determine the host ID properly — see below for details.

In Windows, you can open a command prompt window and drag the downloaded lmutil.exe file to it in order to get a full path. Without executing this command yet, type a whitespace to the command prompt, then add lmhostid -ether and run. For example, this can look like:

> "C:\Users\User Name\Downloads\lmutil.exe" lmhostid -ether
lmutil - Copyright (c) 1989-2012 Flexera Software LLC. All Rights Reserved.
The FLEXnet host ID of this machine is "e05806420eb4"

In Linux note that you need to set execute permission first. Execute chmod +x lmutil64 in the directory where lmutil64 is saved, and then run it:

$ chmod +x lmutil64
$ ./lmutil64 lmhostid -ether
lmutil - Copyright (c) 1989-2012 Flexera Software LLC. All Rights Reserved.
The FLEXnet host ID of this machine is "e05806420eb4"

The quoted string in the output ("e05806420eb4") is the host ID. Note that the ID is always 12 characters long and contains only numbers from 0 to 9 and letters from a to f (the case does not matter). If there are more or less characters, or the string contains other symbols or letters, it means that lmutil has failed to retrieve the host ID. In this case, pSeven installer will also fail to determine the ID because it uses lmutil internally. For example, on some Windows systems lmutil returns "ffffffff" which is not a valid host ID (there must be 12 characters inside quotes):

> lmutil.exe lmhostid -ether
lmhostid - Copyright (c) 1989-2012 Flexera Software LLC. All Rights Reserved.
The FLEXnet host ID of this machine is "ffffffff"

If you experience problems with lmutil (the utility does not run or returns an invalid ID), see FAQ: How to find a host ID manually? for manual host identification.

License Request

Once you have your host ID, visit www.datadvance.net to submit a license request. Note that this step requires a registered user account. If you do not have an account at DATADVANCE yet, please register. Use a working e-mail address for registration: you will receive your login details to this address.

  1. Login at www.datadvance.net.
  2. Follow to the license request page. You can also select License Request from the user menu at the top right.
  3. Fill in the license request form:
    • Contact Information: input your contact details. Be sure to use a working e-mail address: your license file and other information will be sent to the address specified in the request form.
    • Product Information: select the type of license (trial, commercial, or academic) and one of pSeven editions.
    • Features: additional options will appear once you select a product edition in the Product Information section. You can add or remove features to fine-tune the license to your needs.
    • License: specify the number of license users and one of the licensing models (see Licensing System for details). Note that the standalone licensing model can only support 1 user. Other settings appear depending on the selected licensing model:
      • Standalone: specify the host ID of the computer that will run pSeven. See section Host ID for instructions on how to find the ID.
      • Server: specify the host ID of the computer that runs a license server, its hostname and the listening port of the license server. Note that if you specify a non-standard port, you will also have to specify it during pSeven installation (see Installation Guide, License Setup) or when configuring client computers (see Client Configuration). For reference, standard license port number for pSeven is 27042 (note it is not the default FlexNet’s port).
      • Three-Server: specify the same details as above for all three servers.
  4. Click “Send” to submit your request.

Please allow up to one business day to process your request. License files and required information are sent to the e-mail address you specified in the license request form.

The license file name contains the license number, for example: 12345.lic. This is also your request number. When you have a license file, you can open it with any text editor to find other details. The beginning of the file is a comment section which contains licensing information: the licensed host ID, compatible pSeven version, license expiry date, the list of features enabled in the license, and other.

Standalone License Registration

Standalone license (a local license file) can be registered during pSeven installation if you specify the path to the license file (see Installation Guide, License Setup).

If you have skipped this step, you need to copy your license file to one of the following locations:

  • pSeven installation directory (the directory where pSeven executable is found).
  • pSeven workspace directory — by default, %USERPROFILE%\Documents\pSeven\ in Windows, or ~/Documents/pSeven/ in Linux. You can open this directory with a system menu shortcut (for example, in Windows: Start ‣ pSeven ‣ License Management ‣ Open License File Location).

