TimeStorm Floating License Setup Guide
Introduction
A floating license allows you to run multiple concurrent instances of TimeStorm using a single license file and a server application. The floating license file is different from the single-user node-locked license. It includes the maximum number of TimeStorm instances that can be run simultaneously and is to be installed on a machine running the Timesys license server. Individual hosts running TimeStorm do not need a node-locked license file, but do need a file that includes the IP address and port number of the license server machine to access the floating license instead.
This document explains how to setup a TimeStorm floating license sever to use the Timesys floating license model. It also includes a list of advanced options for the license server and a FAQ.
TimeStorm Floating License Server Set Up
The main steps involved for setting up a TimeStorm floating license server are:
- Contact Timesys to generate a floating license for your license server
- Download and install the floating license file
- Download the license sever code
- Setup and start the license server
- Manage the license server
Files and Folders Related to the License Sever
| ~/.timesys/timestorm/licenses | Default folder under the user's home directory where the license file is stored.. |
| floating.lic | Floating License file provided by Timesys. By default, this file is expected to reside in ~/.timesys/timestorm/licenses (or relative to the current directory from where the server code is started). -DlicenseFilePath can override this. |
| license-server.jar | Server code which runs under Java, as a Java ARchive file. |
| licenseServer.log.n | A log directory is created in the same directory where floating.lic resides when the license server starts. the initial value of n is 0. |
Contact Timesys to Generate a Floating License for your License Sever
Timesys Floating License Server is a standalone Java program that can be run on Windows, Linux, Solaris or any OS that has Java version 6 installed. You can download and install Java for your server OS from http://www.java.com/en/download/manual.jsp. After you select the machine on which you will be running the license server, please note the MAC address of a network card on that machine, and contact Timesys with the MAC address which is needed to generate a floating license.
Download and Install the Floating License File
The floating license is generated by Timesys for the specific MAC address you supply. Like any license file, you should not edit it. By default, this file should be saved in .../.timesys/timestorm/licenses.
Download the floating license, and save it on the license server machine in <home folder>/.timesys/timestorm/license/ folder. Your home folder on Windows is typicaly c:\Users\<user name>. Your home folder on Linux is /home/<user name>.
Download the License Server Code
The license server is a Java archive with a .jar extension. Download the jar file on the machine where you will be running the server. In the example while follows it is assumed to be in the directory from which the server is started.
Setup and Start the License Server
Java should be installed and on your path to run the license server. You can test this by opening a shell and typing java -version. You should see a message with the Java version information. (See illustration below.) Java version 6 or above is required.
If you see an error message, correct it by installing Java or adding Java to your path.
To run the license server from the command line, execute this command:
java –jar licenseServer.jar
To check if the license server is running properly and has read the license file, open a browser on the host and type: http://localhost:65352. If not on the same system, use the IP address in place of localhost. You will see a web page that displays the number of installed licenses and their expiration date.
If the license server does not start or you do not see a web page listing the available licenses, you can view the license server log in <home folder>/.timesys/timestorm/licenses/log folder. You can contact Timesys for help with the details of the error in the log file.
License Server Advanced Options
The license server can be tweaked by starting it with additional options. The option is set by –D<option>=value. For Example:
java -DleaseTime=12 -jar licenseServer.jar
The available options are:
portleaseTimelicenseFilepathadminUseradminPassword
port: By default, license server is started to listen on port 65352. If this port is used by another process, then you can start the server on a different port using this option. For example, if you want the license server to be accessible through the firewall, you can change the port number to 80.
leaseTime: By default, the license server issues a license to a TimeStorm instance for a period of 24 hours. Users can use such TimeStorm instance for 24 hours without restarting and without being able to access the license server. If it is required, for instance on weekends, that you should be able to user TimeStorm without accessing the license server, then you can set this option to the lease time you prefer. Note that the time is in hours.
licenseFilePath: By default, license server checks for the license files are located in the
adminUser: Overrides the default username of "admin" required when revoking a license.
adminPassword: Overrides the default password of "admin-password" required when revoking a license.
Managing the License Server
NOTE: "Reload" here, means reread the license file(s) on the server.
You can manage your license server from a browser by typing: http://<server_ip_address>:<server_port_number>. From this page, you can:
- View the number of installed licenses and their expiration date
- View the licenses that are issued to TimeStorm instances
- Revoke any issued or stray host licenses by clicking the Revoke link next to the license with (requires a username and password, by default "admin" and "admin-password".
- Reload and refresh any new floating licenses you have added to the server by clicking the Reload link at the bottom of the page
It is recommended that you change the default credentials for this as described above if you want to limit this function to 1 or 2 people (since they are given in this page).
When the license is revoked, a confirmation message is displayed.
NOTE: "Reload" here, means reread the license file(s) on the server.
Setting up a TimeStorm User to Access the Floating License
See Using a Floating License for TimeStorm for details.
The main steps involved for configuring a user to connect to the TimeStorm license server are:
- Create serverinfo.lic files on the hosts running TimeStorm
- Start and use TimeStorm with a floating license
After Timestorm is configured to get a license from the server but can not, the user will see an error message when they try to use TimeStorm specific features embedded in Eclipse. Common errors occur if TimeStorm cannot connect to the license server or if the license server is out of licenses. The server web page shown above indicates the license usage.
Once a user starts TimeStorm and leases a license from the server, they can continue to use Timestorm for 24 hours. At the end of 24 hours, TimeStorm will contact the server to renew the license. If the server is able to renew the license, one can continue to use TimeStorm. Otherwise TimeStorm will not work for Timesys specific features. If you restart TimeStorm within the 24-hour period, it is required that the license sever is reachable to use TimeStorm.
Floating Licensing FAQs:
Q1. I started the license server, but I do not see anything printed on the console. How do I know if the server is running?
A1. The license server does not print anything on the console. The messages are logged in a file in
Q2: I started the license sever, but cannot run TimeStorm using the server.
A2: Check the number of licenses installed and the number of licenses available in the license server web page. Also check if the serverinfo.lic file on the TimeStorm host has the correct server IP address and server port number.
Q3: How can I run the license server as a daemon?
A3: On Ubuntu, you can run the license server as a daemon using the start-stop-daemon utility as shown, below:
start-stop-daemon --start –b –m –p licenseServer.pid –-chdir <path to licenseServer.jar file> --chuid <user name to run the server as> --exec /usr/bin/java --jar licenseServer.jar
See also: https://leonid.shevtsov.me/post/how-to-make-a-java-daemon-with-start-stop-daemon/ is a good reference on running .jar files as a daemon, and the start-stop-daemon man page.
Troubleshooting
Besides the server log mentioned above, there is also a client side log stored in the TimeStorm workspace. It will be found in a sub-directory named .metadata and the file is named .log.
In addition, the License Server status web page may be used to confirm that you have connectivity on the client side for the IP address and port used- and also that a license is available. If network issues are suspected, this is an easy way to test much of the path without using TimeStorm itself.
