IBM i licensing on IBM system models that offer user entitlements
On certain system models, IBM® i licensing consists of two types of entitlements: user entitlements and processor entitlements. Review this information to understand concepts, requirements, and procedures that are associated with user entitlements and processor entitlements.
On all system models, an entitlement is required for each processor that runs the IBM i operating system. System models that offer user entitlements require that you have both IBM i user entitlements and IBM i processor entitlements.
IBM i user entitlements
An IBM i user is a person who accesses the IBM i operating system through one or more connections. The user exchanges credentials (user identifications) either directly with the operating system, or indirectly through application or middleware software that is supported by the operating system. On system models that offer user entitlements, you must acquire entitlements for the maximum number of IBM i users who are authenticated on the system at the same time (concurrent IBM i users).
For more information about IBM i user entitlements,
go to the Offering
Information
Web site, create a quick search profile, and
use the advanced search function to search for the Announcement letter
for IBM i licensing
by user. In the Title field, specify licensing
by user.
IBM i processor entitlements
In addition to licensing by the number of IBM i users, the operating system is also licensed by processor. Each IBM i model that offers user entitlements includes at least one IBM i processor entitlement. You might need to purchase additional processor entitlements to configure or run the operating system on additional processors.
IBM i software license keys for system models that offer user entitlements
- 5770-SS1 feature 5050
- The software license key of a 70-day trial period for the operating system
- 5770-SS1 feature 5051
- The processor entitlement key that indicates the number of processors used by the operating system
- 5770-SS1 feature 5052
- The user entitlement key that indicates the number of users who are authorized to use the operating system
If you have preinstalled the IBM i operating system, the software license keys for feature 5050, feature 5052, and a single processor entitlement for feature 5051 are already included on the system. If you have ordered more than one processor, see the Customer Notice included with your order for how to access additional software license keys.
Licensing documents and warranties for systems with IBM i user entitlements
- Before you use the licensed programs, ensure that you read and understand all software license documents.
- Keep the printed documents in a secure location.
- When you transfer a program, pass both the online and the printable documents to the new owner.
Logical partitions and IBM i user entitlements
On a system that is configured with multiple logical partitions, you can install different versions of the IBM i operating system on individual partitions. On such a system, the cross partition usage count for the IBM i user entitlement feature 5052 includes the combined usage count of all versions of the IBM i operating system across all the logical partitions, regardless of the different product identifiers for different versions of the IBM i operating system.
| Logical partitions | Versions of IBM i installed | Product identifier |
|---|---|---|
| Logical partition A | Version 6 Release 1 | 5761-SS1 |
| Logical partition B | Version 7 Release 1 | 5770-SS1 |
| Logical partition C | Version 5 Release 4 | 5722-SS1 |
- On logical partition A, feature 5052 is associated with product identifier 5761–SS1.
- On logical partition B, feature 5052 is associated with product identifier 5770-SS1.
- On logical partition C, feature 5052 is associated with product identifier 5722–SS1.
For further information about IBM i licensing and logical partitions, search for Software licensing for IBM licensed programs on logical partitions in the IBM Systems Hardware Information Center.
User profiles and IBM i user entitlements
A user profile is an object on an IBM i partition with a unique name that contains the user password, the list of special authorities assigned to a user, and the objects the user owns. You can use the Work with License Information (WRKLICINF) command to track the number of enabled user profiles on your IBM i partition, and to help maintain compliance with the IBM i licensing on system models that offer user entitlements. Select Option 8 (Work with license users) to display the user profiles accounted for in the Logical partition portion in the Usage Count Information field. To help meet license compliance, check this usage count against the number of user entitlements that are available on the system.
It might be valid for the number of enabled profiles to be greater than the number of user entitlements. For example, you might have many users who are not authenticated to the IBM i partition concurrently. To provide a more accurate usage count, IBM-supplied system profiles are excluded from the usage count.
| Status | Command parameter | Description |
|---|---|---|
| enabled | *ENABLED | A user profile with enabled status is included in the usage count as a tool to help manage the number of required IBM i user entitlements. |
| disabled | *DISABLED | A disabled status indicates that the user does not have access to the operating system, and the user profile is not included in the usage count. |
- For more information about control language (CL) commands that work with common IBM i user profiles, use the CL command finder.
- To create new user profiles on the IBM i partition, you need to have security officer (QSECOFR) authority. For more information about user profiles, see User profiles.
Various situations based on the number of user entitlements on the system can affect the status of a user profile. For example, if a user attempts to sign on and the maximum number of attempts is exceeded, the user profile status is changed to disabled and the usage count is reduced.
You can exclude user profiles from the IBM i user entitlement requirements by using the Change User Entitlement Attribute (QLZACUEA) API. This API also provides an interface to change the status of a profile to be disabled, which might result in a change to the usage count for IBM i user entitlement feature 5052.
QSYS/CALL PGM(QSYS/QLZACUEA)
PARM('EXAMPLE 0*SAME ' X'00000015' 'CEAI0100' X'00000000')Hardware upgrades on systems with IBM i user entitlements
If you are upgrading from a system with processor-based licensing to system model that supports IBM i user entitlements, the usage limit that you purchased for IBM i user entitlement should match the number of enabled user profiles. Before you upgrade your hardware to the target system, add the new license key that contains the license entitlements to the source system. At the first initial program load (IPL) of the target system or logical partition, user profiles are scanned and licenses are checked for the user profiles that have a status of enabled.
For further information about hardware upgrades, see Capacity Upgrade on Demand in the IBM Systems Hardware Information Center.
Related information
- Offering Information
(http://www.ibm.com/common/ssi/index.wss)Go to this Web site and use the search function to search for the Announcement letter for IBM i licensing by user. In the Title field, specify licensing by user.
- IBM Knowledge
Center
Use the Search for function with licensing and logical partitions to see information about IBM i licensing and logical partitions.
Use the Search for function with PowerVM® Editions to see information about installing, configuring, managing, and using the PowerVM Editions technologies.