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Autodesk Network License ManagerAutodesk's Network License Manager is based on Flexera Software's FlexNet (earlier known as FLEXlm).If you want to create reports on license usage try our JTB FlexReport or free JTB FlexReport LT products. Autodesk® Network License Manager Jimmy Bergmark – JTB World This class is for anyone who wants to learn how to manage network licenses. You will learn the steps required to install and configure Autodesk Network License Manager and use the Options file to manage group license permissions. We will also cover command-line tools, how to troubleshoot and diagnose problems, optimization, limit borrowing, and upgrade licenses. You will learn how to list current users and create usage reports. This class will benefit everyone new to network licenses and those that want to learn more. Handout: CM3943 - Autodesk® Network License Manager.pdf Presentation: CM3943 - Autodesk® Network License Manager.pptx This class can be viewed on YouTube: Autodesk Network License Manager and on Autodesk University Virtual. UPDATE 2013-03-26: This document is modified and complemented after the class with more information and any recent changes.
Learning ObjectivesAt the end of this class, you will be able to: · Report license usage · Install and configure Autodesk Network License Manager · Troubleshoot network license issues · Manage network licenses About the SpeakerJimmy Bergmark has used, customized, and programmed AutoCAD®-based products since 1989. Jimmy has worked as an engineer using AutoCAD, as well as a CAD manager for a larger company. He is the owner of JTB World, and works with software development, customization, and consulting. His main focus is on: AutoCAD, AutoCAD Architecture, Autodesk® Revit®, C#, VB.NET, VBA, AutoLISP®, Visual LISP®, FlexNet, network licenses, license usage reports, etc. Email: jimmy@jtbworld.com Table of Contents Install and configure Autodesk Network License Manager Autodesk Network License Manager Advantages of the Distributed License Server Model Disadvantages of the Distributed License Server Model Global Network Use License (GNUL) How Network License Manager is Working Stop and Restart the License Server Update FlexNet from a Previous Version Set Up and Use an Options File 2048 character limit for lines Defining Groups of Users or Computers Configure License Borrowing with the Options File Restrict maximum license usage Changing server location of the FlexNet licensing service Using an IP address in place of server hostname Network License File described Updating network license files Combining network license files Combining Autodesk with another vendor's products already using FLEXlm Cascade licensing and the PLIST increment Dynamic Licensing in Inventor Products How products find license servers FlexNet feature code descriptions for Autodesk products How to set up priority user access Restricting Access to FlexNet License Service Troubleshoot network license issues Windows Services Console and Task Manager Increasing verbosity of FlexNet errors on the server Increasing verbosity of FlexNet errors on the client Losing Your Connection to the License Server FLEX service did not start automatically Network licenses are not released after exiting product How to change the lmgrd port number on a FlexNet server and client Network licensing error [1.5.-4] when starting the software No such Feature Exists error [1.5.-5] when starting the software Error when network version of software is started: Error [1.5.-12] Error [1.5.-15] or [1.5.-18] when starting the software No Valid License Error [1.5.-96], [1.5.-97], [1200.5.-96], [1200.5.-97] Error getting status: Cannot connect to license server system. Corrupt CascadeInfo.cas file results in failure of cascading functionality. Valid host ID characters for network license files Using the licpath.lic file for Autodesk network license enabled products LMTOOLS Error: Data Execution Prevention Autodesk® License Manager and server clustering License management and support for VPN connections Autodesk Product Support and Knowledge Base Switching Between Three-Server Redundancy and Single-Server Configuration
Install and configure Autodesk Network License ManagerAutodesk Network License ManagerNetwork licenses are managed by one or more network license managers running on servers within your company’s network. The network license manager is the software that makes licenses available to users. Network licensed software installed on workstations does not require individual registration and activation. Network licenses are also called "floating licenses," because they are not tied to a particular workstation or user. Most network licensed Autodesk products allow you to run unlimited concurrent sessions of a product on a single workstation while using only one network license. With network licenses you can have more installations of software than you have licenses for. With for example 100 network licenses of AutoCAD there can be a maximum of 100 concurrent users running AutoCAD at any point in time but more than 100 computers can have AutoCAD installed. Network licenses are more expensive than single licenses. Make sure to get a good return of investment (ROI) for them. The more users the easier it is to save money by using network licenses. Depending on how much the users are using the Autodesk product, network licenses can make sense even for companies with just 5-10 users. For companies with more users there is almost never a reason to have single licenses. When you start a network licensed Autodesk product, it requests a license from the license server. If the number of available licenses has not been exceeded, the Network License Manager assigns a license to the computer, and the number of available licenses on the license server is reduced by one. Likewise, when the last session is closed, the license is released and checked in to the License Manager. TriviaAdLM or NLM is often used as short for Autodesk Network License Manager. Network licenses are also known as floating licenses or concurrent licenses. Autodesk’s network license manager is based on Flexera Software’s FlexNet Publisher license manager product. FlexNet was formerly known as FLEXnet and before that FLEXlm. FLEXlm was originally a joint development by GLOBEtrotter Software and Highland Software in 1988 and has since then been developed and owned by GLOBEtrotter, Macrovision, Thoma Cressey Bravo (Acresso Software) and today Teachers' Private Capital (Flexera Software). PlanningThe Network License Manager can be installed on one or multiple servers. There are three possible server models that support the Network License Manager. A server network can include Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux servers in any combination. Take into consideration factors like the number of users, how much they will use the software, how many part time users and full time users are there, a user might be a lot on meetings or on site, another user might use the software almost all the time while another user spends a lot of time using other software. What does the existing network look like, are there multiple offices, what is the network connection speed and reliability between the offices? How should you handle license downtime and what does it cost? Autodesk Network License Manager software does not cost anything but hardware and other software does plus the extra time it takes to manage multiple servers. This has to be compared to the cost of a potential server failure where users will not have access to their software. There are advantages and disadvantages of each model and sometimes a mix of the models is the best choice.
Single License ServerIn the single license server model, the Network License Manager is installed on a single server.
Advantages of the Single License Server Model · Because all license management takes place on a single server, you have just one point of administration and one point of failure. · Of the three license server models, this configuration requires the least amount of maintenance. Disadvantage of the Single License Server Model · If the single license server fails, the Autodesk product cannot run until the server is back online. It is possible to have multiple single license servers in a network. Normally this model is used where there are just a few licenses, users at one office and the overhead of using multiple servers cannot be justified. If you already have a single point of failure, such as one file server, the single server option may be ideal for you. LICPATH.LIC is typically used.
Distributed License ServersIn the distributed license server model, licenses are distributed across two or more servers. A unique license file is required for each server. Each server can have different features and number of licenses. When a network licensed product starts up, it tries each server for a license in the order you specified on the client as specified during installation or later by updating the ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE environment variable.
Advantages of the Distributed License Server Model· Servers can be distributed across a wide area network (WAN); they do not need to exist on the same subnet. · If one server in the distributed server pool fails, the licenses on the remaining servers are still available. The strategic placement of the distributed servers provides fault tolerance of server and infrastructure failures. · If you need to replace a server in the distributed server pool, you do not need to rebuild the entire pool. · Server replacement is easier than in a redundant server pool, where you must reactivate the entire pool. · Workstation or server operating systems may be used as license managers. · It’s easy to set up priority user access. · There is no communication between the different distributed servers. Disadvantages of the Distributed License Server Model· If a server in the distributed server pool fails, the licenses on that server are unavailable. · Wide area network (WAN) technology suffers from latency and reliability issues. · This model can require more time for setup and maintenance than other models. Tip! Put the distributed servers close to the users. For example one per each physical office location or city. Distributed servers can also function simultaneously as single servers if you combine the license files. Redundant License ServersIn the redundant license server model, three servers are used. Licenses can be issued as long as at least two license servers are functional. The Network License Manager is installed on each server, and the license file is identical on each server.
