Floating License Issues

I have installed the license server but when I try to apply the license file, I get a “host unknown” error.

What is a floating license?

How do I convert a stand alone license to a floating license?

How do I set up my server to serve out Geomatica V9.0 and Spans V7.2 together?

How can I automatically start the PCI floating license server in a Unix/Linux environment?

I have installed the license server and started the license server from the PCI License manager, but it is not showing up under my NT/2000 services

I installed the license server and programs on the server machine can locate the license but my client machines still get a licensing error. What could be wrong?

The performance of my floating license seems sluggish at times. Is there anything I can do to overcome this?

Q: I have installed the license server but when I try to apply the license file, I get a “host unknown” error.

A: This is usually the result of a file-copy failure during installation of the software. The following steps should provide a solution to this problem.

1. Launch a DOS command prompt and navigate to the following directory:
C:\Program Files\Common Files\SafeNet Sentinel\Sentinel RMS License Manager\WinNT\

2. Stop the license server using the following command:
lservnt.exe -X stop (please note that the commands are case sensitive)

3. Remove the license using the following command:
lslic -removeall

4. Remove the server using the following command:
lservnt.exe -X remove

5. Launch a Windows Explorer Window (Start | Program Files | Accessories | Windows Explorer).
Navigate to the following directory in Windows Explorer:
C:\Program Files\PCI Geomatics\SentinelUtilities\Server\ServerUtils_V101

6. Copy all files present in the directory in Step 5, and paste them in the following directory:
C:\Program Files\Common Files\SafeNet Sentinel\Sentinel RMS License Manager\WinNT

Make sure to click "Yes" when prompted to overwrite all existing files

7. Launch a DOS Command Window as in Step 1 and navigate to the same directory as in Step 1.

8. Install the server using the following command:
lservnt.exe -X install

9. Start the server using the following command:
lservnt.exe -X start

10. Load the license file using the following command:
lslic -F License.PCI

You should be able to operate the floating license server now without error.

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Q: What is a floating license?

A: A floating license is a license which is generated by a license server and is not locked to a particular PC. This enables users to share a pool of Geomatica licenses more efficiently.

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Q: How do I convert a stand alone license to a floating license?

A: To convert your stand alone licenses to floating licenses, send a request by email to your sales representative: http://www.pcigeomatics.com/contact/territories.html ensuring that you have enclosed a list of license IDs (CPU id #) our sales team will then advise you.

Q: How do I set up my server machine to serve out Geomatica V9.0 and Spans V7.2 together.

A: Spans V7.2 licensing is not compatible with Geomatica V9.0. If you are currently managing your Spans V7.2 license using the Geomatica License Manager, you will need to keep your existing Geomatica V8.x installation. The Geomatica V9.0 floating license server operates independently from Geomatica V8.x so the two versions can be installed on the same computer.

To use the same machine as your Geomatica v8.x and Spans v7.2 server, you must have the following:

1. Sentinel Pro Hardlock dongle (four digit CPU ID)

2. Spans V7.2 floating license key and Geomatica floating license key for the above hardlock CPU ID.

Refer to Chapter 3 in the "Installing PCI Software V8.x " manual to get your Geomatica license server and clients working properly. Once your Geomatica V8.x floating license server and clients are working properly, you will be ready to install Spans V7.2 on your server machine.

On your server machine:

- Stop and remove your Geomatica license server through the Geomatica License Manager. This can also be done through a DOS window by navigating to your Geomatica_V8.x\exe directory and using the following commands:

licservr -quit -This will stop the license server

licservr -install             -This will install the license server
licservr -start                -This will start the license serve
licservr -remove           -This will remove the license server
licservr -h                     -This will access the help for the license server

- Install Spans V7.2 on your server machine. During the installation, do not place Spans in the default Program Files directory - change the directory to C:\Spans_V72 (or any other another directory name that does not include spaces).

- After the installation, rename your license.dat in your Spans directory to
license_bk.dat.

- Install and start the license server in your Geomatica_v8x\exe directory through a DOS window.

- Apply your Spans V7.2 floating license key in your Geomatica License Manager.

