FLEXlm

Service for controlling commercial software distribution.

History

Several IRIX developers chose FLEXlm for license management since the IRIX 5.3 days or even earlier. However, it seems to have become the standard licensing system for IRIX only after SGI licensed FLEXlm from Globetrotter in preparation for the IRIX 6.2 launch, announced September 19, 1995.

Version history:

• IRIX 6.2, License Development Environment 2.1, FLEXlm 4.1
• IRIX 6.5, License Development Environment 3.3, FLEXlm 5.12a
• IRIX 6.5.2, License Development Environment 3.4
• IRIX 6.5.3, License Development Environment 3.4.1
• IRIX 6.5.4, License Development Environment 3.4.2, FLEXlm 6.1
• IRIX 6.5.9, License Development Environment 3.4.3
• IRIX 6.5.14, License Development Environment 3.4.4
• IRIX 6.5.15, License Development Environment 3.4.5
  • Updated FLEXlm v7.2i support from GLOBEtrotter Software, Inc. The license manager daemon and the floating license server are built in V5 compatibility mode. For backwards compatibility, the client libraries and header files are still based on FLEXlm v6.1g.
• IRIX 6.5.16, License Development Environment 3.4.6, FLEXlm 6.1g and 8.1a
  • Upgrading to the FLEXlm 8.1a release from Globetrotter Software, Inc. IRIX 6.5.16 provides support for upgrading license_eoe to the FLEXlm 8.1a release from Globetrotter Software, Inc. The license manager daemon is built in V5 compatibility mode. Support is also provided for upgrading license_dev to include new optional thread-safe FLEXlm 8.1a client side libraries and headers.
• IRIX 6.5.21, License Development Environment 3.4.10, FLEXlm 6.1g and 9.0

License Manager

The license manager controls commercial software such as the MIPSpro compilers and Maya.

The license manager gets hash of the primary MAC address and compares it with a license file.

The license manager can be on another computer and runs as a service on a port to check out and check in licenses.

Commands

lmhostid

returns the host license ID, the ethernet MAC address or for newer machines a hash of it. Multiple module systems may change lmhostids when adding or removing modules.

Files

/var/flexlm/*.dat

/var/flexlm/license.dat

Caveats

If the software which requires license crashes (most likely with Bus Error or Segmentation Fault), it's possible it's because of licensing issues. Please make sure that you only have one single master file with all the licenses under /var/flexlm/ - if you have more than one some applications get confused and crash.

If this doesn't help, try to investigate system calls being executed just before the crash with strace or par, you may at least be able to narrow down your search.

Troubleshooting

If you've installed a license and tried to run the protected software, you may see an error message such as Unable to find a license or Unable to find a license server. Use the methods described in this section to check the installation.

Run the Unix command /usr/sbin/lmdiag. This command analyzes the licenses in the default licens file (/var/flexlm/license.dat), which may help debug problems. If you get an error message that says the HOSTID is incorrect, check the HOSTID:

• If the license you are having problems with is a Nodelocked license, in a Unix shell run the command /etc/sysinfo -s. If the result does not match the HOSTID string for that product in the license file, this is the problem.
• If the license you are having problems with is a Floating license, on the server system, run the Unix command /etc/sysinfo -s. Compare the results with the second argument on the SERVER line, which corresponds to the product in question. If the two numbers are not identical, this is the problem.

A few conditions might cause the /etc/sysinfo -s results and the HOSTID to be different:

• The license may be made for a system different from the one you are running it on.
• The HOSTID may have been entered incorrectly.
• The HOSTID on the system may have changed. If the CPU board or I/O board was replaced, this can change the HOSTID.

If you are having trouble with a FLEXlm Floating license, try the following procedure:

You may wish to configure the lmgrd daemon to send its output to a log file rather than sending it to standard output. To do this, edit the file /etc/config/lmgrd.options and add a line that looks like:

-c /var/flexlm/license_<server_name>.dat -l /var/adm/flexlm.log

Where the file after the -l is the log file. Note that -l is a lowercase L, not a number 1 (one).

In a Unix shell, type:

/etc/init.d/flexlm stop; /etc/init.d/flexlm start 

Look at the log file for error messages.

If the lmgrd daemon is started (check the log file), on the client system, run the Unix command:

/usr/sbin/lmstat -a.

This tells you whether the lmstat tool has the same trouble contacting the server as the client application.

If the application program on the client system cannot connect to the server to check out a license, one of several things may be wrong:

The license server may be down, or there may be a network problem. Check to see if the client system can communicate with the server. In a Unix shell on the server, enter:

/usr/bin/lmstat -a

To verify the vendor daemon is running. In a Unix shell on the client system, enter:

lmstat -a

To check if it can contact the vendor daemon on the server. Then, from the client system, enter the command:

telnet

Where hostname and portnumber match the SERVER line in the license file.

The vendor daemon may not be running. On the server, check for the Silicon Graphics vendor daemon by running the Unix command:

ps -ef | grep sgifd | grep -v grep

If nothing is returned, then the vendor daemon is not running.

The application may not be looking at the expected license file. The default license file is /var/flexlm/license.dat. By default, Silicon Graphics applications that are licensed with FLEXlm use this file.