Advantage of the Redundant License Server Model · If one of the three servers fails, all licenses that are managed in the server pool are still available. · Redundant servers offer the highest level of fault tolerance of server failure but are intolerant of infrastructure failure. Disadvantages of the Redundant License Server Model · If more than one server fails, no licenses are available. · All three servers must reside on the same subnet and have reliable network communications. The redundant server pool does not provide network fault tolerance. (Recommendation is to have all servers in the same data center) · Slow, erratic, or dial-up connections are not supported. · If one of the three servers is replaced, the complete redundant server pool must be rebuilt with new license files. · If your Autodesk product supports license borrowing, and licenses are borrowed from a redundant license server pool, you must restart the license server after you stop the Network License Manager. · It requires server-edition operating systems. Mixing server operating systems or using workstation operating systems (such as Windows 2000, XP, Vista or Windows 7) is not supported. · Using one computer as both a redundant and single server is not possible. · It is complex to administer. · Unless you are actively monitoring the status of the servers, you may not know if one server has failed. Autodesk Product Support strongly recommends the distributed server configuration for most applications and I agree on that. Redundant license servers also known as failover servers or triads. LICPATH.LIC is used to define the three servers and their ports. Global Network Use License (GNUL)Global Network Use License aka GNUL is a licensing option from Autodesk that allow usage across different countries or regions that are not allowed by the standard EULA (End-user license agreement). GNUL licenses are more expensive than standard network licenses. MultiFlexAutodesk’s MultiFlex is based on GNUL and similar to Autodesk’s suite licenses, except that it covers almost all Autodesk products. MultiFlex licenses are more expensive than standard network licenses. Internet licensingInternet licenses is something that has been piloted by some companies and requires approval of Autodesk. Because the licenses are available on the open Internet, license borrowing on the Internet license server needs to be restricted. Further protection is done with the System Environment Variable LM_PROJECT. A unique LM_PROJECT value (acting like a password) needs to be used on the Internet license server and on the clients. This makes it possible for only clients with the correct LM_PROJECT value checking out a license. System RequirementsThe Network License Manager supports Windows, Linux and MacOS X in Ethernet network configurations only. The Network License Manager can be installed on a low spec server or PC (Intel® Pentium® III or higher with 450 MHz as minimum) as it does not require much and it can be on another existing server like a deployment or file server. Virtual Machine Support is available. The Autodesk implementation of FlexNet is only supported on VMware ESX 3.5 SP1 and only on specific guest operating systems. Refer to Autodesk TS85748 In most every case the latest version of FlexNet can be used and is backward compatible. VPN, Wireless, DSL/Cable is supported. Internet licensing is not supported but requires permission from Autodesk to be used. Dialup is not supported but might work even though several tries might be needed to start a product and find the license server. For full details see the requirements for the software to be used as described in the Autodesk’s documentation or online. InstallationFor Windows, start the Autodesk Product Installer, click on the Install Tools & Utilities panel, select Network License Manager and install. For Mac OS X and Linux, see Autodesk’s documentation. The installer can also be found on the installation media,
for AutoCAD 2012 found here: You can install the Network License Manager before or after you install the products that will use it. Network License Manager must configure the license servers before any products can obtain licenses and start running. If an earlier version of the Network License Manager is already installed on the computer, you should upgrade by stopping the license server in LMTOOLS, uninstall and then install the new Autodesk Network License Manager into the folder where the old version was located. Default installation folder is “C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Autodesk Network License Manager” but it might be a good idea to install to a short path like C:\FlexNet to avoid potential problems especially if you need to support multiple vendor daemons. To uninstall the Network License Manager stop the license server (or service) with the LMTOOLS utility. Uninstall Autodesk Network License Manager. Optionally manually delete files that been created for use with the Network License Manager, such as log files, license files, and the options file. Important! Do not install the Network License Manager on a remote drive. When you install the Network License Manager files, you must provide a path to a local drive. You must specify the drive letter; the universal naming convention (UNC) is not permitted. How to Request a License FileThe preferred method of registering and obtaining your network licenses is to use the Autodesk Registration web site http://register.autodesk.com. If you require assistance, complete the online License Registration and Activation Assistance form http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/item?siteID=123112&id=13642197 or have your authorized Autodesk reseller handle licensing for you. 1-800-551-1490 can also be called. Autodesk uses the server host name, host ID, and product serial number to generate a license file. This information is also needed: name and version of each Autodesk product as well as quantity of licenses for each product/version per license server. It’s also needed to provide Autodesk with the server setup (Single, Redundant or Distributed). The Host ID also known as MAC Address or Ethernet Address can be obtained in two ways. Using ipconfig /all or LMTOOLS. To obtain the information, use one of the following procedures. Windows Command Prompt Procedure for Host Name and IDTo obtain the host name and ID at the Windows command prompt 1. At the Windows command prompt, enter ipconfig /all 2. Record the Host Name and Physical Address line. Eliminate dashes from the physical address (e.g. “00-1F-16-FE-30-90”). This is your twelve-character host ID (e.g. “001F16FE3090”). Note! If your server has more than one network adapter, select the one that corresponds to a physical network adapter. View the Description field above each physical address. If there is more than one physical network adapter, it does not matter which one you use. Devices such as VPN adapters, PPP adapters, and modems are not valid. 3. Close the Windows command prompt. LMTOOLS Procedure for Host Name and IDTo obtain the host name and ID using the LMTOOLS utility Important! Do not run LMTOOLS on a remote computer. You should be logged in with Administrator rights when working with the LMTOOLS utility. 1. Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > Network License Manager > LMTOOLS Utility. 2.
In the LMTOOLS utility, click the
Systems Settings tab. 3. Locate the Computer/Hostname box. Copy the host name and paste the information into a text editor. 4. Locate the Ethernet Address box. The 12-character Ethernet address is the host ID. Note! If your server has more than one Ethernet adapter, select one that corresponds to a physical network adapter. 5. Close LMTOOLS. Only the NetBIOS name is required (not the FQDN). So if the server name is “ServerA.contoso.com” you can simply use “ServerA” for requesting a license. To obtain the host name and ID using the Mac OS X or Linux terminal window see the Autodesk product documentation. Configure the License ServerYou configure a license server to allow usage of and manage your Autodesk product licenses. Configure the license server using the following procedure. Windows License Server Configuration ProcedureTo configure a license server use LMTOOLS that is located in the Autodesk Network License Manager installation folder. Make sure to be logged in with Administrator rights. 1. Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > Network License Manager > LMTOOLS Utility or run lmtools.exe from the installation folder. 2. In the LMTOOLS utility, on the Service/License File tab, make sure the Configure Using Services option is active. Autodesk products do not support the Configuration Using License File method. It is also usually a good idea to check the option for “LMTOOLS ignores license file path environment variables”.
3.
Click the Config Services tab.
4.