When pSeven starts, it finds and loads the license automatically; no more settings required. If you register a standalone license during installation, the pSeven installer actually copies it to both of the locations above.

Note

Neither of the locations has priority. When pSeven starts a local license manager, it loads license permissions from all xxxxx.lic files found in both search directories (xxxxx is the host ID) and enables all features allowed by at least one of the loaded licenses.

Warning

Firewalls can block connection to the local license manager (license server) started by pSeven to load the local license. If there is a firewall in your system that allows only known connections, you will need to create a rule for the pSeven license server — otherwise pSeven will not be able to start. See FAQ: Do antiviruses, firewalls, network or proxy settings affect pSeven? for more details.

Server License Registration

If you use a server license, it has to be registered (imported) on the server. The license file should not be copied to computers running pSeven (clients). Instead, you specify the license server address and port on each client host — either during installation or manually if pSeven is already installed. Manual configuration requires setting the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE environment variable.

Initial Setup

Before you begin server license registration, verify the following:

  • The FlexNet Publisher license server is up.
  • You have received the license file (see Obtaining a License).
  • You have received the DATADVANCE licensing package (it should be attached to the same e-mail with your license file).

The following steps are required to ensure proper communication between the license server and clients:

  1. Verify that the system time on all clients is synchronized with the server’s system time. The maximum tolerable time difference is 2 minutes, otherwise the synchronization issues between clients and the server often cause connection problems and may crash the license server or the license daemon. In the case of three-server configuration, also verify that the system time is synchronized across all 3 servers and all clients.

  2. Find out the server’s hostname: open a command prompt on the server and use the hostname command. This command is the same in Windows and Linux; for example, in Windows it may look like:

    > hostname
LICSERVER

    In the case of three-server configuration, find the hostnames of all 3 servers.

  3. Test connection from clients to the server. On a client host, open a command prompt and run ping <server_name>, where <server_name> is the server’s hostname (“LICSERVER” in the example above). Note the server’s IP address resolved by ping. For example, in Windows:

    > ping LICSERVER

Pinging LICSERVER [10.7.0.1] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=63
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=63
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=63
...

    10.7.0.1 in this example is the IP address you need.

    In the case of three-server configuration, find the IP addresses of all 3 servers.

  4. Verify that the license server (or 3 servers) resolves its hostname to the same IP address. Open a command prompt on the server and ping its hostname — for example, in Windows:

    > ping LICSERVER

Pinging LICSERVER [10.7.0.1] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 10.7.0.1: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
...

    The IP resolved by ping on client hosts and the server must be the same.

  5. If you run the license server under Windows, verify that the server host resolves is hostname to an IPv4 address. FlexNet Publisher is known to have connection issues with IPv6, which Windows may use by default. If, when running ping <server_name> on the license server host, you see output like the following, then you will have to force IPv4 name resolution to avoid these issues:

    > ping LICSERVER

Pinging LICSERVER [fe80::b49a:16c9:5b01:93fe%12] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from fe80::b49a:16c9:5b01:93fe%12: bytes=32 time<1ms
Reply from fe80::b49a:16c9:5b01:93fe%12: bytes=32 time<1ms
Reply from fe80::b49a:16c9:5b01:93fe%12: bytes=32 time<1ms
...

    The string “fe80::b49a:16c9:5b01:93fe%12” in the example above is an IPv6 address, indicating that the server uses IPv6 name resolution, which is a known cause of license server connection issues. To force IPv4 name resolution, add the following line to the hosts file on your Windows server:

    10.7.0.1       LICSERVER

    Replace the example IP address and hostname above with the real IPv4 address and hostname of your license server, which you have found earlier (see steps 2 and 3). The hosts file in Windows is found in %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\drivers\etc\, where SYSTEMROOT is the Windows system path (usually C:\Windows\).

