FAQ - RLM Floating License Server

Question: Can I change the port of the rlm floating server?

Answer: The port is configurable. You can just edit the license file and change the port (default value is 5053). This will not affect the license itself. The checksum is not affected by changes of the first line in the license. Then the server is reachable under the new port and, if not already in use, also under the default port.


Example of license file for default port 5053:

HOST localhost ANY 5053
ISV lieber
LICENSE lieber myproduct 2.0 permanent 2 issuer="LieberLieber GmbH" issued=03-may-2019
_ck=aed7535130 sig="60P0452THNQ9HDX6MVYHXU4C0CNR6SK7K4VNYFEJY0947C1RREEDNPDWY6R2HC8"


To change the port to a custom port (e.g. 12345) the first line has to be changed to following:

HOST localhost ANY 12345

Default port and protocol

The license server listens for license requests on all ports configured via licenses (including the enable_vm.lic explained below) using the TCP protocol.

Additionally, the licensing server also uses port 5053 with UDP protocol. This is only needed for the autodiscovery feature of the server, which is disabled in our rlm server configuration.

Enable_vm.lic

The license server also contains an additional license file that enables it to run on virtual machines. This file is named "enable_vm.lic" and looks like this:

HOST localhost ANY 5053
ISV lieber
LICENSE lieber rlm_server_enable_vm 1.0 permanent 1 hostid=ANY
_ck=151efc172d sig="60P0450P81Q9TQDJC08V9YAJ3VG11VUF84W1AJ822H1Q4TP4
K3E44B8H43QB11VSQDTX6CAAPR"

Note that the port configured in this license file does not need to match the port in your license file to receive licenses from the license server.

As such, it is not recommended to change the port configured in this file.


Question: Which ports do I need to open in a firewall?

Answer: The Rlm License Server uses two ports to communicate with the client. Both need to be opened in the firewall.

First port is the TCP port 5053. If you changed the default port then you need to open your custom port.

The second port used by the server changes with every start of the server. To prevent this you can specify this port in the license file:


Example of license file with custom ISV port :

HOST localhost ANY 5053

ISV lieber port=12345

LICENSE lieber myproduct 2.0 permanent 2 issuer="LieberLieber GmbH" issued=03-may-2019
_ck=aed7535130 sig="60P0452THNQ9HDX6MVYHXU4C0CNR6SK7K4VNYFEJY0947C1RREEDNPDWY6R2HC8"


In this example you need to allow ports 5053 & 12345.

Please note: Do not use the port 5054 for ISV, this port is used by the Rlm admin website.


Question: Do I need to open a UDP port in the firewall?

Answer: No! UDP is used for broadcasting, and LieberLieber does not use that.

In order to check out a floating license, you just need to open the TCP port, which defaults to 5053.

Additionally you should start Rlm License Server with an extra parameter in commandline: "-noudp"


Question: Can I change the host id in the license file?

Answer: No, the host id is part of the signature and can not be changed. If you need to change the host id you need a new license file.


Question: How can I get the host id needed for the license?

Answer: You can use the tool rlmutil to get a host id.  Just run "rlmutil rlmhostid".

For more details see the rlm administrator documentation: RLM License Administration.pdf


Question: Where is the RLM diagnostic log file?

Answer: Go to the RLM server's web interface. From the server machine go to http://localhost:5054 or from another machine use http://servername:5054, replacing server name as appropriate. On the left side, click on "Diagnostics". On the Diagnostics page, click on "Run Diagnostics", the Output File will tell you where the rlm diagnostic file will be saved.

Please note that a password file is required in order to generate diagnostics in RLM v14.2+. If a password file (rlm.pw) hasn't been setup already, you can set this up by: In the same directory as the RLM executable, create a new file “rlm.pw”

  1. In this newly created file, create a user line of the format: username:password:list-of-permissions Example: [yourusername]:[keep blank for now]:all
  2. Launch RLM; If using the example above and you have a blank password, RLM will run for 10 minutes before shutting down.
  3. Login to the web portal using the username you created, and a blank password
  4. From the menu column choose “Change Password”
  5. Enter your new password and click “Change Password”
  6. You will now be able to run Diagnostics

One thing to note about the rlm.pw file, the user running RLM will need to have write permissions to this file's directory, and to parent directory, in order for web users to be able to change their passwords.

Question: Can I controll the use of licenses?

Answer: The RLM options file allows control of the use of licenses by various users and groups of users within your organization. Options are provided to reserve licenses (RESERVE), and to either allow (INCLUDE or INCLUDEALL) or disallow (EXCLUDE or EXCLUDEALL) license use. Additionally, options are provided to create groups of users (GROUP) or hosts (HOST_GROUP), or IP addresses (INTERNET_GROUP), and to control the maximum number of licenses a user or group can check out (MAX). RLM License Administration Manual