This glossary lists terms that are specific to License Statistics and license usage monitoring.
| Client application | A software program that requests or receives a license from a license server. |
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| Log file | One or more ASCII text files written by a license server. Log files contain information that can be imported into License Statistics and used to track license usage. (See Imported license server.) |
| Feature | Any functionality of an application that is licensed. A feature has a name and one or more versions and license types. The definition of a feature depends on how the software vendor distributes an application, but might include (for example):
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| Floating license | A license that runs an application for users on a network. A license server is required to manage a floating license. With this type of license, the number of concurrent users is counted, with the licensed application usable by only a specified number of users at any time. Also referred to as network license or shared license. |
| Imported license server | A license server that is being monitored using existing data in one or more license server logs. |
| Realtime license server | A license server that is being monitored at specified intervals to gather data about usage as it occurs. |
| Local license | A license that runs on a single specific machine, as opposed to being on a network. Node-locked licenses do not require a license server because they are uncounted. |
| Vendor | The developer/distributor of a software application. |
| License file | A text file shipped to an end user, which provides one or more features. |
| License server | A license server is defined as a software application hosting licenses for a single software vendor (e.g. vendor daemon), and not a physical machine. A license server is required to manage a floating license. |
| License type | The type of licensing used for a feature, such as floating, node-locked, token, trial, etc. |
| Configuration file | The License Statistics configuration file, xflicstat.cfg, which specifies settings such as License Statistics output file paths, update intervals, and the host server information of the applications for which License Statistics will gather statistics. |
| Windows system | Refers to Win32 or Win64 platform. |
| Linux system | Refers to Linux, Solaris, HP-UX, AIX, Mac OS X and FreeBSD platforms. |
Diagrams
A feature and its parts
This diagram shows a software feature and its parts. A feature consists of a name and has one or more versions and types associated with it.
Example of a feature and its parts
This diagram shows an example of a software feature and its parts. This feature has three different versions of the software (Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7), which each have one or more types of licensing (floating, node-locked, or token).
Example of a feature on license servers
This diagram depicts a feature being hosted by a license server. This feature has two versions (Windows Vista and Windows 7), each with one or more types that run on one or more license servers.
User on Hosts report
This diagram shows how License Statistics gathers information for the User Using Feature report. A user can use a feature on more than one host, and a host can be used by more than one user.
User Using Feature report
This diagram shows how License Statistics gathers information for the User Using Feature report. As shown in this diagram, a user can use a feature on more than one host, each getting their license from the same license server.