In the Service Name list, select the
service name you want to use to manage licenses. 5.
In the Path to Lmgrd.exe File field,
enter the path to the Network License Manager daemon (lmgrd.exe), or click
Browse to locate the file. 6.
In the Path to the License File box,
locate or enter the path. 7.
In the Path to the Debug Log File box,
enter a path to create a debug log, or click Browse to locate an existing log
file. 8. To run lmgrd.exe as a service, select Use Services. 9. To start lmgrd.exe automatically when the system starts, select Start Server at Power Up. 10. Click Save Service to save the new configuration under the service name you selected in step 4. Click Yes when prompted if you would like to save the settings to the service. 11. Click the Start/Stop/Reread tab and do one of the following: · If a service has not yet been defined for Autodesk, click Start Server to start the license server. · If a service for Autodesk is already defined and running, click ReRead License File to refresh the Network License Manager with any changes made to the license file or options file. The license
server starts running and is ready to respond to client requests. 12. Click the Server Status tab
and click on Perform Status Enquiry to ensure that it’s working. 13. Close LMTOOLS. Make sure that the Use Services and Start Server at Powerup options are enabled as well or the license manager will not run once LMTOOLS is closed or the license manager machine is rebooted. Autodesk product licenses do not support the Utilities, Server Diags or Borrowing tabs in LMTOOLS. These tabs exist to support other products that use FlexLM and they should not be used when configuring or troubleshooting the Autodesk Network License Manager. Important! If you have a firewall between the license server(s) and the client computers, you need to open some TCP/IP ports on the server for license-related communication. Open port 2080 for adskflex, and open ports 27000 through 27009 for lmgrd. If these port addresses are restricted by a router or firewall software, users on the remote side of the router will not have access to licenses controlled by the Network License Manager. Test that it works by running an Autodesk product and verify that it can pull a license.
Manage network licensesHow Network License Manager is WorkingThe following three things manage the distribution and availability of licenses: · License manager daemon (lmgrd or lmgrd.exe) handles the original contact with the application, and then passes the connection to the vendor daemon. By using this approach, a single lmgrd daemon can be used by multiple software vendors to provide license authentication. Lmgrd starts, restarts and stops the vendor daemons as needed. Lmgrd reads the license file and writes to the FlexNet debug log. ·
Autodesk vendor daemon (adskflex or adskflex.exe) tracks
the Autodesk licenses that are checked out and the computers that are using
them. Each software vendor has a unique vendor daemon to manage vendor-specific
licensing. · License file is a text file that holds the needed license information. Then there are these components: · License Manager Tools or LMTOOLS is a UI utility · Lmutil.exe is a command line utility · FlexNet Debug Log contains a log of events that lmgrd and adskflex creates and is useful to debug and confirm that the network license manager is working as expected. · Options file is an optional file that can be used to configure how licenses are used. · Report Log is an optional file holding license usage that can be reported on. The license manager network traffic or hearbeat is a two-way communication between client and license server and happens about one time per minute per session and the packets are small. If the heartbeat signal is lost, the server tries to reconnect. If the server cannot reconnect, the user receives a license error. If the product stops working because it has lost a connection to the server, you must shut down the product, and then restart it. Most Autodesk products give you the opportunity to save open documents before shutting down.
FlexNet Configuration ToolsFlexNet provides two administrative utilities for managing the license server. These tools are located in the Autodesk Network License Manager installation folder. LMTOOLS Utility (lmtools.exe) provides a graphical user interface for managing the license server. Normally the checkbox “TMTOOLS ignores license file path environment variable” should be checked. Use only the checkbox “Force Server Shutdown” when a service fails to stop. (It should not have any effect on if you have borrowed licenses) lmutil.exe provides a set of command-line options for managing the license server. You can use LMTOOLS or lmutil.exe to perform the following server management tasks: Start, stop, and restart the server. Configure, update, and reread the license file. Diagnose system or license problems. View server status, including active license status. Stop and Restart the License ServerBefore performing system maintenance on your license server (including uninstalling the Autodesk Network License Manager) you must stop the license server. When you have completed maintenance, you can restart the license server. Update FlexNet from a Previous VersionNormally with a new release of Autodesk products it is required to upgrade FlexNet. To determine the installed version of FlexNet, you need to verify the version of the following files: lmgrd.exe, lmtools.exe, lmutil.exe and adskflex.exe. Normally the version can be seen by checking the properties of the file. LMTOOLS can also be used. Click the Utilities tab and browse for the .exe file and click on Find Version. To update FlexNet in Windows You should be logged in with Administrator rights when working with the LMTOOLS utility. 1. Back up your license, options and other files that are vital. 2. Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > Network License Manager > LMTOOLS Utility or run lmtools.exe from the installation folder. 3. In the LMTOOLS utility, click the Start/Stop/Reread tab. 4. Click Stop Server. 5. Close LMTOOLS. 6. Note the location where the Network License Manager is installed and then uninstall the Network License Manager. 7. Install the Network License Manager to the same location as the previous version. 8. Do one of the following: (Windows XP) Click Start > Programs > Autodesk > Network License Manager > LMTOOLS. (Windows 7/ Windows Vista) Double-click the
LMTOOLS icon on the desktop. 9. In the LMTOOLS utility, click the Start/Stop/Reread tab. 10. Click Start Server. 11. Click the Server Status tab and click on Perform Status Enquiry to ensure that it’s working. 12. Close LMTOOLS. 13. Test run the network licensed product. The version of the license server manager (lmgrd.exe) must be greater than or equal to the version of FlexNet Publisher used in the application/application's vendor daemon (for Autodesk it is adskflex.exe). You can always use the latest license server manager and utilities; they will be backward-compatible with your application and its license file. Download them from http://www.globes.com/support/fnp_utilities_download.htm and select your Operating System. Normally updating is not needed unless your application vendor requires it. But if you experience problems in some way, then it can be a good idea to see if it helps with the latest version. Take backup of the old exe files. Stop the license service(s). Replace the exe files (lmgrd.exe, lmtools.exe, lmutil.exe and adskflex.exe where the last one is the vendor exe, in this example Autodesk's). Start the license service(s). This procedure can be performed without affecting users who are running the software, provided the entire procedure is completed within a reasonable amount of time. However, during this procedure new users will be unable to acquire licenses. If this interruption is unacceptable, you might consider doing this upgrade when users will not need licenses. If you have multiple servers the easiest thing is to install the new version on one and then for the other servers you can just stop the service, replace the exe files and start the service. You can upgrade FlexNet even if licenses are borrowed. It is possible to release licenses early to the updated FlexNet server. The version of the FlexNet license manager required for the corresponding version of AutoCAD (or other Autodesk products with the same version) is as follows: · AutoCAD 2014 - Version 11.11 · AutoCAD 2013 - Version 11.10.0.3 · AutoCAD 2012 - Version 11.9.0.0 · AutoCAD 2011 - Version 11.7.0.0 · AutoCAD 2010 - Version 11.5 · AutoCAD 2009 - Version 11.4.100.0 · AutoCAD 2008 - Version 11.4.0.0 · AutoCAD 2007 - Version 10.8.0 · AutoCAD - Version 10.1.5 · AutoCAD 2005 - Version 9.2.2 · AutoCAD 2004 - Version 8.3a · AutoCAD 2002 - Version 7.1f Set Up and Use an Options FileWith an options file, you set configuration options that determine how a license server manages licenses. The options file is optional. The options file on each server specifies the license-handling behavior for that server. By managing the contents of the options files, you can specify the same behavior on all license servers, or implement particular differences among the servers. Use the options file to set parameters for the following server-related features: · License timeout · License borrowing · Report log file You can also set up advanced license parameters, such as reserving a license, restricting license usage, or defining groups of users or hosts (machines). To learn more about setting advanced options file parameters, see the FlexNet documentation. This documentation is installed on the license server, in the Network License Manager directory. The recommended thing is to name the options file as the
