1. Introduction
The NI Volume License Agreement (VLA) provides your company with the ability to centrally manage licenses and receive special services just for being a customer of the VLA. Your End Users can benefit from community resources, technical support and an administrator who helps keep everything running smoothing.
To understand policies and guidelines for software usage and the VLA review the NI Software License Agreement. Anytime you need assistance or help with your VLA or using our free Volume License Manager (NI VLM) just contact us at agreements@ni.com from anywhere around the globe.
2. Using VLM
NI VLM is a free license manager tool that helps your company manage and administer your National Instruments software licenses. NI VLM is included at no cost to any customer who has a VLA. For further description of NI VLM, see Volume License Program for Software.
The computer that hosts NI VLM is referred to as the license server and the end-users' computers are referred to as the client computers. The license computer hosts the NI VLM, which the company's license administrator operates; the client computers contact the server computer to check for permission from NI VLM before launching the software.
The license administrator does not need any particular knowledge of licensing or National Instruments software because NI VLM makes managing the licenses easy. You can follow along in NI Volume License Manager Help, or use this document to guide you through the setup and configuration of NI VLM. Follow the steps listed below to reach a state where your NI VLM and client software are operational.
- Download and Install NI VLM on a server accessible by your end users
- Obtaining a License File for Server
- Install the License File
- Configure Server Settings
- For Client Computers or Users Connected to the Network: (Add Computers and Set Permissions Manually)
- For Client Computers or Users Not Connected to the Network: (Create a Disconnected or Home License)
- Generate an Activity Compliance Log
For technical assistance or questions, please first review the Volume License Manager Troubleshooting Guide. You can find additional support at ni.com/support where you will find related articles and where you can also request to email or speak with an Applications Engineer. If you have questions regarding your agreement, then contact your NI Sales Representative or email agreements@ni.com.