- You should be able to start Geomatica and Spans now on your server machine.

On your client machine:

- Install Spans V7.2 on your client machine. During the installation, do not place Spans in the default Program Files directory - change the directory to C:\Spans72 (or any other another directory name that does not include spaces).

- After the installation, rename your license.dat file in your Spans directory to license_bk.dat.

- With your license server running on the server machine, your Spans client should now work, along with your Geomatica client.

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Q: How Can I automatically start the PCI floating license server in a Unix/Linux environment?

A: PCI's license server, in a Unix / Linux environment, can be automatically started at each boot by creating a startup script in the "rc" or "init" directory. An existing script can be copied from /etc/init.d and edited. Relevant lines from this script would look like this example from a Solaris system:

case "$1" in
'start')
        echo "Starting PCI license server: "
        PCIHOME_V90=/disk1/software/geomatica_v90
        cd $PCIHOME_V90/exe
        ./licservr &
        ;;

'stop')
        /usr/bin/pkill -x -u 0 licservr
        ;;

Save this script with the name pcilicense in /etc/init.d (or /etc/rc.d/init.d). Put a link in /etc/rc3.d (or /etc/rc.d/rc3.d) called S581pcilicense pointing to this init.d script. This should now run when the system enters run level 3. Note that the number 581 in the name of the link in rc3.d is picked to be after most other system processes - it can be any number.

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Q: I have installed the license server and started the license server from the PCI License manager, but it is not showing up under my NT/2000 services

A: We have found that on some occasions the license manager GUI does not install the floating license service as it should. Although we continue to investigate the source of the problem, the work around is as follows:

Change to your Geomatica_v90\exe directory in a DOS command prompt window. Here you have a program called licservr which can be used to install the license server,

LICSERVR -install to install the service.
LICSERVR -remove to remove the service. Stops service if running.
LICSERVR -start to start the service. Service must be installed.
LICSERVR -quit to stop the service. Service must be installed.

Please also ensure that you are installing with administrator privileges as this could also result in the license server failing to start.

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Q: I installed the license server and programs on the server machine can locate the license but my client machines still get a licensing error. What could be wrong?

A: Check to ensure that the TCP/IP was installed on all of the machines.

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Q: My license server on "NT" will not run even after a successful install

A: Have you used the UNC naming convention to specify the location of the server? The UNC naming convention allows you to specify the location of a file by including the machine name in the path. For example:

\\my server\Geomatica_V90\etc\license.dat is the UNC path to the server machine called "my server" and the file "license.dat" in the etc directory of the Geomatica_V90 tree . If the machine name has a space, this will not be processed correctly. The solution is to share the directory and map it to a drive letter. You can do this using the "map network drive" function found under the Network Neighbourhood icon or by using the "net use" command. For example, to map \\my server\Geomatica_V90 to the drive "s" using the "net use" command, from a DOS Command window type the following:
net use s: \\my server\Geomatica_V90

You can then set the PCILIC variable accordingly:

set PCILIC=s:\etc\license.dat
In the installation, "s" is default mapped drive assumed and therefore
PCILIC is defaulted to:
set PCILIC=s:\etc\license.dat

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Q: The performance of my floating license seems sluggish at times. Is there anything I can do to overcome this?

A:

1) Check to make sure that the license file does not contain any stand-alone licenses. A mixture of stand-alone and floating licenses in the same file can affect the performance of the floating license server. You can check this in the License Manager under "License". Click on the individual key(s): stand-alone keys can be identified in the "Current Key" section by "Users: Unlimited". Floating license keys list the actual number of users (>= 1). If there is a mix of license keys, you will have to shut down the license server, delete the existing Geomatica_V90\etc\license.dat file, copy Geomatica_V90\etc\license.dat.clean to a new file and rename the copy to Geomatica_V90\etc\license.dat. You can then re-license the software with your floating license key(s) and re-start the license server.

2) Install the software locally (i.e. full client installation) and point to the server for the license. This will be faster then a compact client install where the executables have to be loaded over the network.

3) Heavy network traffic can affect floating license performance. Check with your system administrator to make sure that there wasn't an unusually high network load when you noticed poor performance.

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