Product Documentation
ADC
14.1 - Current Release 13.1 13.0 12.1
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Allocate and apply a license

October 30, 2023
Contributed by: 
S S C

In the NetScaler MPX and VPX ADC GUI, you can use your hardware serial number (HSN) or your license access code to allocate your licenses. Alternatively, if a license is already present on your local computer, you can upload it to the appliance.

For all other functionality, such as returning or reallocating your license, you must use the licensing portal. Optionally, you can still use the licensing portal for license allocation. For more information, see Manage Licenses.

Citrix Licensing guide

The Citrix Licensing guide also covers information about installing licenses in a NetScaler appliance and installing licenses in other NetScaler products. For more information, see the NetScaler Licensing Guide.

Prerequisites

Note

Buy separate licenses for each appliance in a high availability pair. Ensure that the same types of licenses are installed on both the appliances. For example, if you buy a premium license for one appliance, you must purchase another premium license for the other appliance.

To use the hardware serial number or license access code to allocate your licenses:

  • You must be able to access public domains through the appliance. For example, the appliance must be able to access www.citrix.com. The license allocation software internally accesses the Citrix licensing portal for your license. To access a public domain:

    • Use a proxy server or set up a DNS server.
    • Configure a NetScaler IP (NSIP) address or a subnet IP (SNIP) address on your NetScaler appliance.

  • Your license must be linked to your hardware, or you must have a valid license access code. Citrix sends your license access code by email when you purchase a license.

Allocate a license by using the GUI

If your license is already linked to your hardware, the license allocation process can use the hardware serial number. Otherwise, you must type the license access code.

You can partially allocate licenses as required for your deployment. For example, if your license file contains 10 licenses, but your current requirement is for only six licenses, you can allocate six licenses now, and allocate more licenses later. You can’t allocate more than the total number of licenses present in your license file.

To allocate your license

  1. In a web browser, type the IP address of the NetScaler appliance (for example, http://192.168.100.1).

  2. In User Name and Password, type the administrator credentials.

  3. On the Configuration tab, navigate to System > Licenses.

  4. In the details pane, click Manage Licenses, click Add New License, and then select one of the following options:

    • Use Serial Number: The software internally fetches the serial number of your appliance and uses this number to display your licenses.

    • Use license access code: Citrix emails the license access code for the license that you purchased. Enter the license access code in the text box.

      If you do not want to configure internet connectivity on the NetScaler appliance, you can use a proxy server. Select Connect through Proxy Server and specify the IP address and port of your proxy server.

  5. Click Get Licenses. Depending on the option that you selected, one of the following dialog boxes appears.

    • The following dialog box appears if you selected Hardware Serial Number.

      Allocate-license-1

    • The following dialog box appears if you selected License Access Code.

      Allocate-license-2

  6. Select the license file that you want to use to allocate your licenses.

  7. In the Allocate column, enter the number of licenses to be allocated. Then click Get.

    • If you selected Hardware Serial Number, enter the number of licenses, as shown in the following screenshot.

      Allocate-license-3

    • If you selected license access code, enter the number of licenses, as shown in the following screenshot.

      Allocate-license-4

  8. Click restart for the license to take effect.

  9. In the restart dialog box, click OK to proceed with the changes, or click Close to cancel the changes.

    Allocate-license-5

Install a license

If you downloaded your license file to your local computer by accessing the licensing portal, you must upload the license to the appliance.

To install a license file by using the GUI

  1. In a web browser, type the IP address of the NetScaler appliance (for example, http://192.168.100.1).
  2. In User Name and Password, type the administrator credentials.
  3. On the Configuration tab, navigate to System Licenses.
  4. In the details pane, click Manage Licenses.
  5. Click Add New License, then select Upload license files from a local computer.
  6. Click Browse. Navigate to the location of the license files, select the license file, and then click Open.
  7. Click restart to apply the license.
  8. In the restart dialog box, click OK to proceed with the changes, or click Close to cancel the changes.

To install the licenses by using the CLI

  1. Open an SSH connection to the ADC appliance by using an SSH client, such as PuTTY.

  2. Log on to the ADC appliance by using the administrator credentials.

  3. Switch to the shell prompt, create a license subdirectory in the nsconfig directory, if it does not exist, and copy one or more new license files to this directory.

