lmf(8)lmf(8)Namelmf - License Management Facility (LMF)
Syntax
/etc/lmf [ -d dir ] [ command [ argument... ] ]
Description
You can use the utility to maintain a file of registered software
licenses. The file is called the License Database (LDB) and is derived
from Product Authorization Key (PAK) information. You maintain the LDB
by using the commands provided by the utility (these are described in
the LMF Commands section).
You can also use the utility to keep the kernel cache updated. The
kernel cache contains the active license information which is read by
license checking functions in products that provide full LMF support.
The license checking functions ensure that a product has a valid
license before making the product available for use on the system.
For more information about the LMF, see the Guide to Software Licens‐
ing.
When you use the LMF commands you can type them on a single line, for
example:
# lmf register
or you can enter the utility and type the commands after the prompt,
for example:
# lmf
lmf> register
You can abbreviate the commands, but you must ensure that the abbrevia‐
tion is not ambiguous. For example, you could abbreviate to but not
If you need to use the product, producer or authorization arguments,
they must be specified exactly as they are on the PAK. Use these argu‐
ments if the LDB contains more than one record for a given product
name.
Options-d dir
Defines the directory containing the LDB file and the history file.
If you do not use the -d option, the default LMF directory (is used.
The -d option allows you to have more than one LDB on your system.
LMF Commands
There are three types of commands:
· Information commands, which you use to monitor your licensing
actions, and the status of the LDB and kernel cache
· LDB maintenance commands, which you use to modify the contents of
the License Database
· Service commands, which you use to communicate with the kernel
cache and may have an immediate effect on users' access to licensed
software
Information Commands
help [ command ]
Prints the syntax of the command specified in the argument list.
If no command is specified, prints a list of all the recognized
commands.
exit
Exits from the utility. You can also press CTRL/D to leave the
utility.
list [ full ] [ source ] [ for product [ producer ] ]
Displays details of the registered products on the system. If
you do not supply any arguments, displays a one line summary of
the PAK data for each product in the LDB.
The argument displays the complete license details for each
product. The source argument determines the source of the
license information. There are three choices for source:
ldb Displays a summary for each product in
the LDB.
cache Displays a summary for each product in
the kernel cache. The kernel cache con‐
tains the license data used by the
license checking functions.
all Displays a combined summary for each
product in the LDB, and for each product
in the kernel cache.
history [ length ] [ from date ] [ for product [ producer ] ]
Lists data from the license management history file. The his‐
tory file is maintained by the utility and is a record of the
LDB Maintenance Commands (and The creation of a new LDB is also
recorded in the history file. The history data is output with
the most recent operations first. The data for each command
recorded comprises the product identity, the date and time the
command was issued, and the fields that were changed on the
license.
There are two choices for length:
short Displays a one-line summary of the his‐
tory data for each command issued.
full Displays the history data for each com‐
mand issued, and the license as it
appeared before the command was issued.
The date argument displays history data for commands issued after the
date specified. The date argument can be specified in most common for‐
mats but the order must be: day, month, year. You do not need to use a
separator between the day and month, or the month and the year. For
example, 1st July 1989 could be specified as: 1-jul-1989, 1/7/89,
010789, or 1.july.89.
LDB Maintenance Commands
register [ input ]
Registers data from a PAK into the LDB. If you do not specify
any arguments, the command displays a template which includes
the fields that occur on the PAK. An editor is invoked so that
you can add the license data to the appropriate fields. The
editor used is defined by the EDITOR environment variable, but
if this is not set, is used. When you leave the editor, the LMF
scans the completed template to ensure that all the license data
has been entered correctly. If it has not, an appropriate error
message is displayed and you are given an opportunity to re-
enter the editor and correct any mistakes.
When you have successfully registered a license you should store
the PAK in a safe place; the PAK is a valuable proof of purchase
and represents your license from Digital Equipment Corporation
to use a software product.
There are two choices for input:
filename Displays a copy of the file specified
and invokes an editor so you can fill in
any additional license details before
registering the license data in the LDB.
- Registers license data direct from stan‐
dard input to the LDB.
Use the filename command to register license data from a file on your
system that contains a partially complete PAK. When you have finished
editing the license data, the LMF scans the file and gives you the
opportunity to correct any mistakes.