    After editing the hosts file, verify that your change applies to the system by running ping <server_name> on the server host again.

  6. Finally, add the server’s hostname to the license file. This is required before you import the license on the server. Make a copy of the license file, open this copy in any plain text editor, and find the following line (you can search the file for the “Put_Your_Server_Hostname_Here” placeholder):

    SERVER Put_Your_Server_Hostname_Here <host id> <port number>

    Replace the placeholder with the real server hostname. The line with edits should look like the following example:

    SERVER LICSERVER <host id> <port number>

    In the case of three-server configuration, the license file includes 3 “SERVER” lines, and you have to specify the names of 3 servers, like the following:

    SERVER LICSERVER_A <host id 1> <port number>
SERVER LICSERVER_B <host id 2> <port number>
SERVER LICSERVER_C <host id 3> <port number>

    Save the copy of license file with your edits, then use this copy to import the license to FlexNet Publisher. Keep the original license file as a backup.

Server Configuration

The following list describes typical steps to register a server license. Actual configuration may differ depending on your server; if you need detailed information, refer to the FlexNet Publisher License Administration Guide included into the licensing package.

  1. Unpack the licensing package and locate the DATADVANCE vendor daemon (the datadvd directory).
  2. Copy the datadvd directory to the FlexNet Publisher installation directory — the one that contains the lmadmin executable.
  3. Locate the copy of the license file, which you edited to add the license server’s hostname (see Initial Setup). Do not use the backup copy of the license file, which contains a placeholder name in the “SERVER” line.
  4. Open FlexNet Publisher web interface (by default, located by URL http://localhost:8090).
  5. Login and select Administration from the menu.
  6. In the tab bar on the left click Vendor Daemon Configuration.
  7. Click Import License, then browse to your license file and click Import License in the dialog.
  8. Return to the Dashboard page and click Concurrent. You should see an overview of all license keys and their current usage by client computers.

Note

Floating (server) licenses for pSeven v.6.9 and above require the updated DATADVANCE vendor daemon. The updated daemon is compatible with earlier versions of the license server and pSeven.

To update your DATADVANCE vendor daemon follow the steps listed below.

  1. Visit the download page and get a package for the platform you intend to install the server on. To access downloads, a registered user account is required (see License Request).
  2. Unpack the downloaded archive.
  3. Stop the license server.
  4. In the directory where lmadmin is installed, replace the contents of datadvd subdirectory with the contents of the datadvd directory from the archive.
  5. Restart the license server.

Client Configuration

Client hosts can be configured during pSeven installation if you specify the license server address and port (see Installation Guide, License Setup).

If you have skipped this step, you need to set the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE environment variable on client hosts running pSeven. This variable contains the license server address and port. If you specify the address and port during installation, DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE is automatically set by the pSeven installer.

Warning

A firewall on a client host can block connection to the pSeven license server. If a client’s firewall allows only known connections, you will need to create a rule allowing connection to the specified port — otherwise pSeven will not be able to start. See FAQ: Do antiviruses, firewalls, network or proxy settings affect pSeven? for more details.

Windows

In Windows, environment variables can be set using the System Properties dialog. Open Windows command prompt and run control sysdm.cpl,,3 to bring up the System Properties window. This command automatically switches to the Advanced tab; on this tab, click the Environment Variables button to bring up the environment variables dialog. Click the New button under “User variables for YourUserName” to add a variable. In the New User Variable dialog, input (10.7.18.142 is used as an example server IP address):

  • Variable name: DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE
  • Variable value: @10.7.18.142

If the server is configured to use a non-standard port, specify the port number in front of the IP address. For example:

  • Variable value: 38153@10.7.18.142

After this, click OK in the New User Variable dialog, then OK in the Environment Variables window and the System Properties window.

To verify the license configuration, you can check the value of the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE variable using the Windows command prompt:

> set DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE

should output the license server IP address (and port, if not default).

