The single GUI program integrated RenderMan Installer is not the appropriate way to install RenderMan on medium to large numbers of machines. The RenderMan Installer downloads and installs individual component installers, but these individual component installers are available separately from the forum website (forum login required).

Obtaining a License File

There are two ways to obtain a license file if you are not using the RenderMan Installer:

1. Run the LicenseApp tool and click the "Get License" button. It will prompt for your forum user name, password and serial number and download the license file. 

2. Go to the forum webpage and entering your forum user name, password, serial number, hostname and hostid. The hostid can be determined either by using the LicenseApp tool or by running the license server with a special flag:

   ./PixarLicenseServer -hostid

If you are using Node-Locked licenses you will need a separate license file for each machine. If you are using a floating license you only need one file which maybe be copied as needed.

License File Location

The license file's name is pixar.license and ordinarily goes next the the distribution directories. For example, if you use the default install locations on each operating system the license file would be:

• Linux

  /opt/pixar/pixar.license

• Windows

  C:\Program Files\Pixar\pixar.license

• OSX

  /Applications/Pixar/pixar.license

Floating License Considerations

In a floating license installation one machine of the network needs to have the PixarLicenseServer installed and running. Each workstation that is to use the license must have continuous network connectivity to this machine. There are several ways that each workstation can be directed to the license server machine. Choose which method best on which fits into your environment:

1. Each workstation can simply have a copy of the pixar.license file in the default location next to distributions as described above. The license file contains enough information for the software (prman or RenderMan for Maya, etc) to determine it is a network license and what the address of license server is. If you do not wish to install the pixar.license file in the default location you may set the environment variable PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE to the full path name of the license file.

   PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE=/this/is/a/nonstandard/pixar.license

2. The workstation can be set so the environment variable PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE containing the port number and hostname value which avoids the need for any file on the client workstation.

   PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE=9010@license-server 

3.  The value of /licenseserver in your rendermn.ini file can be set to the location

   /licenseserver 9010@license-server

The address of your license server might need to be of the form hostname.company.com or even the address like 10.0.0.2, or even localhost, if you do not have a DNS server entry for it.

The LicenseApp tool is aware of all of these methods of finding the license server so it is a good way to test and monitor the status of a license from any workstation. It is designed to be helpful to diagnose situations such as you have PIXAR_LICENSE_FILE set but to a file that is unreadable or the license server is not reachable via the network.