vendor daemon and place it in the same folder as the license file. Add the path to the options file in the license file on
the VENDOR line for the application’s vendor daemon. For example: Syntax for VENDOR line: Create an Options FileOpen a text editor, enter the parameters you want, and then save the document as a file named adskflex.opt to the same folder as the license file. Note! Make sure you save the file with the extension .opt. The default extension .txt is not recognized by the Network License Manager. The options file might be corrupted if edited in a non-ASCII editor like Wordpad or Word. Use Notepad. For options file changes to take effect on a license server run LMTOOLS utility, on the Start/Stop/Reread tab, click Reread License File. In some cases the first time the option file is used a stop and start is needed. Verify that the license manager is using the Options File by checking the debug log. Look for a row including the text “(adskflex) Using options file:” All syntax following a number sign (#) will be ignored by the license manager. Groups, users, names or computers cannot contain spaces. 2048 character limit for linesLines in the options file are limited to 2048 characters. The backslash “\” is a continuation character in options file lines. If the group you are planning to create has a line length that exceeds 2048 characters, you can either create an additional group with the same name that contains the users or hosts that exceed the limit or split the GROUP into two or more groups. GROUP mygroup USER1 USER2 … USER124 USER125 GROUP mygroup USER126 USER127 … USER249 USER250
Set Up License TimeoutLicense timeout is set in the options file to determine how long a product session can be idle before the license is reclaimed by the license server. When you set this flag in the options file, a user's license is reclaimed by the license server if the product is idle on a computer for more than the timeout period you define. If a user's license is lost because of the idle timeout, the product attempts to claim a new license once the user uses the product again. If no license is available, the user can save work before the product shuts down. License timeout is not supported by all Autodesk products. But for those that are it is a great way to household on licenses. You can use the TIMEOUT parameter to set individual license timeouts for each Autodesk product, or use the TIMEOUTALL parameter to set one license timeout for all Autodesk products. To set license timeout parameters: ·
For individual Autodesk products: In the options file, enter the
following syntax on its own line (TIMEOUT must be uppercase): ·
For all Autodesk products: In the options file, enter the
following syntax on its own line (TIMEOUTALL must be uppercase): Any of the following activity in the active application prevents the client workstation from being idle: · Any keystroke. · Any mouse click. · Any command, Lisp expression, menu macro or script in progress. · Any Modal dialog box opened (a dialog box which needs to close before continuing to other tasks). Unfortunately the Automatic save functionality triggers a command activity. Thus it can take longer time than the minimum timeout before the license is available for others. The lowest acceptable value for timeout of Autodesk products is 900 seconds (15 minutes). If a product crashes a wire is disconnected the session might end up in limbo and might not be returned until the license server is restarted. This in itself is a reason to always make use of timeout. Recommendation is to use lowest timeout and use it for all
features: Make sure to inform your users about how license timeout works and that they don’t leave a command running or a modal dialog box opened while leaving the application. To confirm it works open the FlexNet debug log and search for “(INACTIVE)”.
Defining Groups of Users or ComputersDefines a group of users for use in INCLUDE, INCLUDEALL, INCLUDE_ENTITLEMENT, EXCLUDE, EXCLUDEALL, EXCLUDE_ENTITLEMENT, and RESERVE option lines. By default, computer names (host names) and user names are case sensitive unless the GROUPCASEINSENSITIVE ON statement has been added to the options file. Because the case can change from time to time on machines it is recommended to always use case insensitivity. Syntax for user groups: GROUP [groupname] [user1] [user2] [user3] Syntax for host groups: HOST_GROUP [groupname] [computername1] [computername2] [computername3] The following example defines a group called
EngineeringGroup for three users: The following example defines a group called DraftingDept
with three computers: Anywhere a host name can be used in an options file, an IP-address can be used instead. ProjectsSpecific computers can be defined as part of a project by configuring an environment variable on those client machines. This project designation can then be used to control license access in the options file. The project environment variable is an optional component and is not required when you define groups directly in the options file. The value of LM_PROJECT can only be seen in tools using the FlexNet report logs. License BorrowingLicense Borrowing allows users to borrow a product license from the network license server to use the Autodesk product for a specified time even if the computer is not connected to the network. When a license is borrowed, one license less is available for other users. The license is automatically returned to the license server at the end of the day on the return date set when the license was borrowed. The user can return a license early but that must be done when connected to the network license server and be done from the same user and computer that initially borrowed the license. A borrowed license cannot be returned earlier from the license server. The maximum borrowing period is six months but can be limited by editing the options file. Most network licensed Autodesk products allow you to use the software while temporarily disconnected from your company's network, such as when you are on business trip or working at a remote location. Unless 6 months are needed set as low limit as possible to avoid licenses from being orphaned, something that can happen if a laptop is stolen during a trip. Because network licenses are more expensive than single licenses make sure users don’t borrow licenses just to be sure they have a license all the time. Make sure users return the borrowed license as soon as they don’t need it any more. Configure License Borrowing with the Options FileAutoCAD 2004 and AutoCAD 2005 maximum borrowing period is 720 hours (30 days). AutoCAD 2006 up to AutoCAD 2012 maximum borrowing period is 4320 hours (180 days). The absolute maximum borrowing period is determined by the BORROW=statement in the license file increment for the product. This cannot be amended. If the license file has a package increment use both Product and Package feature codes. Limiting borrowingYou can specify a number of specific licenses that cannot be borrowed. BORROW_LOWWATER [productfeature] [count]
BORROW_LOWWATER 85730ACD_2012_0F 5 Limit borrow periodYou can specify the maximum duration of time that a specific license can be borrowed for in hours. This value cannot be above the maximum borrow period specified by Autodesk in the product license file. Note! Licenses are borrowed in increments of 24 hours only. Any number that is more than a 24-hour increment is not used. For example, the number 365 would be rounded down to 360 hours, or 15 days. MAX_BORROW_HOURS [productfeature] [hours] The following example limits license borrowing of AutoCAD 2012 licenses to 3 days: MAX_BORROW_HOURS 85730ACD_2012_0F 72 Excluding license borrowingYou can block the ability to borrow specific licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive). Any users, hosts or IP addresses not explicitly excluded will continue to have the ability to borrow licenses. EXCLUDE_BORROW [productfeature] [type] [name]
EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* EXCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Including license borrowingYou can provide the ability to borrow specific licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive). Note: Any users, hosts or IP addresses not explicitly included will not have the ability to borrow the specified licenses. If you want to block license borrowing for only a few users, you should consider using the EXCLUDE_BORROW syntax above. INCLUDE_BORROW [productfeature] [type] [name] The following examples allow borrowing of AutoCAD 2012 licenses for the specified type only: INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* INCLUDE_BORROW 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Reserve network licensesYou can reserve a specific count of licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive by default). RESERVE [count] [productfeature] [type] [name]
RESERVE 1 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj RESERVE 1 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 RESERVE 5 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup RESERVE 5 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept RESERVE 1 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 RESERVE 5 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* RESERVE 5 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Restrict maximum license usageYou can limit usage of specific licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive by default). MAX [count] [productfeature] [type] [name]
The following examples set a limit of either 1 or 5 AutoCAD 2012 licenses for a variety of types: MAX 1 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj MAX 1 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 MAX 5 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup MAX 5 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept MAX 1 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 MAX 5 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* MAX 5 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Excluding license usageYou can block access to specific licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive). Any users, hosts or IP addresses not explicitly excluded will continue to have access to these licenses. EXCLUDE [productfeature] [type] [name]
EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Including license usageYou can provide access to specific licenses for a user, computer, group of users or computers, IP address, IP address range or by LM_PROJECT variable association (computer names and user names are case sensitive). Any users, hosts or IP addresses not explicitly included will not have access to the specified licenses. If you want to block license usage for only a few users you should consider using the EXCLUDE syntax. INCLUDE [productfeature] [type] [name]
INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F USER smithj INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST computer1 INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F GROUP EngineeringGroup INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.100 INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F INTERNET 192.168.0.* INCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject Report log creationYou can configure the creation of a report log (RL) file for use with Flexera FlexNet Manager reporting tools or SAMreport-lite usage reporting tools. For more information about configuring them you should refer to the related documentation. The plus sign (+) preceding the report log file path indicates that the license manager should append to the report log instead of overwriting it. Also, the path for the report log should not contain spaces (or be enclosed by quotations) and must already exist (the license manager will not create this location for you). The license manager will create the report log file. REPORTLOG +<Path\ReportLog.rl>
REPORTLOG +"C:\Reports\MyServer.rl" Sample Options FileBelow is a sample of an options file. # Comment rows are starting with # TIMEOUTALL 900 GROUPCASEINSENSITIVE ON GROUP Drafters pete john emma BORROW_LOWWATER 85730ACD_2012_0F 5 MAX_BORROW_HOURS 85730ACD_2012_0F 240 MAX 5 85730ACD_2012_0F HOST_GROUP DraftingDept EXCLUDE 85730ACD_2012_0F PROJECT CivilProject REPORTLOG +"C:\Reports\MyServer.rl“ Changing server location of the FlexNet licensing serviceAutomate this using a login script updating the registry or Group Policy Object setting. See Knowledge Base document TS1066086. Using an IP address in place of server hostnameSee Knowledge Base document TS1053533. Network License File describedThe network license file you receive from Autodesk contains licensing information required for a network installation. It also contains an encrypted digital signature that is created when Autodesk generates the file. The license file configures network license servers to manage licenses. The following table defines each license file parameter.
License File Examples Here is an example of a completed license file for a single or distributed license server model: SERVER
XXHP0528 0019bbd68993 Here is an example of a completed license file for a redundant license server model: SERVER CCN12378042 001cc4874b03 27005
You can combine a license file for different releases of the same Autodesk product or for different Autodesk products, and run all products from one license server. Here is an example of the contents of a combined license file for AutoCAD 2008 and AutoCAD 2009: SERVER XXHP0528 0019bbd68993
The license file might be corrupted if edited in a non-ASCII editor like Wordpad or Word. Use Notepad. Knowledge Base document TS1068266 describes how lmgrd can crash. The machine name and daemon ports in the license file can be changed. Spare network adapter can be used and if the machine dies you move the network adapter to another machine and quickly get the licenses up and running again. Prior version licenses describedPrevious Version support is an exclusive benefit to Subscription customers that allows you to run the current version of an Autodesk product plus the three previous versions of that same product. For network products, Previous Version support is provided via PACKAGE increments in the Autodesk license files. Here is an example of a PACKAGE increment for AutoCAD 2012, which includes the feature codes for AutoCAD 2012 through AutoCAD 2009: SERVER myserver 12345678abcd
Although Previous Version support allows Subscription customers to run the current plus three previous versions of the same network product, it does not grant additional licenses. Each unique product version still consumes a single license when launched.
For example, if you have a package license for two seats of AutoCAD 2012, the following scenarios can be expected:
· You can install and run AutoCAD 2012, 2011, 2010, and 2009. · Two computers, each running AutoCAD 2012, will consume two licenses. No licenses will be available for other users. · One computer, running AutoCAD 2012 and AutoCAD 2011 simultaneously, will consume two licenses. No licenses will be available for other users. · One computer, running three instances of AutoCAD 2009 will consume only one license. One license will still be available for other users.
See Knowledge Base document TS1085008 describing Understanding Previous Version support for Autodesk Point products. Suite license describedPrevious Version support is an exclusive benefit to Subscription customers that allows you to run the current version of an Autodesk product plus the three previous versions of that same product. For network products, Previous Version support is provided via PACKAGE increments in the Autodesk license files. Here is an example of a PACKAGE increment for Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2012:
SERVER myserver 12345678abcd
This PACKAGE increment includes the feature codes for Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2012 and Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2011. Since 2011 was the first release of Autodesk Design Suite Premium, Previous Version support is provided for the 2010 and 2009 versions of the products included in the Suite using the individual product feature codes.
Previous Version support allows Suite licenses to only consume a single license for every application from the same release year of the Suite. If the Autodesk Suite product did not exist in the previous year then each previous version of a product that is launched will consume a separate license. Since no Autodesk Suites exist prior to the 2011 release year, launching a previous version of all 2010 and 2009 products will always consume one license each.
For example, if you have a package license for Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2012, the following scenarios can be expected:
· Running AutoCAD 2012, 3ds Max Design 2012, and Mudbox 2012, on the same workstation and at the same time, only consumes one license. · Running Showcase 2011 and Mudbox 2011, on the same workstation and at the same time, also only consumes one license because there is a 2011 version of Autodesk Design Suite Premium. · Running AutoCAD 2010 and 3ds Max Design 2010, on the same workstation at the same time, consumes two licenses (one for each product) because there was no version of Autodesk Design Suite Premium 2010.
