NOTE: This functionality it’s in alpha status so might change based on feedback
Does the software activation requires any external connection?
No. Your license key contains all the necessary information about your current subscription so it can be validated offline and it doesn’t require any external connection back to us.
Do you store any information about the users?
NO.
What information does the license key contain?
Basically the minimum amount of information so that your subscription can be validated offline. Among other things, the number of Authorized Users and your subscription expiry date. It doesn’t contain any sensitive or personal data information.
Where is the info about the users stored, then?
We provide an extensible interface to allow you to decide what’s best for you. The samples repository contains a sample implementation using blob storage that you can setup in your own Azure subscription, but the main principle is that it just needs to be a single and shared repository where information about the users is stored.
How are the users counted?
Each user is retrieved from the Environment.UserName property associated to the process that runs the test suite. Each user is then stored to a central registry of your choice that stays within your own infrastructure. On every test run, FakeXrmEasy retrieves that information from the central registry and counts the total number of different active users within the last month. Your subscription should cover that number of users.
What about build or release pipelines?
We got you covered! As our licensing model allows an unlimited number of build and/or release pipelines, you’ll just need to add a specific environment variable that will effectively ignore the users of the build/release pipelines so they are not counted towards you subscription.
What if I exceed the maximum number of users (Authorized User(s))?
If, at some point, that number is greater than your current number of Authorized Users the users themselves will get a ConsiderUpgradingException. Whenever that happens, they should notify their line manager or contact person that they need to upgrade the subscription, who can, in turn, request us a new license key so that the new users can also use the software.
Still, even if you exceed your maximum number of Authorized Users, you have a 30-day window to keep using the current license key. This helps mitigate any possible disruption while a new license key is generated for you.
What if I my license key expires?
Likewise, if your subscription expired and you didn’t get a new license key from us in time, you’ll get an exception. You can still temporarily override this setting allowing you to have an extra 30-day window to request a new license key while still using the current, expired, license key.
However, if you plan on upgrading your subscription, please make sure to request a new license key well in advance to mitigate any possible disruption.