Administrator's Reference
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KeyServer ® Administrator's Reference |
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KeyAccess -- Windows |
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KeyAccess is the users' interface to the KeyServer. All events related to using controlled programs are sent from KeyAccess to the KeyServer, and KeyAccess is the means by which the KeyServer's commands are carried out at the client's computer. A copy of KeyAccess running on your Windows computer can connect up to any KeyServer, including a KeyServer running on a Macintosh computer.
KeyServer-controlled programs are accessible to you only if you have KeyAccess installed and running on your computer. Once the appropriate files are installed your computer and KeyAccess has been properly configured, KeyAccess will automatically connect you to the KeyServer each time you restart your computer.
Once you are connected to the KeyServer, KeyAccess will get KeyServer's permission whenever you launch a controlled program. Since requesting a license from KeyServer is automatic, silent, and instantaneous, you will generally not be aware of KeyAccess' presence on your computer unless your administrator has chosen to require a logon password, or if KeyAccess has occasion to provide you with a message, for instance to inform you that a license you've been waiting for is available.
The icon for KeyAccess gives you a visual indication of whether it is connected to the KeyServer or not. If the KeyAccess icon shows a key with network wires, KeyAccess has properly connected to the KeyServer. If the icon is a key with no wires, KeyAccess is running but is not currently connected to the KeyServer. If that is the case, you can manually attempt a connection, as described below.
KeyAccess loads and connects to a KeyServer each time you start or restart your computer. Under normal circumstances, KeyAccess is completely invisible; you do not need to perform any special task or login sequence to have access to KeyServer-controlled programs.
You have the option of connecting your computer to the KeyServer either by TCP/IP or by IPX, provided that the network, the KeyServer, and your computer all support the needed protocol and that the KeyServer is configured to allow connection over the needed protocol. If your network or computer is set to support only one of these protocols, that is of course the one you will use to connect your computer to the KeyServer.
This section tells you how to get a connection via either protocol. Note that while a KeyServer can support both TCP/IP and IPX connections, each computer can be connected to the KeyServer by only one protocol at any given time.
Whether you'll be connecting via TCP/IP or IPX, you first need to get KeyAccess installed, and correctly configured, on your computer. If this has not already been done for you, you should contact your KeyServer administrator, who can give you access to the KeyServer Client Setup folder, which contains an executable (SETUP.EXE) that will lead you through the installation process.
If you are installing KeyAccess yourself and will sometimes need to use KeyServer-controlled programs off the network (via "Portable Keys", discussed below) you should ask your administrator for access to the "Mobile" installation folder. The installation procedures are identical though the results are different: the Mobile install places one more program, called KeyCheckout, on your computer (this is the application that lets you sign a program out for off-network use). In either case, here's how to do the installation:
Launch the installer (SETUP.EXE) your administrator has made available to you. This program puts the appropriate files in the appropriate locations based on the information you provide in the Client Network Connection dialog, as shown below.
If you select "Use TCP/IP (Winsock)" you will need to enter the KeyServer's IP address or DNS name in the field at the bottom of this window. Your administrator can provide you with the information you need.
Note that the Browse button is for use with IPX connections and is therefore disabled when you have select TCP/IP as the network protocol.
If you select "Use IPX (NetWare)" you will need to enter the KeyServer's name or use the Browse button at the bottom of this window to select from the KeyServers available on the network. If you are unsure of the KeyServer's name (for instance if the Browse button provides you with multiple entries, meaning there is more than one KeyServer on the network), contact your KeyServer administrator.
If you are manually entering a KeyServer's name supplied by your KeyServer administrator, note that entries in this field are case-sensitive and should have an underscore (_) character, and not spaces, between words.
When you click Browse the setup program polls the network and provides you with the name of all KeyServers on the network. The results of a Browse might look like this:
You can attempt to connect to any KeyServer listed here but it is of course important that you know which is the correct one. Since each KeyServer is likely to supports a unique set of programs you may not be able to launch your applications if you make an incorrect selection here. Any KeyServer listed may or may not be authenticating attempted logons, so be sure the KeyServer you select is the correct one. Once you have selected a KeyServer and clicked OK, your logon will be confirmed by a message, and KeyAccess will connect you to that KeyServer automatically each time you restart your computer.
Once you have connected to the KeyServer (via either TCP/IP or IPX) you should see KeyAccess in the Taskbar (or iconized on the desktop in Windows 3.1 or Windows for Workgroups). If you select KeyAccess, the following window appears.