See Knowledge Base document TS15255311 describing Not all Previous Version licenses are available after activating an Autodesk Design Suite. See Knowledge Base document TS16961119 describing Understanding Previous Version support for Autodesk Suite products. Package License describedAutodesk offers a package license file option, which allows the use of a suite of products that are packaged and sold together. Running an instance of any one of the features uses one license of the package. Packaged license files support prior versioning for subscription users. Package license files operate under the following guidelines: · Package license files come with the current version of the software and three previous versions of the same product. · License files can be combined with license files for different products. For more information about combining license files, see Example of a Package License File for Combined Autodesk Product Versions. · Package license files cannot be combined with non-package license files for product versions contained in the package. For example, you cannot combine an Autodesk 2009 package license file with a regular license file for an Autodesk Product 2008, 2007, or 2006. · Both the PACKAGE and INCREMENT sections of the license are required for licensing to work properly. When you combine license files, be sure to include both of these sections. · License borrowing, option files, and licensing cascading work the same for package licenses as they do for regular license files. · A new license file supersedes an older one. Prior version support for subscription customers allow usage of current version plus the three prior releases. In the license file there is a PACKAGE part describing what can be used. Here is an example of a completed package license file for a single or distributed license server model: SERVER Server1 1a34567c90d2
Here is an example of a completed package license file for a redundant license server model: SERVER 1a34567c90d2 27005
Here is an example of a completed package license file for combined Autodesk product versions: SERVER servername 123456789111
Updating network license filesIf you purchase more network licenses make sure you get the INCREMENTS correct or you might end up with less licenses available than expected. If the issue date is the same multiple increments of the same feature can be used otherwise only the one with the most recent date. Combining network license filesOnly one service should be configured in LMTOOLS for Autodesk products. Combine multiple Autodesk product license files into a single file and configure them as a single service. Licenses for different releases of the same product or licenses for different Autodesk products can be combined in one license file. Multiple licenses for the same product and version or a combination of package licenses and non-package licenses cannot be combined in one license file. If you have 10 licenses of AutoCAD 2012 and you need 5 more licenses you need to request a new license file from Autodesk for the 15 licenses and replace the license file or the increments in the existing license file. Make sure to backup your license files first and only edit using Notepad. Take a copy of the most recent license file. Copy everything except the first three rows (rows starting with SERVER, USE_SERVER and VENDOR) from the other license file and insert between row 3 and 4 or at the bottom of the new license file. Always combine all increments included in all license files, including PLIST increments. FlexNet will automatically determine which PLIST is the most current and use that increment accordingly. If you fail to include PLIST increments, certain Autodesk products may not be able to acquire a network license. Once the license files are combined, click ReRead License File on the LMTOOLS Start/Stop/Reread tab to make the changes effective. Sometimes it may be necessary to stop and restart the license manager before the new license file will be read. Combining Autodesk with another vendor's products already using FLEXlmTip: It’s good practice to specify the port for the vendor daemon in the license file. Issue You want to set up the Autodesk Network License Manager with the license manager of another vendor that also uses FLEXnet technology.Solution With FLEXnet license management technology, you can administer licenses from more than one vendor. This is done by configuring a separate service for each vendor’s daemon with the LMTOOLS utility. The Network License Manager has three main components:
To set up network licensing for two or more products:
Note: Make sure you back up all license files before you begin this procedure. Installing the License Managers For information about installing the Autodesk Network License Manager, refer to the Network Licensing Guide. For information about installing another vendor’s license manager, refer to that vendor's documentation. Specify a Port for each Vendor’s Service Specifying a port for each vendor will help to avoid conflicts if the license server is restarted. To specify a port, you will need to modify the license file provided to you by the vendor:
Note: Specifying a port outside of the 27000-27009 range should be avoided unless the vendor specifies that a particular port outside of the range should be used instead. Configure the FLEXnet License Service for your Autodesk products
Start the FLEXnet License Service for your Autodesk product
Configure the FLEXnet License Service for the other vendor(s)
Start the Other Vendor’s License Server To start the license server, either restart the server, or follow the steps below:
Cascade licensing and the PLIST incrementLicense Cascading applies only to mixed-product environments and allows a product to run from a more expensive license. The INCREMENT PLIST in the license file was used for this up until the 2009 versions but now only exists for the legacy products. For 2010 products and newer the priority list is defined in the ProductInformation.pit file (encrypted) on the client machine.
The product will attempt to pull a license sequentially until it finds a license or reaches the end of the cascade list. Link to cascade sequence online for 2012 products: http://usa.autodesk.com/getdoc/id=TS16981643
Cascading cannot be disabled or changed.
Example on one machine a user has product A and B installed: Product A is started and takes one license of feature A. Now 2 licenses are in use by this one user. After around 3 minutes the license for feature A is returned to the server and Product A also uses the license of feature B and the other license is free for others to use. If the user stops Product B the license of feature B will be used until Product A is stopped.
Dynamic Licensing in Inventor ProductsInventor always tries to start with the most economical license using the cascading sequence and when certain commands are activated more expensive licenses are checked out.
How products find license serversOn the client machine the product look for licenses in this order: 1. ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE environment variable and if multiple servers are specified they are searched for in the order they are specified 2. Windows registry 3. LM_LICENSE_FILE environment variable 4. Licpath.loc located in the root installation folder of the product 5. If no available licenses are found there, the License Finder dialog box is displayed. It is good practice to use the port otherwise all ports between 27000 and 27009 will be tested until the license server is found and if you have many license servers this can take some time. Bad example: ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE=@server1; @server2 Good example: ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE=27000@server1;27000@server2 See Knowledge Base documents TS37913, TS71384, TS1065268 and TS64909 FlexNet feature code descriptions for Autodesk productsJTB World is hosting an extensive list of Autodesk product features codes at: http://www.jtbworld.com/jtbflexreport/FLEXnet_FLEXlm_feature_codes.htm How to set up priority user accessThis requires distributed servers where only high priority users have feature access privileges on certain servers the rest of the user population only draws on the other servers. 1. Setup multiple license servers each controlling a portion of your license seat count. 2. Designate one or more servers to only service Priority Users. 3. Set the ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE variable for Priority Users to include all servers. 4. Set the ADSKFLEX_LICENSE_FILE variable for the general user population not to include the Priority License Server(s). 5. Set an Include statement in the options file for each feature on the Priority Server(s) to allow license access only by Priority Users. Backup serversThe Autodesk license agreement allow you to set up a backup server and request a license file for it. On the back up server check off the box Use Services, and Start Server at Power Up on the config services tab in lmtools.exe. One method that has been piloted by companies together with Autodesk is to create a virtual FlexNet license server that is automatically started if the primary license server goes down. The cost is the time to set it up and manage it as well as the Windows OS license cost. Restricting Access to FlexNet License ServiceBy default FlexNet allows access from other servers and
machines including the ability to reread and shut down the License
Service.
Troubleshoot network license issuesWindows Services Console and Task ManagerThe vendor daemon service can be found in Windows Services Console having the same name as specified when creating it in LMTOOLS.
The processes lmgrd.exe and adskflex.exe should be seen in Windows Task Manager. Using Microsoft’s Process Explorer the service lmgrd.exe (here ADSK_FLEX_SERVICE) can be seen as well as its child process lmgrd.exe and its child process adskflex.exe
Network License Manager startup These steps are taken when LMGRD starts. 1. LMGRD writes to the debug log 2. Reads the license file 3. Starts the vendor daemon (ADSKFLEX) 4. ADSKFLEX writes to the debug log file 5. Reads the license file 6. Reads option file (if found) 7. Writes report log (if configured) Application startup These steps are taken when an application starts. 1. Application is executed 2. Application generates a request for a license 3. Server resolution occurs 4. LMGRD receives request 5. LMGRD determines the appropriate Vendor Daemon 6. Request is passed to Vendor Daemon (ADSKFLEX) 7. ADSKFLEX grant or denies a license 8. ADSKFLEX maintains a hearbeat with each active application session (Every session per machine started will write to the debug log even though only one license is used) FlexNet debug logThe FlexNet debug log file is useful to find out what happens in the Network License Manager and to identify and diagnose problems.