    Example

    login: nsroot
Password: nsroot
Last login: Mon Aug  4 03:37:27 2008 from 10.102.29.9
Done
> shell
Last login: Mon Aug  4 03:51:42 from 10.103.25.64
root@ns# mkdir /nsconfig/license
root@ns# cd /nsconfig/license
<!--NeedCopy-->

    Copy one or more new license files to this directory.

    Note

    The NetScaler appliance does not prompt for a reboot option when you use the command line interface to install the licenses. Run the reboot -w command to warm restart the system, or run the restart command to restart the system normally.

Verify licensed features

Before using a feature, ensure that your license supports the feature.

To verify the licensed features by using the CLI

  1. Open an SSH connection to the ADC appliance by using an SSH client, such as PuTTY.

  2. Log on to the ADC appliance by using the administrator credentials.

  3. At the command prompt, enter the sh ns license command to display the features supported by the license.

    Example

    sh ns license
        License status:
                           Web Logging: YES
                      Surge Protection: YES
                        .......

                        Responder: YES
 Done
<!--NeedCopy-->

To verify the licensed features by using the GUI

  1. In a web browser, type the IP address of the ADC appliance, such as http://192.168.100.1.
  2. In User Name and Password, type the administrator credentials.
  3. Provide the User name and Password and click Login.
  4. In the navigation pane, expand System, and then click Licenses. You see a green check mark next to the licensed features.

Enable or disable a feature

When you use the NetScaler appliance for the first time, you must enable a feature before you can use its functionality. If you configure a feature before it’s enabled, a warning message appears. The configuration is saved but it applies only after the feature is enabled.

To enable a feature by using the CLI

At the command prompt, type the following commands to enable a feature and verify the configuration:

-  enable feature <FeatureName>

-  show feature
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**Example**

    enable feature lb cs
    done
     >show feature

            Feature                        Acronym              Status
            -------                        -------              ------
     1)     Web Logging                    WL                   OFF
     2)     Surge Protection               SP                   ON
     3)     Load Balancing                 LB                   ON
     4)     Content Switching              CS                   ON
     5)     Cache Redirection              CR                   ON
     .
     .
     .
     24)    NetScaler Push                 push                 OFF
     Done
<!--NeedCopy-->

The example shows how to enable load balancing (lb) and content switching (cs).

If the license key isn’t available for a particular feature, the following error message appears for that feature:

ERROR: features not licensed

Note:

To enable an optional feature, you must have a feature-specific license. For example, you’ve purchased and installed the NetScaler Advanced Edition license. However, to enable the Integrated Caching feature, you must purchase and install the AppCache license.

To disable a feature by using the CLI

At the command prompt, type the following commands to disable a feature and verify the configuration:

-  disable feature \<FeatureName\>

-  show feature
<!--NeedCopy-->

**Example**

The following example shows how to disable load balancing (LB).

    > disable feature lb
     Done
    > show feature

            Feature                        Acronym              Status
            -------                        -------              ------
     1)     Web Logging                    WL                   OFF
     2)     Surge Protection               SP                   ON
     3)     Load Balancing                 LB                   OFF
     4)     Content Switching              CS                   ON
     .
     .
     .
     24)    NetScaler Push                 push                 OFF
     Done
    >
<!--NeedCopy-->

Configure NetScaler license expiry alerts

By default, a GUI alert appears when the ADC license expiry date is less than or equal to 30 days.

You can configure the NetScaler appliance to perform the following alert operations from a specified number of days before a NetScaler license is due to expire:

  • Display a license expiry alert banner on the NetScaler GUI.
  • Send SNMP traps containing the license expiry information at regular intervals to the configured trap listeners if the “NS_LICENSE_EXPIRY” SNMP alarm is enabled.

Upon license expiry, the NetScaler appliance automatically restarts to revoke the license. If a NetScaler appliance uses Citrix service provider (CSP) licenses, the appliance does not restart automatically to revoke the license. However, if the user restarts the appliance, it restarts as unlicensed.

