- What is Product Activation?
- How do I activate my Bentley Application?
- Do I have to activate every Bentley application I install on my machine?
- At the end of the activation wizard, there is a screen to check out a license. Do I need to check out a license in order to run my application?
- Bentley has renewed my SELECT contract, how do I get my new license?
- What happened to MicroStation's 15-minute "Demo Mode"?
- How does activation work for a large site? Will SELECT Server XM allow a system administrator to activate machines in batch mode?
- Is the 30-day activation period also available to pre-XM applications? If so, are there any special settings that need to be applied?
Question 1: What is Product Activation?
Answer: Product activation is the act of authenticating a product for entitled use. V8 XM Edition applications are equipped, by default, with three behavioral states - Pre-activated, Activated, and Deactivated.
The Pre-activated period begins with installation and ends after 30 days or with Activation, which ever comes first. During the Evaluation period, most applications run in full-functioning mode, with no limitations applied to their activated state.
An application is Activated when it is licensed, which is most commonly achieved by connecting to a valid SELECT Server. An application can return to Evaluation mode if its licensing server cannot be found. In this case, the Evaluation period begins again, providing a 30-day window during which to resolve any unintended disconnection.
An application will reach its Deactivated state only when the Evaluation period has lapsed and the product has not been activated. In its Deactivated state, an application generally runs for a short period of time and then stops. For example, MicroStation's deactivated state runs for 15 minutes at a time and then times out.
Question 2: How do I activate my Bentley Application?
Answer: After a Bentley Application is installed, the user will be prompted to run the Activation Wizard. After clicking yes, the Product Activation Wizard initializes and asks the user to choose the type of installation they have:
- SELECT Server ONLINE
- A SELECT Server deployed at their site
- Non-SELECT user
- Or an evaluation license
Next, the user is then prompted for the activation information:
- Server Name
- Site Activation Key
The key is sent from Bentley in the form of a fulfillment document to the site administrator. The site administrator may then distribute the key at his/her discretion. The user just needs to simply copy and paste the key into the space provided in the activation dialog.
The user may then choose to Test Connection. This test simply pings the server to verify a connection can be made.
Next, the user is prompted to check out a license. This is an optional step and should only be utilized if a checked out license is needed. An activation summary dialog is then presented followed by a success dialog to indicate activation has completed.
The user is then returned to the Bentley application to begin working on a design file. A short video on how to activate a Bentley application can be viewed here. If activating against Bentley's hosted server SELECT Server ONLINE, please view this video.
Question 3: Do I have to activate every Bentley application I install on my machine?
Answer: No, the activation is stored in the registry, therefore all additional Bentley applications will look for and find the activation when installed.
Question 4: At the end of the activation wizard, there is a screen to check out a license. Do I need to check out a license in order to run my application?
Answer: No, this option is provided for those users who will not have a periodic connection to their SELECT Server to send log files.
Question 5:Bentley has renewed my SELECT contract, how do I get my new license?
Answer: The options are shown below:
- SELECT Server ONLINE: Your license will automatically update within 24 hours of renewal completion.
- SELECT Server deployed with internet connection: Your license will be retrieved the next time your server communicates with Bentley and a License Update message will be presented in the Message Center for you to accept the license. You may also request an update from the SELECT Server administrator interface by clicking the "Request/Update License" link found under License Management.
Simply check the "Force Full Retrieval" box and click "OK" to retrieve an updated license. Once the license has been retrieved, you will be given the opportunity to review and accept the updated license.
- SELECT Server deployed without internet connection: A SELECTServerLicense.xml file can be obtained from Bentley Technical Support's licensing group. Please click here to find your site specific contact information. Once the SELECTServerLicense.xml has been received from Bentley Technical Support, it must be imported via the SELECT Server administrator interface. First, save the file to a location where it is easily browsed from your SELECT Server. Next, simply click on the "Import Server License" link found under License Management.
From the "Import SELECT Server License File:" dialog, use the browse button to locate the license file obtained from Bentley Technical Support. Click "OK" and the license will import and then be presented for inspection. After inspection of the license, Accept it and it will be imported into SELECT Server.
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Question 6: What happened to MicroStation's 15-minute "Demo Mode"?
Answer: MicroStation still has a 15-minute time-out mode, which is invoked after the 30-day Activation period has lapsed. This is also referred to as "deactivated behavior".
Question 7: How does activation work for a large site? Will SELECT Server XM allow a system administrator to activate machines in batch mode?
Answer: SELECT Server is not designed pre-activate a desktop application, although there is a way to activate desktops in an efficient manner. XM Licensing provides support for Microsoft's Group policy settings, which can be used to create or modify registry entries to desktop machines. A Group Policy file is delivered with SELECT Server that allows the administrator to specify the SELECT Server and Activation Key on an Active Directory/NT Domain group level.
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Question 8: Is the 30-day activation period also available to pre-XM applications? If so, are there any special settings that need to be applied?
Answer: Pre-XM apps have the same real-time connection requirement with the Gateway Service as they had with the previous SELECT Server. The Gateway is, in fact, an XM application, so it has the benefit of working in a disconnected mode for up to 30 days. There is also an extension of the feature to pre-XM applications that are using the Gateway Service.
The Gateway always enables the applications it serves to run, as long as it's activated itself. As long as the application is in the SELECT Server XM's license file, pre-XM apps can be activated. The difference for a pre-XM application is that the 30-day pre-activation period is at a Site level, not a machine level. So if I begin using it on August 1st, I am starting the 30-day period on behalf of every user at the Site. If someone else tries to use it on September 3rd (and our site still doesn't have a license), the pre-activation period is already over (>30 days) and they will enter the application's deactivated behavior, which is likely a 15-min timeout mode.