In this row we can see that the FlexNet version is 11.9. 11:41:26 (lmgrd) FLEXnet Licensing (v11.9.0.0 build 87342 x64_n6) started on PC-HP (IBM PC) (11/5/2011)
11:41:26 (lmgrd) lmgrd tcp-port 27000
11:41:26 (lmgrd) Using vendor daemon port 2080 specified in license file
11:41:27 (adskflex) Using options file: "C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Autodesk Network License Manager\adskflex.opt"
11:41:28 (adskflex) 64300ACD_F (consisting of: 85730ACD_2012_0F 11:41:28 (adskflex) 85536ACD_2011_0F 71200ACD_2010_0F 57600ACD_2009_0F)
11:41:28 (adskflex) RESERVING 1 64300ACD_F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 license for USER tester
11:52:50 (adskflex) OUT: "85730ACD_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP 11:53:35 (adskflex) IN: "85730ACD_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP
11:57:48 (adskflex) REMOVING jtb@PC-HP:PC-HP from 85730ACD_2012_0F by administrator request. 11:57:48 (adskflex) IN: "85730ACD_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP (USER_REMOVED) 11:57:48 (adskflex) IN: "64300ACD_F" jtb@PC-HP (USER_REMOVED) 11:57:52 (adskflex) OUT: "64300ACD_F" jtb@PC-HP 11:57:52 (adskflex) OUT: "85730ACD_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP
This shows what can happen when a product cascades. AutoCAD 2012 is started but no 64300ACD_F licenses are available so it uses the 65900REVITS_F feature instead. 12:00:16 (adskflex) ALL FEATURES: INACTIVITY TIMEOUT set to 900 seconds 12:00:16 (adskflex) RESERVING 2 64300ACD_F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 licenses for USER tester 12:00:16 (adskflex) RESERVING 2 85730ACD_2012_0F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 licenses for USER tester 12:00:16 (adskflex) RESERVING 2 85536ACD_2011_0F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 licenses for USER tester 12:00:16 (adskflex) RESERVING 2 71200ACD_2010_0F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 licenses for USER tester 12:00:16 (adskflex) RESERVING 2 57600ACD_2009_0F/1D7A F565 91F7 9F30 licenses for USER tester 12:00:16 (adskflex) ...Finished rereading 12:00:38 (adskflex) OUT: "65900REVITS_F" jtb@PC-HP 12:00:38 (adskflex) OUT: "85791REVITS_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP 12:02:40 (adskflex) IN: "85791REVITS_2012_0F" jtb@PC-HP 12:02:40 (adskflex) IN: "65900REVITS_F" jtb@PC-HP
LMUTIL lmstat will show the following, but there is no way to see product using the feature. Users of 65900REVITS_F: (Total of 1 license issued; Total of 1 license in use)
"65900REVITS_F" v1.000, vendor: adskflex floating license
jtb PC-HP PC-HP (v1.000) (PC-HP/27000 106), start Sat 11/5 12:05
In some cases when a user is denied a license there is no record of it in the FlexNet debug log. The user might see the Licensing Error: A valid license could not be obtained by the network license manager. If you are still unable to access a license, contact your system administrator. Error [0.0.0] One example is if the host PC-HP is excluded in the options file like this: EXCLUDEALL HOST PC-HP The debug log does not show if a feature is borrowed but LMUTIL lmstat does. This lists the various informational messages used within FlexNet Publisher.
Perform Status EnquiryLMTOOLS or the LMSTAT argument of LMUTIL can be used to perform a status enquiry.
Row showing the number of issued and in use licenses for a feature Users of 85730ACD_2012_0F: (Total of 1 license issued; Total of 1 license in use) Row showing a license that is in use jtb PC-HP PC-HP (v4.000) (PC-HP/27000 301), start Sat 11/5 13:40 Row showing a borrowed license. jtb PC-HP PC-HP (v1.0) (PC-HP/27000 101), start Sat 11/5 12:36 (linger: 40980) Row showing a reserved license. 1 RESERVATION for HOST tester (PC-HP/27000) Increasing verbosity of FlexNet errors on the serverThe argument -verbose can be used when running lmutil.exe and will display longer description for all errors found. Increasing verbosity of FlexNet errors on the clientYou want a more detailed explanation of why a network licensing error has occurred. You can increase the information that is displayed when a network licensing error occurs by setting the FLEXLM_DIAGNOSTICS environment variable on your computer. In addition, a log file will be created that contains the error information. This log file will be located in the “Program files” folder of the respective Autodesk product (or on the Desktop or My Documents folder) and will be named flex###.log, where ### is a three digit number. To set the FLEXLM_DIAGNOSTICS environment variable 1. Click Start menu (Windows) > Settings > Control Panel. 2. In the Control Panel, double-click System. 3. In the System Properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab. 4. Click Environment Variables. 5. Under System Variables, click New. 6. In the Variable Name box, enter FLEXLM_DIAGNOSTICS 7. In the Variable Value box, enter 3 8. Click OK to close each dialog box. When ready the variable FLEXLM_DIAGNOSTICS can be deleted. Losing Your Connection to the License ServerFLEX service did not start automaticallyMake sure that Start Server at Powerup option is selected in LMTOOLS. Check Windows Event Viewer, if there is an error message similar to “FLEXlm service failed to start. Cannot find the network path.” make sure to use only valid, local drive letter paths when you configure the FLEX service in LMTOOLS. Network licenses are not released after exiting productIf you find that licenses are not being returned to the Network License Manager pool for a long period of time after the connection with a client workstation is lost a workaround can be to make use of TIMEOUT or TIMEOUTALL in the options file. When a client machine crashes, the license is still checked out by the license server until the time out period. You can use the LMREMOVE utility to free licenses. You will need to get the needed information about the locked license by using the LMSTAT command. How to change the lmgrd port number on a FlexNet server and clientIt’s also described how the adskflex port can be changed. See Knowledge Base document TD1321. Network licensing error [1.5.-4] when starting the softwareWhen you tried to start AutoCAD® based software from a client workstation, the following error message was displayed: The network license manager was not able to get a valid license. If this problem continues, please contact your system administrator. Error [1.5.-4] All available licenses are either reserved for other users or are in use. See Knowledge Base documents TS69953 and TS1059136. No such Feature Exists error [1.5.-5] when starting the softwareWhen you tried to start AutoCAD®-based software from a client workstation, the following error message was displayed: The network license manager was not able to get a valid license. If this problem continues, please contact your system administrator. Error [1.5.-5] Correct feature code does not exist in license file to support the product. Ensure that the product is looking to the correct license server and that the feature for the product exists in the license file. For 2009 products and earlier ensure PLIST from the most recent license file exists in the license file. Ensure that the Network License Manager status shows available licenses without errors. See Knowledge Base documents TS1076387 and TS1059136. Error when network version of software is started: Error [1.5.-12]Because of port filtering done at the client workstation or at the license server, this error may be generated when starting an Autodesk product that uses FLEXlm license management technology. The Autodesk Network License Manager needs unrestricted access to TCP port 2080 and ports 27000 - 27009. See Knowledge Base document TS68138. Error: FlexLM error [1.5.-14]Bad SERVER Hostname in License File Possible causes and solutions: DNS name resolution issue, where Server Hostname does not translate to correct IP address. DNS not working or is improperly configured. Incorrect entry in local “Hosts” file can be solved by substituting server IP Address for the Hostname of server in the licpath.lic file. Error [1.5.-15] or [1.5.-18] when starting the softwareWhen you tried to launch your AutoCAD®-based software, the following error message was displayed: The network license manager was not able to get a valid license. If this problem continues, please contact your system administrator. Error [1.5.-15] or [1.5.-18] Possible causes could be that communication is blocked by a firewall either on the server or client machine, the server is not powered on or accessible or the client machine points to a non-existing server. This error can occur if the Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) component is enabled on your server's operating system. This situation can occur when you access the license manager through a VPN, dial-up or a slow DSL/ISDN link and when accessing licenses over long distances. Possible solutions are to make sure the ports 2080, 27000-27009 are not being filtered or blocked or set the FLEXLM_TIMEOUT environment variable to extend the license request timeout. See Knowledge Base documents TS71257, TS1059136, TS1101507 and TS1057817. Error: FlexLM error 1.5.