RS 5.11 Network License

j_proulx

RW 5.11 does not have floating licenses. Will RS 5.10 be licenses be allowed to extend until RW 5.12? If not what actions need to be taken to upgrade sites that have Floating licenses?

 

BR

Jim Proulx

Tonje

Hi Jim,

Network licenses are discontinued starting with RS 5.11. When RS 5.10 network licenses expire, they need to be replaced by RS 5.11 node-locked licenses.

Jetman

DOH!  Discontinued?

 

Hi guys,

 

ABB better have to come up with Network licensing for 5.11 (and above) because they have some commitments with universities. For example, mine.

 

We have a Network license for 50 floating stations of RobotStudio. That license came with lifetime upgrades and support to new robotstudio versions, and that costed a lot of money as you can imagine.

 

So here I have about 200 computers with RS installed and 50 licenses avalaible on the network. (because you never know which class you will be assigned, RS is installed everywhere)

 

You want me to install 200 node locked licenses on all those computers or be stuck with 5.10?

 

That's not what my contract says.

 

I don't mind beeing told that there is no Network floating license at this time because I can wait but you better not tell me there will never be Network floating licenses again.

 

Please tell me there is someting coming up?

 

Jet

 

bertilt

Jetman,

 

We are hard at work on a good solution for a 5.11 school license. We do understand the convenience of network licenses for schools. So we are not yet upgrading the school licenses to 5.11. Your 5.10 floating license is still valid. It is also still possible to request new RS 5.10 school licenses. We really appreciate your input and would love to hear more about how you use RobotStudio. What would be the ideal solution for a future school license?

 

Bert

bertilt2008-10-09 13:54:05

Jetman

Hello Bertilt,

 

I was hoping you would do something about it and I know you workd hard, it's just that the words "Discontinued starting with RS5.11" used in the previous post sounded like "NEVER" and I was a bit scared 

 

The ideal solution for us is to continu the use of Floating license because we can ghost all our computers with RS installed and legally use a maximum of 50 RS at the same time.

 

What needs to absolutely be avoid is the installation, activation and upgrade of 50 individual licenses because it would be too much work.

 

Another solution would be a Site license (same license for all computers and no online activation needed), like what we have with Microsoft Windows or Office. However, you only need 1 student that copies it to end up with RS licenses all over the world so even though Microsoft uses that, it might not be the best solution for ABB.

 

thanks,

 

Jet

 

 

Tedenljung

I agree with Jetman.
I have fixed school package with IRB140 and RS to our local technical school and they uses also ghost to install/upgrade all laptops/computers and RS is pre-installed to all.

Some kind of network/group license is needed.

bertilt

Hi again Jet,

 

"NEVER" is not our intention, but since we don't know when, we wanted to be cautious about creating expectations.

 

Do you wipe your computers and ghost them regularly or do they stay intact for a long period of time?

 

How about a solution that requires activation after each install but with the same activation key for all computers and with the restriction that the activation needs to come from a particular domain?

 

Bert

Katydid

Bert,

 

I also use RobotStudio at a University and I am glad to hear you are working on a solution to the network licensing issues asociated with 5.11. 

 

At our institution, a good solution to software licensing seems to be a standard floating network license (no commuter checkout necessary for students).  This allows us to load the software on all our PC's (several hundred) without keying in individual license information. 

 

With the current network license we allow students to load RS on their home computers.  Students  must be logged in to our university computer network using a university login ID to run RS.  This helps us ensure that only our university students are using the software (we also have students sign a waiver agreeing to use RS only for educational purposes).

 

In addition to the network license, node-locked or commuter licenses for instructor laptops is also essential.  This allows instructors to visit high schools, community colleges and the like to give RS demonstrations (vital for student recruitment) without the need for an internet connection.

 

The licensing described above works very well with RS5.10 and most of our other CAD/CAM software vendors.

 

I hope these comments help.  I would be glad to provide additional information if you like. 

 

With respect to RS5.11... Will universities be allowed to use 5.11?  This will, of course, require a significant number of node-locked licenses from ABB.  I have been working in 5.11 using the free 30 day license, and it looks like the usability enhancements will make it much easier for students to learn.

 

  

 

 

Katydid

Bert,

 

I see there were some postings made while I was writing mine! 

 

We also ghost our systems and we do so appproximately 3 times each year (before each academic semester begins).

bertilt

So, is everyone pleased with the way that school licenses has worked in 5.10? Or are you looking for improvements?

Are there any software companies that offer a better solution?

