Full Walkthrough

KeySight Setup

Our KeySight tier of product has some fundamental differences that warrant a stand alone document. While the initial install and configuration steps still apply, this tier of product is for basic license control only. As such, all the advanced features of observing various other software, managing inventory, etc. simply do not apply. Even the Initial Tasks section is largely not relevant as computers only show up when running managed software, not when a user logs on.

Licensing

After completing the installation, do not proceed to the normal Web UI at the end of the initial setup in the browser. Instead, stop the KeyServer Service and put your Sassafras Server license file (server.lic) or vendor supplied license file in the KeyServer Data Folder and start the service back up. From there, open KeyConfigure and log in with the password you set previously in setup. You will see the three main windows for this tier, Computers, Products, and Policies.

As mentioned, computer records will not appear unless they are running a Product that is managed by a Policy. This is a major difference in behavior from the other product tiers where a computer record is created as soon as the KeyAccess client talks to the server. Obtaining or creating a Product for the software you are controlling, followed by the needed Policy, is often manual. This also is a marked difference from the higher tiers where automatic detection and normalization occur, followed by prompts for tracking discovered items.

Some partner vendors will supply you with a vendor.lic file that you will also add to your KeyServer Data Folder. That file will likely create the Product and Policy needed per the license you purchased from that vendor. In some cases it is also the only license you need as they are partners enabling our software for the KeySight license management tier, and no license is provided by Sassafras Software. The vendor should convey that information, but you can always check your license under Help -> About KeyConfigure.

General Settings

There are a couple settings that may still be useful at this tier for proactive management.

In KeyConfigure under Config -> Alerts and Status -> Email you can set up to send critical alerts and daily summaries by email to an admin address.

In the Web UI under Settings -> Updates you can accept and enable new KeyAccess client versions for automatic silent update on the connecting computers.

Managing Software

In the event you do not have a vendor license that sets up the Product and Policy management of the purchases software, follow these steps for adding a management Policy:

Predefined Method

Under the Tasks menu choose Find Product Definitions. Type in the name of the software or publisher you're looking for and click OK.

On the Results screen, find the product and version you need to manage. If you can not find it in our catalogue, skip down to the Manual Method below. By default everything is checked for import. You can right click anywhere in the list and Uncheck All, then check only the item you need. Then click Import. The status will update to Imported and you can close this window. You will then see that Product in the Products Window in the upper right area of KeyConfigure.

Manual Method

In the event you are looking to control a Program we do not have pre-defined in a Product, you can make your own. Just follow these steps:

Install KeyAccess on a workstation that has the software to be controlled. You'll be prompted for the server address during install.

Ensure after reboot the client is connected by opening the KeyAccess Control Panel and seeing it is Connected To the server address. If not, try clicking the Logon button to see what happens after verifying the KeyServer Address is correct. You may need to verify your network configuration is allowing UDP 19283 to the server.

Launch the software of interest.

In KeyConfigure open the Window -> Programs window. This shows all items seen by launch or imported from our PRS catalogue. On a KeySight install the list will initially be very short compared to tens of thousands of items in large environments over time.

Look for the Program you launched. It should have the pink Discovered icon in the Folder column. You can turn on the Path column to ensure it's the proper Program by right clicking the header row and choosing Arrange Columns.

Right click the Program and choose New Product. This will start the wizard to define the Product. The information is all optional, fill it out as desired. The one important step is the Variant. By default it will mask to the first decimal. If you are looking to control that one version, this is fine. If you are looking to control all versions with the same Policy, click to the far left to mask to x.x.x.x

A summary of the Product Details will be shown when you finish. Close the window and you'll be prompted to save it.

You'll now see the Product you made in the Products window.

Making the Policy

Right click on the Product in question (imported or made manually) and choose New Policy. This will start the Policy Wizard.

Choose to Manage the Product

Choose the needed Metric. This is often Other -> Concurrent, but may also be User or Computer based. This is for you to determine with the vendor license for the enforcement metric. For more complex items like Bentley Lease metrics, feel free to contact Sassafras Software Support for additional assistance.

Input any needed metrics, and enable Strict Enforcement to ensure the metric can not e exceeded.

A summary window of the Policy Details will be shown when you finish the wizard. Closing that window will prompt you to save the changes.

You will now see the Policy you made in the Policies window along with our default KeyVerify utility policy.

Testing

Once your Policy is in place, launch the controlled Program. You should see the Computer appear in the Computers window.

You should also see license use information in the Policies window.

As mentioned under the Manual section, it is useful to verify that KeyAccess on the client is connecting to the server. Open the Control Panel and verify the client says it is Connected To the server address. If not, try clicking the Logon button to see what happens after verifying the KeyServer Address is correct. You may need to verify your network configuration is allowing UDP 19283 to the server.

If KeyAccess is connected but your Policy appears to not work, return to the KeyAccess Control Panel and click the KeyVerify button. This will use our built in utility against the built in Policy. If it is unable to contact the server, there is a network or configuration problem. If KeyVerify works fine (computer appears, Policy shows use), then the issue is with the Product that was set up. Return to the above steps and ensure you have found the right Program to define in the Product and control in the Policy.

If you need further assistance, please contact Sassafras Software Support.

See also Reports