Posting RA activations on a server

Hopefully this is an easy question...

My company is just starting to use FTA Manager, I am the one tasked with making it work. I want to put the activations in a folder on a network drive (they are concurrent activations.)

Simply copy and pasting the activations does not work.

I believe I will have to rehost the activations to the network drive, however, I do not know where or how to add the network drive into the host ID list, or how to make the activations save to that drive.

I have looked through the help files. Is it that I have to install FTA Manager onto that network drive?

FTA Manager needs to be installed on whatever 'puter you will use for the license server. Then, you can rehost the activations that machine. Just installing to a network share won't work.

So I would need our IT guy to install FTA on the server? The problem is if I put the activations on my computer and I am not here (I leave for weeks at a time) would mean no one gets to use licenses.

Yes, if that's the 'puter you want to use. The FTA Manager runs as a service to keep track of activations that are either in use or borrowed.

FTA Manager always wants to dump the files into a "default folder" is there a way I can specify where FTA puts the activations?

Yes. On the "Manage Activations" tab, you can choose paths and the order in which you want FTAM to search them.

Also, you will install FTAM on all the machines that need to access them as well as the server. On each machine that needs to access the server, you can usually just put the server name in the activation search path, but there is a browse ellipses that can help you populate the fields.

Once the activation is "hosted" to a machine, the text file that is returned is just that: a simple text file. You can make copies and move it around where ever you want. As long as the .lic file coded value matches what it should be for the NIC or HD serial for the machine on which it resides, it will be valid. If the license is the "concurrent" type, then it can be checked out to other machines that can access that FTAM as a license server.

I downloaded them to my computer then tried to get them on the server... apparently that doesn't work.
So to make sure I am reading this right...been a long da so far, I will have to talk to IT and get him to install FTAM on the server then I can rehost the activations to the server. Then we can move the activations to the logicaldrive:\directory we want them in.

All of the "client" computers have FTAM already, I did find out how to look in different places it just didn't see them because I copied and pasted them there and they were not hosted there, RA guy told me I could d/l them move them on to server then they would be fine, liar

He probably meant "rehost" when he said move. It is pretty straightforward ... after you have done it once.

The first time I rehosted a license, I found myself going in circles for a bit on the website until a figured out the last step or two that were missing from the video tutorial. That was a few years ago. Let me see if I can dig up that video. It may be improved by now...

EDIT: This is a newer video. I have not finished watching it yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcYoQbnUIDk

A word of caution.

Putting the license files is ok with one exception.
If the programs are on a laptop and you have a weak or no wifi signal, then your are dead in the water if the laptop cannot find the server.

A co-worker did this and we had no wifi signal.
had to rehost to the laptop.

regards,
james

James Mcquade said:

A word of caution.

Putting the license files is ok with one exception.
If the programs are on a laptop and you have a weak or no wifi signal, then your are dead in the water if the laptop cannot find the server.

A co-worker did this and we had no wifi signal.
had to rehost to the laptop.

regards,
james

Click to expand...

There are ways around this. For a start, you get a 7 day grace period when you lose the activation, so provided that you managed to connect when you came in this morning, you can run all week with your laptop dropping in and out.

If you're travelling, or moving away from the wifi for an extended period, you can "borrow" the activation. This basically means your laptop goes to the server and says "hey, I want to take this activation with me for the next xxx days/weeks". The server "lends" the activation to the laptop. The laptop now has the activation loaded for the preset number of days/weeks after which it will automatically drop it again, whether it connects back to the server or not. The server will not let anyone else use the license for the same number of days/weeks as it knows the laptop has it, after this time the server will likewise make the activation available again to anyone that wants it, even if the laptop that borrowed it never came back within range.

dlweber said:

...All of the "client" computers have FTAM already, I did find out how to look in different places it just didn't see them because I copied and pasted them there and they were not hosted there, RA guy told me I could d/l them move them on to server then they would be fine, liar

Click to expand...

You do not Host licence files to a computer folder or directory.
You do not Host licence files full stop.

You Host or ReHost software product Activations.
An Activation is the association of a piece of software with a piece of hardware, namely a Host ID.

An Activation is not a licence file.
A licence file only stores the association information between the software and Host ID. It is a reference used to activate the software product when the associated Host ID is present.

Once you have a licence file or files, you simply copy/paste them to the path you are currently pointing your FTA Server at.

If you place any *.lic licence files in a folder that you have set as the search path in FTA, and FTA has a valid physical path to that folder, then FTA should be able to see and display each Activation's information. Nothing is activated at this point. The software products within the licence files are only primed and ready to be checked out when the software product is opened.

When opened, the software products will only check out the Activation if the associated hardware Host ID is present. If the associated Host ID is not physically present or cannot be physically connected to the computer, then the Activation cannot be checked out.

If a licence file has an associated hardware Host ID that is no longer available or valid, then you must ReHost the Activation so as to re-associate the software product with a valid hardware Host ID. This is done online via Rockwell. You will be issued a new licence file with the new association between the same software and a new Host ID of your choosing. Usually a local hard disk drive or LAN adapter, or a portable USB Dongle.

You then place this licence file in the search path for FTA and refresh the Server. This will update the Activation information displayed in FTA showing the newly associated Host ID. Now when the software is opened, the Activation can check out once the valid Host ID is present.

They were not lying to you. They were simply telling you where to copy your licence files to. But if those licence files do not have valid associations in them, then they are of no use and, as you said yourself, will need ReHosting.

Because you want to use an FTA Server setup, you should ReHost all your Concurrent Activations to a hardware Host ID available to the FTA Server computer. The HDD is usually the number one choice. This way, and because all the licence files will reside in a folder on the Server, all the Activations will check out to the local Host ID before being floated or borrowed across the network.

You can do all this online yourself, but if unsure or stumped, you can contact Rockwell and explain the setup you require. You can even ReHost multiple software products using a single licence file associated with the same Host ID.

You have been refreshing the FTA Server whenever you've added licence files to the search path folder?

Regards,
George


Regards,
George

ASF,

You are correct with one exception, RSLinx.
If Rslinx professional does not fined the license file, it reverts back to the classic version.
Things may have changed recently.

regards,
james

That's correct James. RSLinx Classic will run in Lite Mode without it's Activation.

RSLinx Classic is basically the same product no matter what you install. It's the type of Activation that unlocks the product features.

G.

I refreshed many times. Move a file...refresh, sneeze...refresh, that refresh didn't work...refresh again.

Right now the Host ID is my computer and when I put them onto a folder on one of our Network drives none of them show up in the FTAM on my computer.

An odd thing about it is the drive shows up red in FTAM. I am thinking the server noticed FTAM constantly looking for the activations but it did not recognize the program so it stopped it from gaining access,but that is just a guess because our LAN guy hasn't got back to me yet.

James Mcquade said:

A word of caution.

Putting the license files is ok with one exception.
If the programs are on a laptop and you have a weak or no wifi signal, then your are dead in the water if the laptop cannot find the server.

Click to expand...

Laptop is already accounted for we knew there would be wifi issues with it so we have already taken those steps