-18Explanation of the client product license alert: A valid license could not be obtained by the network license manager. Try again. If you are still unable to access a license, contact your system administrator. Error [1.5.-18] Possible causes: · No licenses left to be issued · No licenses for that feature in license file · License Manager is not started · Autodesk Network License Manager version is out-of-date · Errors in the license file like PLIST is missing · If all licenses are reserved using the option (OPT) file or in use you might get this message but unfortunately there is nothing in the debug log indicating the denial. See Knowledge Base documents TS1076426, TS1056448, TS70382, and TS1059136. No Valid License Error [1.5.-96], [1.5.-97], [1200.5.-96], [1200.5.-97]You received this error message because the client computer was not able to communicate with the license server. You can resolve this issue using one of the following methods: Make sure the ports 2080, 27000-27009 are not being filtered or blocked or set the FLEXLM_TIMEOUT environment variable to extend the license request timeout. The error indicates that there is an issue with the HOSTNAME. You can substitute the ip address of the server for the HOSTNAME of the server in the licpath.lic file on the client computer. See Knowledge Base document TS1053258. Error getting status: Cannot connect to license server system.Using LMSTAT this error can show: Error getting status: Cannot connect to license server system. (-15,10:10060 "WinSock: Connection timed out") Solution is usually to open any of the ports being used. Lmstat is not finding serverIf license servers cannot be reached using LMSTAT you can try to set the timeout to something. Use the argument -t for timeout with lmutil.exe lmstat. It is probably microseconds so a value of 1,000,000 would be a second. Try increase with a second until it works. Corrupt CascadeInfo.cas file results in failure of cascading functionalityCascading functionality is lost due to a corrupt CascadeInfo.cas file. If the CascadeInfo.cas file is corrupt due to a power failure or any reason, cascading functionality will not be available. This issue only applies to network licensed products and does not affect stand-alone licensed products. See Knowledge Base document TS13894457. Valid host ID characters for network license filesSee Knowledge Base document TS64910. Using the licpath.lic file for Autodesk network license enabled productsSee Knowledge Base document TS65652. LMTOOLS Error: Data Execution PreventionAfter you restarted the license server, you received an error message similar to the following: Data Execution Prevention – Microsoft Windows To help protect your computer, Windows has closed this program. Name: LMTOOLS Utility To resolve this error, you need to change the Data Execution Prevention settings in Windows. See Knowledge Base document TS1067712. FlexNet License AdministratorThe latest FlexNet Publisher license server manager, lmadmin, is currently available for selected platforms. lmadmin offers a graphical user interface that provides a number of server administration improvements around usability, efficiency, and capability. FlexNet License Administrator is not supplied by Autodesk. Autodesk® License Manager and server clusteringClustered servers are not supported by the Autodesk® License Manager. The Network License Manager cannot be run in a clustered server environment. Clustered servers have not been tested with the Network License Manager. As a result, they are not supported. See Knowledge Base document TS40213. NIC Failure RecoveryIf the authenticating NIC (network interface card) survives a server failure the NIC can be moved to the replacement hardware and the license file reused. If the new server inherits the failed units name nothing else is required If the replacement hardware used a different hostname then the license file server name parameter must be edited. Single and Distributed server NIC replacement does not affect other servers If the NIC fails or is on the Server system board a new license file will be required If the failed server was a member of a redundant pool then a new redundant license file must be obtained and installed on each redundant member. Usage across WANSee Knowledge Base document TS17859. License management and support for VPN connectionsAutodesk has not tested VPN connections for license management and does not support this type of connection. See Knowledge Base document TS73294. Autodesk Product Support and Knowledge BaseProblems configuring the Autodesk Network License Manager (FlexNet) see Knowledge Base document TS1076366. Network licensing errors during software startup see Knowledge Base document TS1076386. Product Support page: www.autodesk.com/support To easily find a specific document use http://usa.autodesk.com/getdoc/id=XXXXX and replace XXXXX with the document ID. Example http://usa.autodesk.com/getdoc/id=TS1056448 Switching Between Three-Server Redundancy and Single-Server ConfigurationWhile running, the license server manager (lmadmin
or lmgrd) is not designed for switching from three-server redundancy to a
single-server configuration (and vice-versa). To switch configurations, you
need to do the following: Report license usageUsing LMTOOLSCurrent usage can be seen in LMTOOLS. If you are experiencing problems with the Server Status tab > Perform Status Enquiry, make sure that the "LMTOOLS Ignores License File Path Environment Variables" option is selected on the Service/License File tab and run the Status Enquiry again. In many cases this will correct erroneous Status Enquiries. Note that there is a limitation on how much is showed using Perform Status Enquiry. To see everything you may need to use LMUTIL. Using LMUTILThis is a command line tool that together with the lmstat argument can show the current usage. LMUTIL can be scripted using a Windows batch file and output may be filtered using flags and/or external filters such as GREP. Linger is a value that indicates the original borrow period in seconds. SAMreport-LiteSAMreport-Lite is a report generator that can providing basic historical usage reports using the FlexNet report log. SAMreport-Lite is not distributed with Autodesk products, but it is available from Autodesk’s website for free. It has its limitations like no usage over time or high water mark reporting as well as no filtering and grouping functionality. For more information see http://www.autodesk.com/samreportlite.
A Usage Summary report in SAMreport-Lite:
If you need more detailed reporting, you may want to consider the Flexera FlexNet Manager reporting tools (priced to suit larger enterprise customers).
JTB FlexReport LTJTB FlexReport LT is a freeware from JTB World for HTML reports showing current FlexNet usage. It supports multiple servers, aggregation and descriptions for features.
JTB FlexReportJTB FlexReport is a report tool from JTB World that gives you graphic reports or detailed list reports on your usage of FlexNet / FLEXlm as well as other network license systems. By the license tracking JTB FlexReport does and the reports that can be produced JTB FlexReport will help you to manage and forecast future license usage and license usage trends at your company.
JTB FlexReport will help you to see the license usage over the time and help to justify new purchases. This will help you to decide when and how many licenses you will need to purchase next time. Instead of guessing and purchasing more licenses than you really need.
References and resources:Autodesk Product Support: www.autodesk.com/support Autodesk's YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/Autodesk Autodesk Registration web site: http://register.autodesk.com Autodesk Network License Manager downloads: http://autodesk.com/licensetools Installation & Licensing Discussion Group: http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/Installation-Licensing/bd-p/24 Up and Ready Blog by Autodesk: http://upandready.typepad.com License File Parser: www.licenseparser.com Download page for FlexNet files and documentation: http://www.globes.com/support/fnp_utilities_download.htm AUGI networks forum: http://forums.augi.com/forumdisplay.php?f=33 Network Administrator’s Bible by David M. Stein More learning resources available. JTB World: www.jtbworld.com and http://blog.jtbworld.com | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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