Linux

Various methods are available to set environment in Linux; please refer to your distribution documentation for the recommended method. As an example, if using bash, you can edit its startup file (~/.bashrc), adding the following line (10.7.18.142 is used as an example server IP address):

export DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE=@10.7.18.142

If you have configured the server to use a non-standard port, specify the port number in front of the IP address. For example:

export DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE=27009@10.7.18.142

To verify the license configuration, you can check the value of the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE variable:

$ echo $DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE

should output the license server IP address (and port, if not default).

Updating a License

The sequence of steps to update a license may vary depending on the license server. pSeven can use either a local (lmgrd) or a remote license server (lmgrd or lmadmin). Sections below describe the procedure of updating a license for each type of server. Note that instructions on obtaining a license file are given in section Obtaining a License.

Updating a License for Local Servers

To update a license for local servers follow these steps:

  1. Exit the pSeven application.
  2. Stop the license server.
  3. Replace the old license file with a new one.
  4. Start pSeven.

More details on some of the mentioned steps are given below.

Stopping a License Server

Linux:

  • Use the Stop License Server shortcut in the system menu. Ensure that no lmgrd process related to pSeven is left:

    pgrep -a lmgrd

    For example, this can look like:

    $ pgrep -a lmgrd
21280 /home/user/DATADVANCE/pSeven-6.15/license/lmgrd
-c /home/user/DATADVANCE/pSeven-6.15/license -l +licserver-manual.log

  • Kill the process if there is any. For example:

    $ kill 21280

  • Ensure that no datadvd process is left:

    pgrep -a datadvd

Windows:

  • Use the Stop License Server shortcut in the Start menu.
  • Ensure that the Task Manager does not contain such processes as lmgrd or datadvd.
  • Kill an unwanted process, if any.

Replacing a License File

pSeven looks for its license files in the following locations:

  • pSeven installation directory (the directory where pSeven executable is found).
  • pSeven workspace directory — by default, %USERPROFILE%\Documents\pSeven\ in Windows, or ~/Documents/pSeven/ in Linux.

To replace a license file:

  • Remove the old license file from the directories mentioned above.
  • Place the new license file in ~/Documents/pSeven/ if you are the only user of pSeven.
  • Place the new license file in the pSeven installation directory if you share this installation with other users.

Note

The old license may interfere with a new valid license — for example, license files may have different port numbers for the server.

If pSeven previously used a server license and should use a local license instead the steps to replace a license file are as follows:

  • Remove the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE environment variable.
  • In Linux, remove the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE line from ~/.flexlmrc
  • In Windows, remove the DATADVD_LICENSE_FILE registry key found in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\Software\\FLEXlm License Manager registry branch.

After replacing the license file, start pSeven. It will find a new license file and start the license server automatically.

Updating a License for Remote Servers

If pSeven uses a remote license server lmgrd, the steps for updating a license file are as follows:

  1. Establish a connection with a remote server.
  2. Stop the license server.
  3. Add the server’s hostname to the new license file (see section Initial Setup for details).
  4. Replace the old license file with a new one.
  5. Start the license server.

If pSeven uses a remote license server lmadmin the procedure of updating a license file is as follows:

  1. Add the server’s hostname to the new license file (see section Initial Setup for details).
  2. Open the web-interface, for example: http://license-server:8090.
  3. Go to Administration tab.
  4. Verify that the value specified in the “License Server Manager Port” field on the Server Configuration tab and the port number indicated in the license file (usually, “27042”) are the same. If the port number in the license file is different, remove it.
  5. Go to the Vendor Daemon Configuration tab.
  6. Click the License file button and import the new license file. Tick the checkbox “Overwrite License File on License Server” to overwrite the old license file.
  7. Click on the datadvd vendor daemon on the Vendor Daemon Configuration tab.
  8. Ensure that a new license file is the only file listed in the License File or Directory field.
  9. To activate a new license, either restart the vendor daemon (“Stop” then “Start”) or press the Reread License Files button.