Process Manager

Overview

Process Manager monitors application processes through the Workstation Agent installed on end-user machines. It lets you track application usage, measure Actual Usage, monitor specific features, and analyze DLL activity.

DLL monitoring helps distinguish specific functions within applications. You can manage licenses by tracking usage and automating license release based on user inactivity (License Harvesting).

What you can do

• Monitor and differentiate usage: Track applications and their specific functions.
• License management: Track license usage and manage license availability proactively.
• License Harvesting: Automatically close idle applications to free licenses.

Prerequisites

Before configuring Process Manager, ensure:

• Activate Process Manager: Activate it in Products.
• Agent Activity Manager: Install Workstation Agent on all target machines.
• Brokers Hub and License Servers*: Ensure you have Brokers and License Managers configured.

Setting up Procedures

1. Open Process Manager.
2. Go to the Procedures tab.
3. Select Add Procedure.
4. Click Add agent step
5. Select a method:
   • Agent Kill (Close)
   • Agent Save & Close
   • Agent Suspend
6. Name your procedure and save.

Processes configuration

1. Open the Process Manager.
2. Network floating licenses (extensions) for specific applications are pre-listed.

3. To modify settings, select the pencil icon next to a process:
   • Name: Enter the exact executable name (case-sensitive).
   • Description: Provide details for easy reference.
   • Vendor: Specify the vendor.
   • Activate Process managed by License Server if applicable.

Add a new process

General

Monitoring target - To track a process, enter the process name here. For file or folder tracking, specify the directory to monitor.

Description Vendor Tracking type:

• Process - track by process name.
• File - track a process launch from a specific file.
• Directory - monitor all process launches within a directory.

Process managed by a license server - Toggle on to allow attaching license features to this process.

Process release

Configure the license release settings in the License Release tab:

1. Make sure the toggle is on to activate this feature.

• Process release method: Select None, Suspension or Procedure.
• Automatic process release: Activate or deactivate automated process release.
• Thresholds:
  • Release Licenses after usage rate (%): Set usage level to initiate license release.
  • Minimal idle time for process release: Define inactivity period to start license release (minimum 3 minutes, varies by application).

tip

Ensure to set thresholds appropriately to avoid premature license release.

• Track process idle/active periods: Monitor user inactivity periods.
  • Report as idle after (minutes): Set interval to initiate idle tracking.

note

Idle time traking is charged 50 tokens.

Advanced settings

Activate system resource monitoring to determine software inactivity:

• Set thresholds for:
  • User Usage %
  • Processor Usage %
  • I/O operations/sec
• Default is 2%.
• The system marks the application as active if it exceeds any threshold, otherwise as idle.

tip

Adjust thresholds based on actual usage patterns (sample from 2-3 Workstation Agents).

Shadow licenses

Use shadow licenses to apply license-style controls to apps that don’t use a vendor license manager. You can cap concurrent use, restrict by user or workstation, and control when usage is released.

Where to configure

Go to Processes → Add process or Edit process → Shadow licenses.

Tip: Configure at the process level. Parent packages let multiple processes share the same pool.

Consumption policies

Set how OpenLM counts and limits usage.

• Deny multiple versions
  Block all versions except the Configured version you specify.

• Enforce named-user restriction
  Prevent the same user from running the app on multiple workstations at once.

• Consumption policy type
  Choose the scope that consumes one unit:

  • Process — each running process.
  • Workstation — one per machine, regardless of process count.
  • User at workstation — one per user on a specific machine.

• Unlimited concurrent instances

  • On by default. Turn off to set Concurrent instances limit.
  • Use -1 for no limit.

• Parent packages (optional)
  Link the process to a Parent package to draw from a shared pool.
  OpenLM denies access if either the process limit or the parent limit is reached.

Offline vs. online agents

Policies apply globally for processes monitored by an online Workstation Agent. For offline agents, only the Consumption policy type applies, evaluated per agent.

Release policies

Decide when OpenLM frees a consumed unit after the app closes. OpenLM uses whichever occurs later: the Release delay or the Bucket duration.

• Release delay (minutes)
  Holds usage for a grace period. If the user reopens the app before the delay ends, the same session continues.

