Configuring Server Failover
Failover configuration is actually set up on the back-up license server. Follow these procedures to complete the configuration.
Step 1: Install and Configure the License Servers
Install both the main and back-up license servers. As part of the installation process, configure both servers with basically the same local settings, with some allowable differences. For example, you can specify different PORT values for the license servers. Additionally, if specifying the BACKUP_SERVER_HOSTID setting, do so only on the main license server (see (Optional) Automatic Registration of the Failover Pair).
For more information about installing a license server and editing its local settings file—flexnetls.settings on Windows or /etc/default/flexnetls-producer_name on Linux, see Getting Started.
Step 2: Register the Main and Backup License Servers
Using the FlexNet Operations End-User Portal, register the main license server with the back-up license server as a failover pair on the back-office server. (This registration is performed by specifying the hostid of the back-up license server on the portal’s Create Server page for the main license server.) The hostid for each the main and the back-up license server must be of the same type.
Note:It may be necessary to enable support for server failover in FlexNet Operations.
For more information about registering the failover pair from the Create Server page for the main license, see the online help system for the FlexNet Operations End-User Portal.
This step can be replaced with an automatic registration of the failover pair through the capability request sent from the main license server. See (Optional) Automatic Registration of the Failover Pair for details.
Step 3: Start Up the License Servers
Start up the license servers. Any license rights already mapped to the failover pair through the main license server are automatically activated on the both license servers. If you need to activate licenses manually, see Step 6: Activate Licenses on the Servers.
You can now use the administrator tool provided with the license server to update policy settings, as described next in Steps 7 and 8.
Step 4: Enable Failover Support on the Back-Up Server
Update policy settings on the back-up license server, using the provided license-server administrator tool, such as the FlexNet License Server Administrator command-line tool or the FlexNet License Server Manager:
| 1. | Set the following license server policy settings on the back-up license server: |
| • | fne.syncTo.mainUri - Set to the URI of the main license server (in the format http://licenseServerHostName:port/fne/bin/capability). |
| • | fne.syncTo.enabled - Set to true. |
| 2. | (Optional) Set other failover-related policy settings, such as other fne.syncTo... settings or the licensing.backup.uri and the licensing.main.uri settings. (Use the format http://licenseServerHostName:port/fne/bin/capability for URI settings.) |
See Editing Failover Configuration Settings for information about editing these license-server policies.
(Optional) Step 5: Edit Producer Settings on the Main Server
Configure one or both of the following license server policy settings on the main license server to include these URIs as reference information sent in capability responses to client devices. Use the format
http://licenseServerHostName:port/fne/bin/capability for either URI.
| • | licensing.backup.uri |
| • | licensing.main.uri |
See Editing Failover Configuration Settings for information about editing these license-server policies.
Step 6: Activate Licenses on the Servers
If no license rights were activated on the license servers at startup, perform these steps to provision the servers with licenses:
| 1. | Start up both license servers. |
| 2. | Send one or more rights IDs in a capability request to activate identical license rights on both license servers via the current (main) license server. For information about activating license rights, see the appropriate information: |
| • | If using the FlexNet License Server Administrator command-line tool, see Activating License Rights on the Server in the Using the FlexNet License Server Administrator Command-line Tool |
| • | If using the FlexNet License Server Manager, see Offline Server Updates View in the Using the FlexNet License Server Manager |
Step 7: Verify Failover Roles
Verify the failover role of each license server after the servers receive their license rights. (The roles are determined by the back office and included in the capability response.)
Verification can be performed by using the FlexNet License Server Administrator command-line tool (for example, flexnetlsadmin -server licenseServer_baseURL -status). Additionally, the primary server log will state the failover role of the given license server.