Updating FLEXlm Installations

These notes are intended for sites using FLEXlm to manage versions of GenStat prior to 8.1. As of Release 7.2 (Seventh Edition, Service Pack 1, issued August 2004), a revised FLEXlm scheme was implemented at some sites. Further minor changes are included at Release 8.1. These notes detail the changes made and preferred upgrade paths.

Please note the following details apply to GenStat only and not to other applications produced or distributed by VSN International Ltd.

Changes in Seventh Edition Service Pack 1

The principal changes are as follows:

The NAG daemon has been replaced by the VSN daemon
The DAEMON keyword in the license file has been replaced by VENDOR
The licensing is implemented using the latest version of FLEXlm (v9.2)
The license keys include a longer digital key for improved security
The default license folder has been changed from C:\FLEXlm\license to C:\FLEXlm
The default license file name has been changed from license.dat to vsn.lic
The default port has been changed from 7312 to 6983
License requests should now be sent to support@vsni.co.uk

Changes in Release 8.1 (Eighth Edition)

The principal changes are as follows:

The FLEXlm components have been upgraded to FLEXlm v9.5
The application license file (genstat.glz) has been renamed and relocated. The format of the file has not altered, see here for further details.

Identifying your GenStat license version

The first thing to do is to identify which version of license you have. GenStat FLEXlm licenses prior to 7.2 look like this:

SERVER glaramara 000802465d2e 7312 
DAEMON NAG C:/flexlm/bin/NAG 
FEATURE GENSTAT_5 NAG 7.100 31-dec-2004 4 3C0D82983E6B1A24F969 "W32,WND,W32,"

whereas licenses issued for Release 7.2 look like this

SERVER haystacks 00504ad357a1 6983
VENDOR VSN C:\FLEXlm\VSN.exe
FEATURE GenStat VSN 0505 permanent 8 PLATFORMS=i86_n DUP_GROUP=UHD \
	SN=40108150 SIGN="01B4 2417 22F0 668C A411 0C0A 8EE4 C65F 766E \
	2449 6F10 3982 D228 232A 7AAB ECD9 D8D1 2CA7 7BA6 AE75 57AA"

Updating licenses from 7.1 or earlier

When updating from Release 7.1 or earlier you will need to update certain files on the server (lmgrd.exe, lmutil.exe, lmtools.exe) to the v9.5 versions, replace NAG.exe by VSN.exe and obtain a new license key. The simplest way of doing this on a Windows server is to use the FLEXlm installation program supplied with your most recent software update. This will install the FLEXlm components using a dummy license file and generate a license request that you should send to support@vsni.co.uk. Please see Installing Network Licenses for full details.

If you wish to carry on using older versions of Genstat alongside the latest release you should refer to the the folder FLEXlm\License\old_genstat on the GenStat CD-ROM. Readme.txt which explains how to install patches to older versions of GenStat. These will enable the older releases to continue working with the new key.

Updating licenses from 7.2

You should first check your license key (VSN.lic). The support date code (eg 0505 in the example above) will determine whether or not it is valid for the latest version of GenStat. See License Details for minimum support dates for new versions of Genstat. You may need a new license key if the key is not sufficiently up to date.

In addition to a valid key you will also need a file directing GenStat to the license server. This was previously called GenStat.glz. For 8.1 or newer versions you will have to make a copy of this file, called GenStat.lic, and stored in one of the following locations:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\VSN International\Licenses
C:\Program Files\Gen8ed\Bin

The first location is preferred as it will simplify installation of software updates in the future. When you install a new version it will find the key in "Common Files" and run immediately, if still valid.