[[devnews:licencing_overview]]
Table of Contents

Overview

The licencing system consists of a single Licence File. The Licence File sits in any folder which is writeable by the user, and is used to store one or more Licences. Each Licence contains information which will allow a single application to run. It also contains information about the support date for that application, and which application modules are available. The Licence File also contains some “secret” information which prevents the file from being modified.

When the application is started it looks in the Licence File for an available licence. If it does not find a suitable licence then the application will not run. If a suitable licence is found, then it will be marked as being in use. This will prevent anyone else from using that licence until the first user releases it by closing the software.

Installing a Licence

On Vista systems, the licencer MUST be run as administrator (right click on the shortcut and choose “Run as Administrator”

Also on Vista, DO NOT store the licence file anywhere in the program files section, as normal users will not be able to write to files in this location and all licence actions will fail

When the Licence Manager is first started it will create an empty licence.lic file in the application folder.

Changing the Licence File Location

If the licence file is to be located somewhere else (usually on a USB stick or on a network drive) then this must be done before the PoPN is entered and the licence updated.

Click the browse button (to the right of the Licence File Location box) and browse to a suitable location. Type the name of the licence file and click OK

Set the Hardware Reminder

It is a good idea to enter a Hardware Reminder as this will make it easier to reapply a licence file to a machine in the event of the file getting damaged.

On a desktop machine this should be a textual description “Desktop 123” or “Wyns PC”. On a mobile device this should ideally be the serial number printed on the side of the device

Enter the Proof of Purchase Number

If the system is online (shown by the green “LED”) then enter the PoPN (Proof of Purchase Number) and click the Upgrade Licence.

The manager should show a confirmation message, then close.

Dealing with Internet Issues

Sometimes the pc cannot connect properly to the Licence Server, either due to a poor internet connection or sometimes because of firewall policies. It is possible to manually update the licence as long as there is another pc available which can connect to the web.

Sometimes the pc will allow a connection to the server using a web browser, so this method can sometimes be used on the actual machine itself

Click the Advanced link at the bottom of the screen.

Then click the Manual Update button.

Copy the text from the Manual Update screen and paste into the box at http://licencing.psgpages.com/manual.php

Make sure the [START] and [END] markers are included

Enter the PoPN (on the web site) and click the Manual Update button.

The web site should now display a new code. Copy this code, including the [START] and [END] markers and paste it back into the Manual Update screen, replacing the original code. Now click the Update button. The system should update the file and close as before.

This technique can also be used on a pc which has no internet access. Copy the contents of the manual update box to a different pc, and use that pc to access the web. Then paste the contents back to the original pc.

Creating a USB Licence

It is acceptable (and within the terms of the EULA) for a single user to store the licence file on a USB stick (or similar) so that it can be moved between two or more pcs. There are no special instructions, just make sure that when the licence manager is started (on each of the machines) it is pointing at the licence file on the stick.

If several sticks are plugged into the machine at once then it is possible that the drive letter assigned to the stick containing the licence file might change. In this case run the Licence Manager and browse to the licence file again before starting the application

Creating a Network Licence

There is no difference between a standard licence file for 1 pc and a “network” licence for several users. If a pc can “see” the licence file then it can use it.

All that needs to be done differently from a standard installation is to make sure that the licence file location is set to a part of the network which is visible to all the pcs which are going to use the licence. This will normally be a shared folder on a server.

All users and pcs must have write access to the folder where the licence file is stored

The steps to create a network licence are

  • On the first client pc set the licence file location, then download the licence using the PoPN
  • On all the other client pcs run the licence manager, and simply browse to the licence file location

The PoPN only needs to be entered on the first client pc

It is a violation of the EULA to share a single licence among several users. Therefore a network licence file must contain at least two licences

Adding Licences

Normally it will be known in advance that a network licence is required and the PoPN will be configured to deliver more than one licence into the licence file. If this is not the case, or if additional licences have been bought then they can easily be added to the file

  • Run Licence Manager on any pc which is using the licence file
  • Make sure it is using the correct licence file, and not a local copy
  • Enter the PoPN as normal

Updating Support

When a 12 month support contract is purchased, it will be provided as a PoPN. Simply run the Licence Manager as normal and enter the PoPn. The support date on the oldest licence in the file will be increased by 12 months

A Support Contract PoPN should only be applied to a licence file which contains an existing licence

Reviving Lapsed Support

If a Revived support licence is purchased then this can be applied in the same way as a new licence. It does not need to be applied to an existing licence.

Replacing a Lost or Damaged Licence

If your licence file gets lost or damaged, then it can be replaced by running the licence manager and re-entering the PoPN.

This must be done on the SAME PC and SAME DISK as the PoPN was originally used on

Viewing Your Licences

Go to licencing.psgpages.com/Customer.php and enter your email address and PoPN to view all the licences registered with that email address.

The list will show All licences with that email address, along with their Device ID and Hardware Reminder.

 
devnews/licencing_overview.txt · Last modified: 2009/09/23 07:36 by wynsleeman
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