We would like to get 5.11 in the hands of your students as soon as possible, but we have not wanted to force node-locked licenses on you. Would you want us to release the upgrade possibility to node-locked 5.11 licenses? In that case, how many would you need?

j_proulx

Hello Bertil, 

 

I know you want to get RS 5.11 to everyone ASAP but wouldt be possible to allow network users of RS 5.10 to renew the 5.10 licenses until RS 5.11 or RS 5.12 is released with the fix for floating licenses?

 

BR

bertilt

Jim,

 

There are some technical issues that make that very difficult. Without going into any details, many things have changed in 5.11, not just the product, but also the order, licensing, and distibution processes.

 

It is however possible for all users of network licenses to continue on 5.10 until the license expires.

 

Bert

bertilt2008-10-09 19:55:01

Jetman

Hello Bertilt,

 

I think Network Floating licensing was great with RS5.10.

 

Activating the licenses from a particular domain would still make it that we need to activate each computer individualy which is not something our IT guys will like to do.

 

We need to remember that the students do not have Administrator's rights so what they can do is limited, even under our supervision.

 

I would keep the current Floating system as it is.

 

Suggestion: Checking out a license for a maximum of 30 days was also a key feature that we need to keep. I don't want my students to check out all my licenses and end up stuck with no licenses avalaible. In fact, what I would like to add to the current system is the possibility to SET the maximum Checking out time. For example, Maximum 10 days.

 

Hope it helps,

 

It's really great to ask us for things like that, we appreciate it and it shows ABB commitment to their customers.

 

Jet

Jetman

Oh and yes,

 

we do wipe out our computers every semesters.

 

Even though RS5.11 looks very interesting I will not require the node locked keys. I will stick with RS5.10 until the network licensing is avalaible. Like I said earlier, it would be too much work for our IT guys to go through every computer.

 

Jet

Jetman2008-10-09 20:22:03

bertilt

Thanks for the info and the nice words Jetman!

 

I could be wrong on this, but I think that you can set the maximum number of commuter licenses that can be checked out. So that you don't risk running out of licenses for the classrooms. If you want to do that, let us know, and we will look into it.

 

Bert

kuv-vokl

Hello together,

 

i have red here something about the missing network license.

 

From my view a can say the following:

We are a little german company with 25 employees and we have only one (1) network license, but we have five or six persons (robot software engineers) that work with RS 5.10 on different times and also on different places.  What we do is, we share a single network license. And that is the best way to handle a license.

 

If you would have a real floating license, so you move it with a license manager from one workstation to another, this would be also possible.

 

So if we need to have some new node-locked licenses, we have to buy five or six new licences. This is too expensive for us.  We can not buy a lot of licenses that we do not need at the same time.

 

I hope the netwotk license will not fade away and i am curious what is going on.

 

Klaus Vogel

KA?hne+Vogel Sondermaschinen GmbH

 

 

 

 

Thilbi

Hello,

i found Klaus has right. The also need the posibilty to move the license between more computers.

Best regards
Thilbi

bertilt

Hello network license users,

Besides finding out how schools are using RS, I am also interested in finding out the usage scenarios of other users of network licenses. Outside of the schools, most existing subscribers to network licenses have very small licenses. Single user network licenses are common. It is not quite clear to me how these are used. Having a license for just one user means that as soon as anyone is using RS nobody else can. How can you live with that? Is there perhaps really just one user that has the software installed on several computers and thus prefer to have the license on a server. Or if you are several users on one license, how do you decide who gets it at any given time? And what do you do if several persons have an urgent need?

Jetman

Basically,

 

The answer to "how can you live with that" is that you really have no choice. You either get a second license or be only 1 using RS.  It doesn't matter if it's on a network or if it's on a computer, you can only have 1 person that uses RS at a time.

 

BUT, the thing is, if it's on the Network, even though only 1 person can use RS at a time, at least you do not have to switch computers or reinstall the key to get it when the other guy is done using it and that's the major point here.

 

I think that many small integrators can live with only 1 license, they have 1 or 2 specialists of RS, the rest are PLC programmers, electricians, enginneers, etc.

 

Another nice thing about a network floating license is that, when the big RS specialist is on vacation, you can play with RS and learn. If the RS specialist has the only RS licence on his laptop with a node-locked license then when he goes home you're screwed (unless he leaves his laptop at work and you know his password  )

 

Jet

 

 

graemepaulin

Hi,

 

Our Network user has only one licence, but there are several people that use that license at different times.

They are all working on different projects and simulation is just oner part of that project so most of the time there is no conflict, but if two of them want to use it at one time the higher prority project uses it first.

 

Also as Jet mentioned training up the new guys is easier as they can jump on when no one else is using the license - saves a lot of hassle moving a node locked license round.