If you check the first option, Remove messages after 5 minutes, each message you receive from the KeyServer remains on your screen either until you manually dismiss it (by clicking OK or Cancel) or until five minutes pass. Usually you do not need to check this option. However, if you frequently run backup programs or print large documents while you are away from your computer, the arrival of a KeyServer message would delay these jobs indefinitely (until you manually dismiss the message). In this case, you should opt to have messages removed so your computer will be delayed for a maximum of 5 minutes.
Checking this option has the drawback that, if you are away from your computer when a message arrives from the KeyServer, it may be removed from your screen before you have a chance to read it. Also, if a license you are using is set to expire after a certain amount of time, the message announcing that the license has timed out is unlike any other messages in that it will not disappear until you manually dismiss it.
Note that checking Remove messages after 5 minutes will have no effect in the case of messages telling you either that a license has timed out, or has been left in the background longer than the time specified by your administrator. These messages can appear at intervals shorter than five minutes, and if you were away from your desk for a long period of time, the messages could needlessly accumulate, causing you to have to dismiss a large number of them when you return to your computer.
If you want to keep your clock synchronized with the KeyServer's clock, check the second option, Synchronize clock with the KeyServer. The KeyServer checks your clock each time you start up, and automatically adjusts any minor discrepancy. If your clock differs from the KeyServer's clock by more than a few minutes, you are given a chance to cancel the otherwise automatic re-adjustment.
KeyAccess defaults to the Give hints for efficient use option. If you launch a KeyServer-controlled program from a file server, KeyAccess tells you that you can get better performance by copying the program to a local hard disk. This feature helps reduce unnecessary load on a file server, and the network. You may wish to turn this message off if you only launch applications from a server for a specific reason. Users without a hard disk are not bothered by this message, since presumably they have no choice but to launch server-based applications.
Your administrator can request that the KeyServer control launches of unkeyed, as well as keyed, applications. If the KeyServer is set to control or log unkeyed programs, the Record launches of unkeyed programs checkbox will be set on, and the selection itself will be grayed. If the administrator has chosen not to control or log unkeyed programs, this selection will still be grayed but the checkbox will be set off (unchecked). If this selection is enabled and you can click the checkbox on and off, your administrator has left it up to you whether your unkeyed launches will be recorded in KeyServer's log files.
The Connection field contains the name or address of the KeyServer to which you are currently connected. If you need to switch to a different KeyServer, make sure to enter the appropriate address here, then click Logon. Note that the above example shows an IPX (NetWare) connection and so has a Browse button. Users connected via TCP/IP will not see a Browse button on this window. IPX users who are manually entering a KeyServer name should remember that entries are case-sensitive and should have an underscore (_) in place of any spaces between words.
The Request for Notification tells you if you are in the queue for a license. You will see a notification here only when you've had an program launch denied because all of its licenses were in use, and if you clicked OK when KeyServer offered to put you in the queue. If you're waiting for a license, the lower half of this dialog box contains two options. The first option is to remain on the waiting list (this is the default). If you choose the second option, Clear the Request, the KeyServer removes you from the waiting list, and you are not notified when the license is available.
If you're not currently queued for a license, the message will indicate that there is no notification pending. For more information, see Notification, below.
Once you have specified a KeyServer in the Connection: field, you might want to click Log on to see if you have to enter your name and password. If the KeyServer requires a password, the dialog pictured below appears, and you should enter the proper information. Once you have typed this information, you are authenticated to the KeyServer.
Some KeyServer administrators may choose a different method to determine whether a user is authenticated. For instance, only users whose computers are located in a special range of IP addresses may be authenticated. In such a case no password is required, so you will not see this dialog; you will be automatically permitted (or denied) access to the KeyServer.
There may be programs that demand authentication every time you launch, whether or not you have previously typed your proper password. In these situations, the KeyServer prompts you for your password automatically; you do not need to open the KeyAccess window again. The authentication dialog box is presented, and you must type your name and password in order to continue (you always have three chances to type your password correctly).
Your KeyServer administrator might also choose to limit access to individual programs. If you are not allowed to use a KeyServer-controlled program, you will be alerted to this fact when you launch it.
Certain programs might have a limit on the length of time you can use the license before you must quit the application. Timed Usage is set and adjusted by the KeyServer administrator on a program-by-program basis. When you launch a timed-use program, the KeyServer notes the hour, minute, second (and date, if applicable). When the license expires, you will be asked to quit from the program. You may then re-launch the program, or get in line to be notified when a license is again available.
If you often find yourself having to quit and relaunch a particular application without having to wait in line, you should notify your KeyServer administrator; a timed setting can be configured to automatically reassign the license to you if there is no one in the queue when your current interval expires.
