As SELECTserver is entering a sunsetting phase, the SELECTserver activation keys will continue to work without further configuration changes on the end user machines. However, there are some incompatibilities between SELECTserver and the Subscription Entitlement Services (SES) that require organization administrators to do some configuration of the entitlements available to activation keys if those keys are configured with product restrictions in the Custom Activation Groups or Temporary Access Keys interface. As the SELECTserver Administrator interface will be disabled as part of this process, it is suggested that administrators complete these configurations before that occurs to ensure that there is no lapse in availability to end users configured to use those keys.
In SELECTserver, the list of entitlements available to an activation key was determined by the license site that the key was associated to. In SES, all activation keys are associated to an Entitlement country. Each Entitlement country has a list of available entitlements based on the contracts that are active in that country.
When a SELECTserver-licensed product version transmits usage, that activation key's entitlement to the product will be determined based on the availability of the entitlement in that key's Entitlement country and the administrator's access control settings on the product in that country or defined list of Allowed Applications in the Entitlement group that the Activation key is mapped to.
Entitlement groups in SES allow an administrator to define an Allowed Applications list that users associated to that group have access to. Administrators can also map an activation key to one Entitlement group. When an Activation key is used to activate a product, the Entitlement system will look to see the activation key is mapped to an Entitlement group and use that group's list of Allowed Applications to determine the entitlement. If the product is in the Allowed Applications list, the product will be activated. If the product is missing from the list, the product will not be activated.
Note: For administrators that are managing activation key entitlements in Entitlement Management, please note that the list of Allowed Applications will need to be configured manually. There is no capability to pull a previously configured list of Restricted Applications that existed in SELECTserver over in to the Subscription Entitlement Service.
To learn more about how to configure an Entitlement Group with an Allowed Application list, please see Entitlement Groups - Managing Access
Yes. Product restrictions configured on Custom Activation Groups and Temporary Keys in SELECTserver can be imported using the Configure Activation Key Restrictions tool on the Activation Key Mapping page. This tool will create a new Entitlement group with the same name as the Key Name, map the key to that new group and, import product restrictions from SELECTserver, if any exist. To see more about how that tool works please see Activation Key Mappings.
Note: The capability to import the list of product restrictions from SELECTserver will only be available for a short amount of time to facilitate the transition during the SELECTserver sunsetting. The date of deprecation of this import capability will be announced in advance.
Mapping an activation key to an Entitlement group can be done in the Entitlement Group interface in the Entitlement Management.
To map an activation key to an Entitlement Group:
If you don't see your key listed in the Search for Existing Key form, that may mean it's already mapped to another group. Activation keys can only be mapped to one Entitlement Group at a time.
Un-mapping an activation key from an Entitlement group will remove the association between the activation key and the group so that that Allowed Application list will no longer be applied to that key. It does not result in the key being deleted. The un-mapped key will continue to be able to activate applications based on the entitlements and access controls configured for the activation key's Entitlement country.
To un-map an activation key from an Entitlement group:
This Activation Key Mappings page may also be a convenient way to map or un-map an activation key.
Background
Not being a real-time licensing model (Workstations do not maintain a real-time connection to the license server) applications using SELECTserver based licensing do not seek permission from a license server before they will run. Under SELECTserver based licensing, usage has always been reported usage if a valid activation key was present (even when applications run in Trial, Offline, or Disabled). See Product Activation Modes of Behavior
• After being disabled, the key may no longer be used to activate NEW application installs.• Existing installs previously activated against the activation key will still generate usage, but the usage transmitted for a disabled activation key will not show up in Subscription Analytics.
Mapped activation keys can be disabled so they will no longer activate any products. Disabled keys can later be re-enabled.
Process
To disable an Activation Key:
Disabling can be reverted by selecting Enabled.
In the SELECTserver Keys tab of the Entitlement Group, you can create and delete Custom keys as you would have been able to do in SELECTserver.
Standard Site keys cannot be created or deleted through this interface. To manage Standard site keys, please contact your Bentley Account Manager or Bentley Support.
To create a new key,
The new Custom key will be added to the table and highlighted. This new Custom activation key is associated to the Entitlement group and will be able to activate the list of products defined in the Allowed Applications list.
If you want the key to work until a specific date, similar to SELECTserver's Temporary Keys, you can give the Custom key an expiration date.
To delete a Custom key
Alternatively, you can choose multiple keys by choosing the checkboxes next to the keys and use the Delete Permanently button () to delete them all at once.
Caution is suggested with this option as it will delete the key rather than simply disassociating it from the group. User's with this activation key will no longer be able to successfully activate their Bentley products.