Server Express Licensing - Micro Focus

Server Express Licensing
Introduction
Licensing is a core part of Server Express and a valid license is required to run both
the development system and any COBOL applications developed using Server Express.
Because it is integral to the whole product, it can also cause a number of issues when
things go wrong. This article aims to provide an explanation of the types of licenses
and to provide solutions to some of the more common issues.
There are two types of licenses and both are administered differently. First, there are
development licenses. These are required to run the development system
components, such as the compiler and Animator. Second, there are Application
Server licenses which are needed to run (deploy) applications outside of the
development system. Each of these types of license has different 'flavors' and their
own set of issues.
Development Licenses
Development licenses are managed using the License Administration Service,
mflm_admin. This utility resides in the directory where the license manager is
installed. You can find the license manager directory using the following commands:
• cd $COBDIR/lmf
• ./lmfgetpv
This will give output similar to this:
License Manager version 125
Loaded from /opt/lib/mflmf
The utility should be run using the mflmadm script, which will set-up the required
environment.
In Server Express 4.0 SP2, you can simply run the mflicense script from any directory.
This will present the following screen:
Select the License system required
1. Development License System
2. Application Server License System
X. Exit
Choosing option 1, Development License System will run the mflm_admin utility.
Development licenses include a special set of Application Server licenses which are
automatically installed in the application license database. This special set of
Application Server licenses are only usable within the Server Express development
environment and are provided for developer unit testing. For these licenses to be
recognized, you must refresh the license manager using either 'lmfgetpv r' or by
selecting F7 Refresh from the main mflm_admin screen.
Common Issues with Development Licenses:
• Micro Focus LMF – 004: You have exceeded the license limit for this
product.
• Micro Focus LMF – 005: You have exceeded the license limit for this
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Server Express Licensing
product.
This is a common error when running batch compiles from a script. Standard
licenses have a minimum lifespan of 30 seconds, meaning that if a licensed
process runs for less than 30 seconds the license will not become available for
re-use until 30 seconds has elapsed. When a process runs for more than 30
seconds the license is freed immediately.
To prevent the error and cause the system to wait until a license is available,
use the LMFWAIT environment variable:
e.g. export LMFWAIT=10,5 will cause the license manager to make 10
attempts to get a license, pausing for 5 seconds between attempts.
• Micro Focus LMF - 006: You are not licensed to use this product or
version
This can be caused by not refreshing the license database after an initial
installation of licenses and can be rectified by using either F7 Refresh from the
Licensing Administration Services main menu or by running ./lmfgetpv r from
the directory where the license manager is running.
• Execution error : file '/opt/microfocus/cobol/inoc.gnt'
This is a response to a licensing issue, however the license manager cannot
display the message correctly as the terminal definition in use is missing one or
more of the essential entries. Refer to the Terminfo Database and Terminal
Devices chapter in the User's Guide for details on correcting the display
problem.
• Micro Focus LMF - 010: Unable to contact license manager.
There are several possible causes for this issue. First, the license manager may
not be running. In this case, simply start the license manager using mflmman.
If this fails with a message “There is already a copy of License Manager
running!”, try running ./mflmman FORCE. If this again fails, you will need to
kill the process before starting the license manager again. Determine the
process id to kill the license manager using ps -ef|grep mf.
If this happens regularly, then it could be due to a clean-up process removing
the LMF-common named pipe from the /tmp or /usr/tmp directory (specified by
the Unix OS TMPDIR environment variable). If this is the case then either the
clean-up process should be changed or the LMF-common named pipe can be
relocated by editing /etc/mflmrscript, adding the following 2 lines before
running mflm_manager:
LMFCOMMON=/any_other_directory
export LMFCOMMON
The above lines will also need to be added to the profile of all users.
• Corrupt License Database
Run lmfdbrecover & re-enter licenses using mflmadm or mflicense.
Application Server Licenses
Application Server licenses can be administered using the Apptrack utility. This is
located in the $COBDIR/aslmf directory. In Server Express 4.0 SP2, it can also be
accessed using the mflicense script and selecting option 2, Application Server License
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System, from the menu. Application Server licenses can be split into 2 main
categories, Model 1 and Model 2. Within these categories they can be further divided
into 32-bit and 64-bit.
Model 1 licenses are associated with an application, i.e. their availability for use
depends on the setting of the $COBDIR environment variable. This means that two
applications running on the same system in different locations need their own pool of
licenses. Model 2 licenses share a common pool of licenses. The way that the license
overdraft works also differs between the two license models. For Model 1 licenses,
there are a number of overdraft licenses available which can be used for up to 30
days. The actual number of overdraft licenses depends upon the number of installed
license units. Model 2 licenses will allow the number of licenses to be exceeded by up
to 10% at any time and in addition it will allow the number of licenses being used to
exceed 10% for a maximum of 10 days. The day count is reset to zero if the extra
overdraft facility is not used for 10 consecutive days.
64-bit licenses are required to run a 64-bit application and can also be used to run a
32-bit application. The exception to this is with the AIX platform, where until Server
Express 4.0 SP2 32-bit and 64-bit each required their own license. A 32-bit license
can only be used to run 32-bit applications.
You can tell the type of licenses installed using menu option 2, License Summary, in
Apptrack. Note that Model 1 and Model 2 licenses cannot be intermixed within the
license database.
Common Issues with Application Server licenses
• This is a Development System license!
Apptrack cannot be used to enter development system licenses – you must use
either mflmadm or mflicense option 1.
• Option 7 in Apptrack (Current Users) doesn't work
This option uses apptrack.log to monitor license use. If this file doesn't exist,
the current users feature will not work. It can be created using touch
/var/aslmf/apptrack.log
• No Application Server License available at COBDIR location
There are several reason for this message:
1. If only development licenses are installed, then this could caused by the
special set of Application Server licenses not being in the apptrack database.
In this instance you should try to refresh the license database using ‘lmfgetpv r’
at the command line. You must be in the directory where License Management
Facility is installed, which is /usr/lib/mflmf or /opt/lib/mflmf by default,
depending on the operating system.
If this fails to resolve the issue, then the license database could be corrupt so
run lmfdbrecover and then re-enter the development licenses, remembering to
refresh the database.
2. The message could also be due to a corrupt Apptrack database. In this case
you would need to run aslmdbrecover and re-enter any application licenses.
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The special set of Application Serve application licenses will need to be added
using 'lmfgetpv r'.
3. Finally, this message could also be due to running out of licenses. Standard
Model 1 licenses have a minimum lifetime of 30 seconds, so if several jobs
which last less than 30 seconds are run, it is possible that the license manager
hasn't released a license for re-use in-time for the next job to run. To allow the
license manager to wait for a license to become available use the ASLMFRETRY
environment variable. Alternatively, other types of licenses can be purchased
instead of the Standard Model 1 licenses which are released for re-use
immediately.
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