Prerequisites to install the client

Note about software prerequisites

Install software prerequisites manually if you want to install IBM RPA through the command line interface.

When you run the installer on a computer without meeting software prerequisites, the installer prompts you to install it, and restart the computer before you resume the IBM RPA installation.

User requirements

You must run the installer with administrator privileges.

Antivirus notice

Some antivirus software might block certain parts of the installation process, causing error messages to appear. In some cases, the installer ends successfully, but IBM RPA Studio or other components don't get the necessary permissions to operate.

In this scenario, add the following paths to the antivirus ignore list:

• IBM executable files at C:\Program Files\IBM Robotic Process Automation\IBM Robotic Process Automation.
• IBM executables files at C:\Program Files\IBM Robotic Process Automation\IBM Robotic Process Automation\Toolkit.
• Executable files that are not part of the IBM RPA Studio, but are used to help automations.
• These executable files are extracted at runtime in the %LOCALAPPDATA%\IBM Robotic Process Automation\packages folder in the current user session. For example,C:\Users\USER_NAME\AppData\Local\IBM Robotic Process Automation\packages.

Optional: System restore point

You can configure your Windows™ environment to create restore points at regular intervals, or create it manually at any time. It can help you undo changes to a previous state by using the data from a restore point. For more information, see Use System Restore 🡥.

Internet connection

The IBM Robotic Process Automation as a Service client installer doesn't work offline. A stable internet connection is needed to proceed with the installation. It ensures stable communication between the client installer and the server.

Web browser policy

Setting policies to the supported web browsers 🡥 can block web automation capabilities. The following policies can block:

• The DisableDevTools preference in Mozilla Firefox.
• The "Set User Data Directory" policy in Google Chrome.

Also, don't change the default directory to the user profile data. For more information, see Web browser policies.

API requests to IBM RPA domains and HTTPS communication

IBM RPA domains
If you want to enable the specific IBM RPA domains, you need to allow communication to the following URLs:

¹ Starting from version 23.0.2, the licensing.wdgautomation.com domain isn't required.

Grant access to *.wdgautomation.com and *.rpa.ibm.com and their respective domains and subdomains in the client's operating system.

For more information about region codes, see Understanding tenants and regions.

HTTPS communication
You need to enable HTTPS communication. If you want to enable the certificate authorities-specific domains, the following list shows the domains that you need to allow communication to enable SSL/TLS encryption:

• zerossl.ocsp.sectigo.com
• x1.c.lencr.org
• crl.identrust.com
• crt.sectigo.com
• crt.comodoca.com
• crl3.digicert.com
• crl4.digicert.com
• ocsp.usertrust.com
• crl.globalsign.com/gsgccr3dvtlsca2020.crl
• secure.globalsign.com/cacert/gsgccr3dvtlsca2020.crt
• ocsp.globalsign.com/gsgccr3dvtlsca2020
• globalsign.com/repository/
• ocsp.digicert.com/

Ports to trigger bots

The following table shows optional ports that you can open in the host computer to trigger bots through the API:

¹ Starting from IBM RPA 23.0.3, the IBM RPA Studio Test Telephony Service isn't available due to the IVR removal. For more information, see Removed.

Make sure that there is no firewall policy blocking IPC. The range affected is 49152-75535. For more information, refer to Web browser policies.

IBM RPA license: License ID and License password

For versions before 23.0.2, a License ID, License password, and Tenant Code are needed for the IBM RPA SaaS Client to activate the product. The tenant owner gets these data after purchase. For information about purchasing, see Robotic Process Automation.

If you are not the tenant owner, you should ask your tenant owner for your license details.

To download the installer, see the Downloading the installer topic.

IBM RPA license: Installation key

Starting from version 23.0.2, you must have an installation key to install IBM Robotic Process Automation Client. The installer registers and certifies the computer to the tenant that generated the installation key.

The following list describes how you can get your tenant's installation key on IBM RPA Control Center:

• You can copy the installation key in the download modal that appears after you click the Download icon. The modal has the button to download the client installer and the installation key for the tenant.
• If you have the appropriate user permissions, you can copy the installation key in the tenant's client settings.

To download the installer, see the Downloading the installer topic.

IBM Robotic Process Automation supports a new licensing system that provides flexibility and security. With this update, you can install the IBM Robotic Process Automation Client on any computer, considering that you have an installation key from a tenant. Installation keys mitigate common installation issues such as "License not loaded", "Out of license", or "No remaining activations" that required support intervention.

On IBM RPA Control Center, tenant administrators can regenerate the tenant's installation key, rendering previous keys unusable on newer client installations. This protects your tenant if the installation key gets exposed.

Understanding certificates

IBM RPA uses a certificate system to authenticate computers on the IBM RPA server. After you install IBM RPA Client, your computer is registered to an environment that your organization is entitled to. The certificate ensures that your computer maintains a secure communication with the server.

Understanding tenants and regions

• Tenant
  A tenant is an independent logical section on the IBM Robotic Process Automation server. Tenants are also called environments. They store data and resources for specific use in that environment, such as users, computers, scripts, credentials, dashboards, among others. You can access these resources on the IBM RPA Control Center.

• Regions
  Regions refer to the locations of available IBM Robotic Process Automation servers. The servers are spread across different continents. Access your tenant through the IBM RPA Control Center by referencing the region code in the URL:

https://{regioncode}app.wdgautomation.com/

Where:

Example:

https://us1app.wdgautomation.com/

Starting at version 23.0.15, these regions now support the following URL:

https://{regioncode}app.rpa.ibm.com/

The *.wdgautomation.com URLs redirect to the new supported URL in the supported regions.

For more information, see Details about tenants.