 

 

kuv-vokl

Hello together,

as i see there ara some poeple thinking like me.

 

The problem with school licensing is one thing but the main reason for using RS is the commercial using the get robots working in companies like mine.

The need a flexible using of their license. I do not want a node-locked license.

 

Jetman, thank you. - Are are right. That is the situation that we have und that is the operative point.

 

But there is one important question.

What shall i do ? - I want using and i should using the new RS 5.11 but i have a license problem !!!

 

To ABB : I need a solution !!!

 

Thank you all.

 

Klaus Vogel

KA?hne+Vogel Sondermaschinen GmbH

 

 

bertilt

I hear you Klaus. For now, you have the choice of either continuing on your 5.10 network license or upgrading to node-locked 5.11 licenses. If that does not meet your needs, please send me a personal e-mail and we will work something out.

 

We are of course trying to provide the license solutions that our users prefer. At this point of time, 9 out of 10 subscribers select node-locked licenses, so in 5.11 we have optimized the product and our processes for that. But one thing does not exclude the other. Once we get a good picture of what network license subscribers really want, we will do our best to provide that.

bertilt

Based on the (still relatively few) posts in this thread I get the picture that current network license subscribers like it the way it is in 5.10 and are not looking for improvements. Am I right or wrong?

bertilt2008-10-13 10:25:06

graemepaulin

Hi Bertil,

 

Yes the current network license is working fine for our users, no improvements needed.

kuv-vokl

Hello Bertil,

 

i am not against improvements. - But the current network license works.

I don't need more but also not less.

If you can "improve" something on handling a netwotk license, please do it.

 

Thank you for your support.

Klaus

 

Katydid

Bert,

 

We have had only one problem with the network licensing used with 5.10.  We worked unsuccessfuly with tech support and basically gave up trying to resolve the issue when 5.11 came out.   This seems to be an isolated incident. 

 

We have had good luck also working with FlexLM licensing used by AutoDesk (AutoCAD) and Siemens (NX).

 

With repect to the number of node-locked licenses we would like to run at my university next semester (starting in January)... we would need 55 seats for computer labs and instructor stations on our campus, and an additional 25 seats for students to load on their home computers (time stamp valid until June1, 2009).  With these numbers we have reduced to a bare minimum the number of computer labs that would have RS installed. Can we get this many seats, and if so how do we proceed?  This installation would work for us until late summer '09 when we would need to set up our computer labs for another semester that starts in August.

 

Thanks for looking into the networking issues that affect universities and buisiness alike.

bertilt

Katydid,

 

I will be happy to set you up with the number of seats of 5.11 that you need for now. Send me an e-mail to start the process. By the summer we should definitely have a new school program in place that is better tailored to everyones needs.

 

Best Regards,

 

Bert

dh_custompak

[QUOTE=bertilt]Outside of the schools, most existing subscribers to network licenses have very small licenses. Single user network licenses are common. It is not quite clear to me how these are used. Having a license for just one user means that as soon as anyone is using RS nobody else can. How can you live with that? Is there perhaps really just one user that has the software installed on several computers and thus prefer to have the license on a server. Or if you are several users on one license, how do you decide who gets it at any given time? And what do you do if several persons have an urgent need?[/QUOTE] <?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

 

Hi,

There are about 5 people max that use Robot Studio in my company. There is never really an "urgent need" for any of us to use it. I am the person that uses it the most. If anyone else needs something from it. I can let them use it for a bit (however this usually doesn't happen). We have considered getting a second license, in fact, we just got requested a quote for another.

 

Floating licenses make life more simple. When you have 1 person that uses it quite a bit, and 4 other people that hardly ever use it. It makes everything that much less of a hassle. I would be incredibly disappointed if ABB discontinued floating licenses, It would just end up costing our company more money, and it would be more of a hassle.

 

I think the current license system is fine the way it is, and I would appreciate it if we could upgrade with our floating license when 5.12 is released.

dh_custompak2008-10-13 21:45:18

mattdavis

I also work in a company where there are only 1 to 5 people using RobotStudio. We currently have 1 node locked license on my laptop RS5.10. I wanted to change this to a network license but was unable to do so without purchasing another license so i waited until our years license expired and RS5.11 came out around the same time so i tried to do both at once!

Fairly annoying. My options are now
1) to continue with RS5.10 and purchase a network license.
2) purchase approx 5 node locked licenses for what 1 network license would allow us to do
3) purchase a laptop specifically for robotstudio and pass this around between people who want to use it.

as you can see none of these solutions are really ideal as RS5.11 seems to have a few performance and usability improvements that would be very helpful for us.