Use the - command to register license data direct from standard
input. You can also register a PAK from a file that already has
valid license data, for example:
# lmf register - < filename
The command shown in the previous example does not display the
contents of the file, neither does the command allow you to edit
the file. However, the LMF does scan the file to ensure format
and data is correct. If the license data is valid, the license
is registered in the LDB, if not, the appropriate error message
is displayed.
disable product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Disables a license from use on the system. Licenses which have
been disabled remain in the LDB, but do not get copied into the
kernel cache. The command does not have an immediate affect on
the kernel cache. To remove a license from the kernel cache
straight away, use the command.
enable product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Enables a license for use on the system. Licenses are automati‐
cally enabled when they are registered.
The command does not have an immediate affect on the kernel
cache. To load the license details into the kernel cache
straight away, use the command.
issue file product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Issues a reconstructed PAK for the product and removes the
license from the LDB. The reconstructed PAK is output to the
file given in the command. If the PAK is issued without errors,
the license is automatically removed from the kernel cache. The
format of the reconstructed PAK is suitable for registering
using the filename command. You can use to transfer a license
from one system to another. The license is revoked on the exe‐
cuting system and a PAK is produced which can be registered on
another system.
cancel date product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Cancels the license on the date given. This allows you to stop
use of the product earlier than the date shown by the Key Termi‐
nation Date field on the PAK. You can change the cancellation
date more than once; by reissuing the command with a different
date argument.
The date argument can be specified in most common formats but
the order must be: day, month, year. You do not need to use a
separator between the day and month, or the month and the year.
The command does not have an immediate affect on the kernel
cache. To update the license details for the product in the
kernel cache straight away, use the command.
delete product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Deletes a license from the LDB and the kernel cache.
Before you do this you should ensure that you have a record of
the license in your files.
modify product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Modifies the unprotected fields on a license. You can only mod‐
ify the Comments field and, if the license has the MOD_UNITS Key
Option, the Number of Units field. These fields have a colon
(:) after the field name, and changes to fields other than Com‐
ments and Number of Units are ignored. The editor used is the
same as for
The command does not have an immediate effect on the kernel
cache, so you should use the command to update the license for
the product in the kernel cache.
amend product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Amends the protected fields on a license. You must only use
this command when you need to register the license data from a
Product Authorization Amendment (PAAM). The fields you can
change have a colon (:) after the field name. You must make all
the changes shown on the PAAM, including entering a new Check‐
sum. Changes made to fields without colons after the field name
are ignored. The editor used is the same as for
The command does not have an immediate effect on the kernel
cache, so you should use the command to update the license for
the product in the kernel cache.
Service Commands
reset [ cpus [ n ] ]
Rescans the LDB so that any changes that have been made are
copied to the kernel cache. If you do not supply any arguments,
copies the license details for all products from the LDB to the
kernel cache.
Use the command to copy license details from the LDB to the ker‐
nel cache, and to determine the System Marketing Model (SMM) by
using the number of active CPUs. The SMM is the model name of a
computer system, as used in marketing and pricing and is read by
the LMF when the system is rebooted. The SMM is used by some
products to define the number of license units needed in the
kernel cache before access to the product is granted.
Use the n command to copy license details from the LDB to the
kernel cache, and to determine the SMM by using n as the number
of active CPUs.
load users product [ producer [ authorization ] ]
Loads enough license units into the kernel cache to enable use
of the product by the number of users specified. The number of
license units required for the specified number of users is cal‐
culated by the LMF. An appropriate number of units must be reg‐
istered in the LDB before issuing the command.
If you specify zero (0) as the users argument, all the license
units for the product are loaded into the kernel cache. If the
product is Availability Licensed, you must always specify zero
(0) as the users argument.
unload users product [ producer ]
Unloads enough license units from the kernel cache to reduce the
use of the product by the number of users specified. The number
of license units required for the specified number of users is
calculated by the LMF. After you have issued the command any
existing users of the product are allowed to finish using it
before the new limit is imposed.
If you specify zero (0) as the users argument, all the license
units for the product are removed from the kernel cache. If the
product is Availability Licensed, you must always specify zero
(0) as the users argument.
See Alsolmfsetup(8)
Guide to Software Licensing
lmf(8)