In this article we will learn about
- the reasons for transferring a license,
- how you can carry out a transfer on our own and
- what steps must be taken to deactivate the Workstation and activate the license on the new Workstation.
1. Reasons
There are several reasons why a license should be transferred from the Workflow to another Workstation, these reasons are:
- Up-to-date hardware: The Workstation on which the Workflow is currently installed has its best years behind it or can't deal with the increased requirements which are e.g. the control of several printers.
- Virtualization: In order to better integrate the Workflow into the given IT infrastructure, the central component of the Workflow should be installed on a virtual machine and the computation-intensive RIP activities should be distributed to render satellites.
- Hardware deficiency: The hardware was damaged, the repair is time-consuming and the operation for the production of prints must be maintained. The installation of a Workflow on a fallback computer must be mapped as quickly as possible.
- Sale: A print system is transferred to a new owner without a workstation, but with the workflow license.
In order to be able to map all these cases independently by your IT, the possibility was created to transfer licenses by simply uploading the WCLID file to another Workstation, which also allows the parallel operation of a Workflow for the duration of 5 days. Please note the following information for the transmission:
Transmission period
Note that the transmission period is limited to 5 days! A free extension of this period is not possible. Therefore, plan the transfer carefully so that this period is not exceeded. If the transfer is to take longer, contact the sales organization, which can organize a paid temporary license for you.
Parallel only possible once
Note that parallel operation of one license on another Workstation is limited to 5 days and only one Workstation. If the WCLID file is uploaded to another Workstation during the transfer, this is not possible because this license is immediately blocked on the next Workstation.
Possible only once on new hardware
Note that the transfer of the license to one and the same hardware is only possible once! Switching back and forth between two Workstations is therefore not possible! If you wish to do so, a separate time-bound trial license must be purchased through your sales organization.
License transfer for licenses outside of an active maintenance contract
The transfer of an existing license can take place at any time, even if there is no valid maintenance contract. Always make sure that the same version of Workflow is installed on the current and on the new Workstation and that at least one version greater than/equal to 1.16.0 is used.
2. Transferring the License
The transfer must therefore be completed within 5 days, the Workstations must be accessible via the Internet with the authorization server. So plan the transfer accordingly well so that smooth operation can be ensured. Follow these three steps to transfer:
Step 1: New installation on a new hardware
- Get the installer for at least version 1.16.0 or higher and install Workflow on the new hardware. However, you can also transfer the backup of Workflow to the new hardware. However, note that the backup must be at least version 1.16.0 or higher. In both cases it is advantageous if both Workstations have the same version of Workflow installed.
- Connect both Workstations to the Internet so that they can communicate with the authorization server.
- Update the license on the current Workstation. To do this, switch to the License tab in System Status. Click the Update License button [1] and wait until the update is completed in a few seconds. In case of a defective hardware, this step can be skipped!
Figure 1: The lower part of the System Status dialog in the Workflow
Step 2: Transfer License
- After you have updated the license of the current Workstation and prepared the new Workstation accordingly - the Workflow is installed and connected to the Internet - all you have to do is get the WCLID file from your safe, before you start the license transfer.
- Then follow the instructions to Upload the WCLID file and activate the License of the article Online Activation.
- Only carry out Step 1 and Step 2. Step 3 of the activation is no longer necessary as the license has already been activated on the current Workstation. In contrast to Figure 6 in Step 2 of the description, the dialog is slightly different:
- Workstation Status [2]: Temporary
- Activate license [3]: not possible
Figure 2: The License Overview dialog after updating the License
- You have now temporarily transferred the license, which is now fully functional on both Workstations.
- Press Back to Login [4] to open the login dialog on the new Workstation.
- In the Log In window, you will be shown that the license is executable until the specified date [5]. Log in to the Workflow and continue your work on the new Workflow computer.
Figure 3: The Login dialog with the displayed message
Step 3: Deactivate and Activate
- To set the status of the workflow on the new Workstation to Active, as well as to deactivate the license on the current Workstation (status = blocked), you must contact us. Email [email protected] and include the following information:
- Maintenance Contract ID: Specification of the maintenance contract number, e.g.: L100
- Current Workstation: IP address and possibly Windows name of the Workstation
- New Workstation: IP address and possibly Windows name of the Workstation
- Prepress digital will deactivate the current Workstation and activate the new Workstations as soon as possible. Note, however, that weekends and local holidays might occure in Austria and switching the Workstation can take a day or two, but it should be done within 24 hours during a working week.
- You have successfully completed the license transfer if the message License status: Temporary - will expire on YYYY-MM-DD! [5] is no longer displayed.
License Status: Blocked
If you get the message »License status: Blocked«, the WCLID file was installed on several Workstations. The license is disabled for this Workstation. To activate the license on this hardware, you have to contact us.
Artikel update: Workflow version 1.16.0 – 08/2023