How do I set up a floating license server (FlexNet) on Windows?

 

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This article is mainly for Pixyz users and/or IT teams who are new to FlexNet and need to set it up for the first time. FlexNet is a floating license manager server that will allow a wide range of Pixyz users access to a license within the company network.

 

If you are just renewing your contract, you can update your license tokens and obtain a new license file directly from Pixyz: Support Unity.

 

If you are already using FlexLM or FlexNet to manage other software, you can use your existing server(s) to host and manage Pixyz licenses.

 

 

 

Select a computer to host your FlexNet server and license manager that conforms to the following requirements:

 

 

 

It is recommended to use the most recent FlexNet servers and packages to avoid any licensing issues or incompatibility with Pixyz software. The current version used by Pixyz is 11.16.

Microsoft Visual C++ 2012 Redistributable Package must also be installed.

 

It is also recommended not to use "C:\ProgramFiles\" or "Desktop" as the installation folder. Consider using something such as: "C:\PixyzLicenseServer\" instead.

 

 

Once the above FlexNet archive is unzipped on your server, go to its folder location. 

Run LMTools.exe and go to the System Settings tab.

Make note of the Computer/Hostname and Ethernet address and send this information to your Pixyz contact.

 

Information for license generation can also be retrieved using Command Prompt:

In the Command Prompt window, these two quantities will be reported as the Host Name and the Physical Address:

 

For FlexNet license activation/obtainment, reach out to Pixyz support or the sales team. In case your network is secured by custom firewall settings, please specify two port numbers to be used. The recommended ports are:

Please note: These ports can be set manually without altering the license file, following the following scheme:

 

 

On Windows, you can create a Windows service to automatically start the license server process when the machine is started. To do this, follow the steps below:

 

    1. Open your license server installation directory. You should have the following structure:

 

PIXYZ.exe is the Pixyz vendor daemon for the FlexNet license server.

 

A valid Pixyz license file (e.g pixyzflexlm-pixyzProductName.lic) must be available on the computer/license server to complete the current activation process.

 

    2. Execute lmtools.exe. Then, in the “Service/License File” tab:

 

    3. In the Start/Stop/Reread tab, click on the Edit Advanced Settings button and select Restrict lmdown to work only from node where lmgrd is running. Click the Save Advanced settings button.

 

4. In the Config Services tab:

 

    5. Click Save Service.

    6. Start the FlexNet Server for Pixyz by clicking on the Start/Stop/Reread tab or button in Lmtools.exe.

 

You can check the server status & Pixyz vendor daemon activation in the Server Status tab.

 

If the license service does not start properly, check that the service is configured as Local System account, rather than a Local Service account.

 

To change the service settings:

The license service will start normally from the lmtools.exe application.

 

 

Your team can now start using its Pixyz product(s) by using the Pixyz License Manager tool to set up the server details. See the example below in Pixyz Studio: 

 

Note: Port 27000 is used by default. Specific port numbers can be set up, see above.

 

Important: Do not forget to turn ON the Flex LM setting in the Pixyz product license manager ( this should be ON by default).