If a warning message appears stating that the license expires in an incorrect number of days, see "Installing a Nodelocked License" in this document. Follow the steps to remove or comment out any existing temporary or evaluation license(s) in the /var/flexlm/license.dat file for this product.

The License Password may have been typed incorrectly. Check that the letters l and O were not typed in place of a numberal 1 (one) or 0 (zero).

The license you are entering may not be the correct type. Check the License Type on the license information sheet. If you are following the instructions for installing a nodelocked license, be sure that it says "Nodelocked". See "Installing a Nodelocked License" in this document.

The system time may be set incorrectly or the license may have expired. Run the date command by typing date. Make sure the date is not earlier than the Start Date or later than the Expiration Date listed on the license information sheet.

For more information on troubleshooting, refer to Appendix B of the FLEXlm End User Manual. This guide is located in the IRIS InSight Library, which you can find by selecting "Online Books" from the Help toolchest.

Free Licenses

IRIX 5.3 Users
MANUAL NETLS NODELOCKED LICENSE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

1. Log in as root on the machine . Type: su 
2. Edit the nodelock file. Type: jot /var/netls/nodelock 
3. Copy and paste the following license lines into the nodelock file:


#:#"Silicon Graphics, Inc." "MPEG ENCODER" "A" "2038/01/01" 170
546fb4684914.02.c0.1a.3d.52.00.00.00 7nf8u9rqis5k3mqxf4axhgmug2
#:#"Silicon Graphics, Inc." "CINEPAK ENCODER" "A" "2038/01/01" 180
546fb4684914.02.c0.1a.3d.52.00.00.00 vyx56vaucc2ybmqxf4axhgmug2

4. Save the file and exit jot (File pulldown menu). 
5. Exit the root account. Type: exit

IRIX 6.2 Users
MANUAL FLEXLM NODELOCKED LICENSE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

1. Log in as root. Type: su 
2. Edit the license file. Type: jot /var/flexlm/license.dat 
3. Copy and paste the following license lines into the license file:


## FLEXlm License File FLMLF 1.0
## Filename:/var/flexlm/license.dat
FEATURE MPEG_Encoder sgifd 1.000 01-jan-0 0 5CC152087FDCAEDEA1AC \
HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="MPEG ENCODER" ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE CINEPAK_Encoder sgifd 1.000 01-jan-0 0 3CD11288C0DE3AA0FB5C \
HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="CINEPAK ENCODER" ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

4. Save the file and exit jot (File pulldown menu). 
5. Exit the root account. Type: exit

LICENSE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

1. Log in as root. Type: su 
2. Edit the license file. Type: jot /var/flexlm/license.dat 
3. Copy and paste the license(s) into the license file. 
4. Save the file and exit jot (File pulldown menu). 
5. Exit the root account. Type: exit

Below is a list of FLEXlm licenses for beta products.


FEATURE wf_director sgifd 1.000 10-oct-97 0 AC427D2720F15DD772F9 \
         VENDOR_STRING=WFD_S HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="WF Director S" \
         ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE wf_director sgifd 1.000 10-oct-97 0 8C72ED07C1FD60BB41BF \
         VENDOR_STRING=WFD_L HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="WF Director L" \
         ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE propel sgifd 2.000 7-jul-97 0 DC323914560D71B04921 HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=Propel ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE MineSet_client sgifd 2.000 16-aug-97 0 FCB249B07C27ADDC6587 \
         HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="MINESET CLIENT" \
         ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE MineSet_server sgifd 2.000 16-aug-97 0 8C5239107351D63925FC \
         HOSTID=ANY vendor_info="MINESET SERVER" \
         ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE NW_OPTION sgifd 4.000 1-aug-97 0 EC92667A197EFCB5E81C \
         VENDOR_STRING=DBMI HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info="NetWorker Database Module for Oracle" \
         ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE pcpcol-hpux sgifd 1.000 1-aug-97 0 8C12C868F36F8BFA4CA8 HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=PCP_HPUX ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

Compiler Licenses:

FEATURE cc sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 9C62AB0AAFAE5E4F00FE HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=C ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE cpp sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 5CA29B8A66BC6EBB8A7B HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=C++ ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE f77 sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 3C626B8A3966A792EC44 HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info="Fortran 77" ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE f90 sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 EC626B1A9807EC79950A HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info="Fortran 90" ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE auto_pp sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 BCD21B5AD6995331DB3E HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=MP ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE pca sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 5C026BEA558671BC4054 HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info=PCA ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

FEATURE pfa sgifd 7.000 31-aug-97 0 6C92FB9A2C0A99202ECD HOSTID=ANY \
         vendor_info="Power Fortran 77" ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, Inc."

Other Licenses

FEATURE Insignia_SoftWindows95 insignia 4.000 01-jan-0 0 \
        ECE41259D5BE4700DC27 VENDOR_STRING="5100 0100 0000 0001" \
        HOSTID=ANY vendor_info=SOFTWINDOWS95 ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, \
        Inc."

#/usr/lib/SoftWindows2/FLEXlm/license.dat
FEATURE Insignia_SoftWindows insignia 2.000 01-jan-0 0 \
    FC5452A92A01D8F98BF2 VENDOR_STRING="5100 0100 0000 0001" \
    HOSTID=ANY vendor_info=SOFTWINDOWS95 ISSUER="Silicon Graphics, \
    Inc."

See Also

• Key-o-matic