When KeyAccess alerts you that a license has timed out, you are given two minutes to save your work and quit the program. If you do not quit, you are reminded one more time before the application presents you with a request to save your work or quit without saving. Once you have been asked to quit a program, the KeyServer makes the license available to any new users, even if you don't quit the program immediately; at this point KeyServer no longer counts the license as in use, and considers further use a license violation.
Again, your administrator can also allow timed use license to be extended automatically. In this case you are transparently granted a time extension for the controlled program provided there is no one waiting to use it.
Administrators interested in setting up licenses this way should see the discussion of the Options Tab in the KeyConfigure chapter.
The KeyServer administrator can decide which controlled programs are available for off-site use, i.e., without a network connection. In order to use these programs while disconnected from the network, you need to obtain a portable key for the program. Portable keys are created and manipulated by a special program called KeyCheckout, which your administrator may allow you access to, although access might be restricted according to the administrator's wishes. If you need to use keyed programs while you are not connected to your network, contact your KeyServer administrator, who can either create a portable key for you, or can give you a copy of setup.exe that will install KeyCheckout on your computer so that you can create portable keys yourself.
You can store portable keys on your hard disk, on a floppy disk, on a removable cartridge, and so on, but not on a remote file server volume. Portable keys are placed in a special directory named PORTABLE.DIR on a local computer this directory is created in the Windows (or WinNT) directory. On a floppy disk, the directory is created at the root.
You should never move a Portable Keys folder, nor should you move a portable key file via the File Manager, Windows Explorer, or in a DOS box. Doing so will render your portable key(s) permanently invalid.
If you need to move a portable key from one disk to another, use KeyCheckout, which always shows you each of your available volumes. Use the mouse to drag the portable key from one volume to another.
Every portable key has an expiration date, after which you will not be able to launch the keyed program without a connection to the KeyServer (or with another portable key). KeyAccess provides two reminders -- one reminder when there is less than one week remaining to the key, and one reminder when there is less than one day remaining -- so that you have time to either finish what you are doing, or request an extension on the portable key (ask your KeyServer administrator for details). To find out what the expiration date is for a particular key, launch KeyCheckout and double-click on the portable key in KeyCheckout's main window.
Setting your computer's system clock back in time has no effect on your portable keys (they still time out when appropriate). On the other hand, if you set your clock forward by a large amount, your portable keys could time out earlier than expected, even if you later set your clock back to the proper time. If you do set your clock forward by more than twelve hours, KeyAccess displays a warning message and lets you cancel the new time setting. You can set your clock forward and back to account for daylight savings time or for minor adjustments for a change in time zones, and you will not be bothered by the warning message. However, all forward changes in your clock could reduce the time remaining until the expiration of portable keys.
In the unlikely event that you lose the disk on which our portable key is stored, or that disk becomes corrupted, you should tell your KeyServer administrator. Your administrator can issue a duplicate of your lost key with no effect on KeyServer's in-use count for the program. Even if you can make a new portable key yourself (using KeyCheckout), you should still notify your KeyServer administrator, so that the lost key can be recovered for another user.
You may want to ask your administrator if you can read the KeyCheckout chapter for more details on using portable keys.
One powerful feature of KeyServer is its ability to tell you when you can use a controlled program, and then guarantee that you have access to that program for a period of time. This service, called notification, avoids the frustration of having to repeatedly launch a program, just to find out whether all of the licensed copies are still in use.
Typically, when you double-click on a controlled program, you are able to use that program immediately. However, if the maximum number of copies of the program is already in use by other people on your network, you are presented with the notification request dialog.
If the KeyServer cannot give you a license immediately, it asks you if you want to be notified when a license becomes available (e.g., when someone who is currently using the program quits). If you click OK, you are placed on a waiting list for the current program.
The KeyServer only allows you to be on one waiting list at any given time. If you are already on a program's waiting list, and you launch a program for which there are no licenses left and elect to be notified when the second program is available, your existing (older) request is dismissed.
The queue operates on a First In, First Out basis: users are notified of the program's availability based on the order in which the requests were made. When it is your turn to be notified, you will see the dialog below:
If you click Cancel, you forfeit the available license, and the next user in line is told that it is available. If you click Reserve the license is reserved for you for five minutes. If you launch the program within the 5-minute reservation period, you are given the license. Otherwise, the reservation expires and the license is made available to other users.
If you launch a program for which you are currently awaiting notification, KeyAccess asks if you wish to remain on the program's notification queue through the dialog pictured above. If you click OK your position in the queue is preserved, and notification will be given when appropriate. If you click Cancel, you relinquish your position in the queue.
During the operation of KeyAccess, you may encounter various messages or error alerts, informing you of some special condition or action that must be taken. These alerts are generally self explanatory, but some messages may suggest that you contact the KeyServer administrator for assistance or to report a problem.
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