| Frequently Asked Questions |
Help Topics > FAQs
How do I get to the SFLM web front end?
What version of SFLM do I have?
What is registration?
What is activation?
What should I choose - online or offline registration?
When I run an application I cannot get a license, what should I
do?
How do I find out who has checked out a particular product license?
What are redundant servers?
How do I get to the SFLM web front end?
Before the web front end can be brought up the SFLM application software must first be installed. On unix this is done by running the command
sflm -install
as root on the license server machine. Then the user can open a web browser (eg netscape or internet explorer) and for the url you should type
http://server:3162/
and replace the name "server" with the hostname of the machine where "sflm -install" was executed. The web front end should now appear.
What version of SFLM do I have?
To find the version of SFLM on your machine run the command
sflm -WVs
If the version reported back for the rpc.sflmserverd is less than 6.0.0.R you need to upgrade.
What is registration?
SFLM 6.0 no longer requires a hostid or a hardware dongle to be on the license server machine. Instead SFLM will give your machine a unique "virtual dongle" identification. To ensure that this number is unique it must be compared with the database of all virtual dongle IDs kept by your vendor. This can be done automatically if you are online otherwise you need to send this information via email to your vendor. This process is called "registration".
What is activation?
Once a virtual dongle has been registered and it is confirmed that it is unique then the license server can be made active that is it will now accept license files. When this is done online the user will have nothing to do -it is done in the background. If the registration was offline the user must enter an activation code sent back by your vendor.
What should I choose - online or offline registration?
Choose online registration if the web browser is able to access the internet. If access to the internet is blocked you must register offline.
When I run an application I cannot get a license, what should I do?
Make sure the license server is still alive. The SFLM software is designed to automatically start itself if, for any reason, it should be killed by any other program. You can check if the SFLM is alive with the web front end. Click on "Reports" and then on "List Installed License Files". the table that is displayed will tell you if the server is alive.
If SFLM is dead then you will need to restart it from the command prompt. As root (or administrator) run the command
sflm -start
How do I find out who has checked out a particular product license?
Open the web front end and click on "Reports". Then click the option "Active Users".
What are redundant servers?
Sometime either a machine or a network is unreliable and when a user tries to open an application, the application will be unable to contact the license server to get a license. The SFLM redundant server system is one method to get around this problem. The system requires that a minimum of 3 machines be designated and installed as redundant license servers. The same license file is installed on each machine and each machine is set up as primary, secondary or tertiary servers. When an application requests a license it will attempt to contact the primary license server; if it cannot contact the primary server it will then attempt to contact the secondary server and so on. The redundant system requires that at least 2 machines are alive and communicating at any given time. The SFLM servers communicate to each other on license usage and when the primary machine returns to the system it will then take over the license control. When installed the system will be opaque to the user.
Close Window