To specify a number of days for NetScaler license expiry alerts by using the CLI:

At the command prompt, type:

  • set licenseparameters [-licenseexpiryalerttime ]
  • sh licenseparameters

Example:

> set licenseparameters -licenseexpiryalerttime 200
Done

> sh licenseparameters
...
    Licenseexpiryalerttime:  200
<!--NeedCopy-->

To specify a number of days for NetScaler license expiry alerts by using the NetScaler GUI:

  1. Navigate to Configuration > System > Licenses > Manage Licenses.
  2. In Notification Settings, click the edit button to specify a number of days for NetScaler license expiry alerts.

Check license expiry information

You can check NetScaler license expiry information through the GUI or CLI.

To check NetScaler license expiry information through GUI:

Go to Configuration > System > Licenses.

A GUI alert appears when the ADC license expiry date is less than or equal to the specified number of days for the NetScaler license expiry alert.

License expiry due GUI banner

To check the license expiry information through CLI:

Type the command “show ns license”.

> sh license
    License status:

    Web Logging: YES
    Surge Protection: YES

    Web Logging: YES
    Surge Protection: YES

    …

Days to expiry: 196

Done
>
<!--NeedCopy-->

Validate license files without rebooting the NetScaler appliance

With this feature, you can test licenses and see all the features available in the given license without applying them on the NetScaler appliance. This option allows you to test new licenses without rebooting the NetScaler appliance.

You can use this feature by both GUI and CLI.

Validate license files by using the GUI

  1. Go to System -> Licences.

  2. In the ADC Test License tab, click Manage Test Licenses.

  3. Click Upload, and upload one or more license files. If multiple license files are uploaded, the union of all license files is calculated.

  4. After the license file upload is complete, click ADC Test License again to display the licensed features of the uploaded license.

    Section 1 shows license information and Section 2 shows all features that the license includes.

    Show test license output

  5. Verify the information displayed and click Apply to use the license. Reboot (warm) the NetScaler appliance for the license to take effect. Immediate reboot isn’t mandatory, and the current license is applicable until the next reboot.

Validate license files by using the CLI

  1. Copy the test license file to the ADC appliance at path: /nsconfig/testlicense.

    Example:

    scp CNS_15082_SERVER_PLT_Retail.lic nsroot@<ns_ip>:/nsconfig/testlicense/
<!--NeedCopy-->

  2. Verify whether the license file is copied to the correct location.

    Example:

    ls /nsconfig/testlicense/  CNS_15082_SERVER_PLT_Retail.lic
<!--NeedCopy-->

  3. Run the show ns testlicense command to see the license information.

    > sh ns testlicense
    License status:
                       Web Logging: YES
                  Surge Protection: YES
                    Load Balancing: YES
                 Content Switching: YES
                 Cache Redirection: YES
               Compression Control: YES
                 Delta Compression: NO
                    SSL Offloading: YES
      Global Server Load Balancing: YES
                              .....
                       API Gateway: YES
                   Model Number ID: 15082
                      License Type: Platinum License
                    Licensing mode: Local
                Days to expiration: 54
<!--NeedCopy-->

  4. Verify the information displayed, and run the apply ns testlicense command to apply the license. Reboot (warm) the NetScaler appliance for the license to take effect.

    > apply ns testlicense

Warning: The configuration changes will not take effect until the system is rebooted
Done
> reboot -w
Are you sure you want to restart NetScaler (Y/N)? [N]:Y
Done
<!--NeedCopy-->

Upgrade a license

Edition and bandwidth upgrades aren’t supported. To move between editions in a pooled subscription, you must purchase a new pooled subscription with the new edition and upload those licenses to NetScaler Console.

Bandwidth upgrade does not apply to pooled licenses because each instance can check-in/check-out the necessary bandwidth based on the requirement as long as the underlying hardware or software supports it.

Note:

You can use NetScaler Console to create a licensing framework that comprises a common bandwidth and instance pool. For complete information, see NetScaler pooled capacity.

Allocate and apply a license
October 30, 2023
Contributed by: 
S S C
October 30, 2023
Contributed by: 
S S C

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