• Bucket duration
  Aligns release to a time bucket:

  • DAY — release at midnight.
  • HOUR — release at the start of the next hour.
  • NONE — release immediately (still respects Release delay).

Examples

• App closes at 14:50, Release delay = 20 → held until 15:10 if Bucket duration = NONE.
• App closes at 14:05, Release delay = 10, Bucket duration = HOUR → released at 15:00 (bucket is later than 14:15).

Best practices

• Match scope to behavior:
  Use Workstation for tools that spawn helper processes. Use User at workstation for shared machines.
• Protect named-user terms:
  Enable Enforce named-user restriction to mirror contract rules.
• Stabilize short restarts:
  Set a small Release delay to avoid churn when apps close and reopen during updates.
• Pool related tools:
  Use Parent packages for suites that should share a common cap.

What you can achieve

• Enforce compliance with named-user and concurrency terms.
• Control access by process, workstation, or user.
• Reduce cost by tracking usage for purchase and renewal decisions.
• Improve availability by tuning release timing so licenses return to the pool when users finish a job.

Adding features and DLLs

1. Select the arrow icon to include specific features and DLLs.

2. Use tools like Microsoft Process Explorer for tracking DLLs.

Monitoring reports

Network floating license usage:

• Currently Consumed License (See Usage) - includes idle time.
• License Activity Report (See Usage) - excludes idle time.
• Active Processes (See Process Manager).
• Process Sessions (See Process Session).
• Detailed Reports through BI Tool.

Standalone application usage:

• Active Processes (Process Manager microservice).
• Process Sessions (Process Session microservice).

note

Usage service does not display standalone application usage.

License Harvesting options

Options

• None: Only monitor application idle time.
• Extension:
  • Specify folders to save work through Agents Hub.
  • Resume work through Personal Dashboard.
• Suspension:
  • Freeze applications.
  • Resume through Personal Dashboard.
• Procedure:
  • Agent Save & Close: Automatically save and close applications. Specify identifiers for certain applications (for example ArcGIS Pro, MATLAB).
  • Agent Suspend: Freeze applications. Resume through Personal Dashboard.
  • Agent Kill: Force-close applications without saving. Applications restart empty upon resumption.

danger

Use Agent Kill with caution as it might result in data loss.

Turn off for users/groups

Overview

Turn off automatic license harvesting (automatic process release) for selected users or groups. Idle time monitoring continues for all users. You can apply exclusions all the time or within a time frame.

Before you begin

Make sure the following conditions are true:

• You have access to the Process Manager UI.
• The consumption policy type in the Shadow Licenses tab is not set to Workstation. When you turn on user or group exclusions, you can't use the Workstation consumption policy type.

Configure user or group exclusions

1. In Process Manager, open the Process Release tab.
2. Scroll to Advanced settings and turn on Enable user/group exclusions.
3. Add at least one user or group:
   • Select Add user and choose one or more users from the searchable list.
   • Select Add group and choose one or more groups from the searchable list.
   • Click the + icon next to the selected user or group to add it to the exclusions list. Selecting a name alone doesn't add it - you must click + for it to appear in the list.
   • Select the X next to a name to remove it.
4. If you need a time frame for the exclusions, continue with Configure time framed exclusions (optional).
5. Select Save.

Configure time framed exclusions (optional)

1. Turn on Enable time framed user/group exclusions.
2. Set the start time and end time in HH:MM format.
3. Select the days of the week when the exclusions apply.
4. Select Save if you have not already saved your changes.

How exclusions work

Exclusions behave as follows:

• For excluded users or groups, Process Manager does not send the idle-above-threshold message to License Harvester for the relevant monitored processes.
• If time framed exclusions are enabled, the exclusions apply only during the selected days and times.
• If time framed exclusions are disabled, the exclusions apply at all times.

Rules and limits

The following rules apply:

• You must add at least one user or one group when exclusions are enabled.
• If time framed exclusions are enabled, both start and end times are required, and the end time must be later than the start time.

Troubleshooting

If something does not work, check the following:

• Can't turn on user or group exclusions? Check the consumption policy type in the Shadow Licenses tab and make sure it is not set to Workstation.
• Can't save your changes? Make sure you selected and added at least one user or group.