P R O D U C T
Named User Licenses
Named User Licenses are a new type of license that is bound to a specific user. This might sound simple at first, but virtually
every person has very different expectations of what this means in practice. The good news first: CodeMeter can cover all of
them.
In essence, the different expectations of
Named User Licenses would fall into two
categories. On one side, there is the viewpoint
of software developers who expect to increase
their revenues with this new licensing model.
On the other side, there are end users who
want to allocate or reserve the licenses they
have bought for specific persons or groups of
people.
Named User as a Licensing Model
From the software developer’s point of view,
a Named User licensing model is a good
alternative to the Concurrent User model,
which typically keeps licenses on a license
server in the network. This license can be used
by several different users, even if only one
user can use it at any given time. If a client
has three licenses, three people can use the
licensed software at a time, irrespective of
who they might be. One popular feature is
the ability to borrow such licenses, which
would mean transferring the license for a
defined time from the license server to a
local computer or connected dongle. After
the defined period has expired, the license
automatically reverts back to the server, where
other users can access it.
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In the case of Named User licenses, the
software developer would bind the license to
one specific user. The license can and must only
be used by that person. Typically, Concurrent
User licenses are worth more, because they
can be used by several users. The client needs
to own fewer of them to serve his users. Their
values can be different by a factor of between
1.5 and 3.0; in the case of office applications
that are used more frequently and for longer
periods of time, the factor would lie nearer the
lower end of 1.5, whereas with analytical tools
or compilers that are used rarely and only for
brief periods, the factor can often reach 3.0.
By using the Linger Time option, even shortuse software like compilers can be licensed
effectively via networks. The license then
“lingers”, that is, it remains reserved for the
last user for a defined time after its last use,
and can only be released to other users after
the linger time. Products that are normally
used on a permanent basis typically avoid
using Named User licenses.
Who Controls the User’s Name?
Controlling the user name is the essential
challenge when using Named User licenses.
Software developers are naturally interested
in keeping full control to prevent misuse of
their licenses. At the same time, they need to
account for use cases in which the user name
has to change, e.g. when an employee who
had been using the license leaves his job,
sometimes years after the original definition
of the license. Many solutions have been put
forward for achieving this balance between
control and complexity.
Simple Contractual Controls
The simplest solution is to control the named
user just by contractual limitations, without
any technical precautions or with a simple
watermark in the license that does not limit
the software’s functionality.
CodeMeter can integrate the watermark in
the protected data or customer owned license
information, and read it by API during runtime.
Binding to a Database Account
Developers of client-server applications like
bug trackers are in the optimal position of
having a distinct account for each user of
their applications. Using group accounts (like
Team, Team1, Team2 etc.) normally has major
disadvantages for the client. When the client