Q: Can I use a Named User license on my laptop?

A: Yes, as long as it has a maximum  of 2 CPUs or cores.  The terms of the license agreement for Named User restrict the user of the software, not the computer(s) on which it runs. You will have to activate the software for use on the laptop using your allocated license.

Q: Can I store the software on a file server?

A: Our definition of use relates to where the instructions are executed not where the software is stored.  You may therefore store DeltaXML software on a file server disk.  It will not need to be activated on such a server if it never runs there.  However, it will need to be activated on each machine on which it runs, and by individual users of Named User licenses.

Q: What happens when my evaluation finishes?

A: You will receive an error or exception if you try to run the software after expiry.  The software includes commands to report license details, including expiry times, please see the documentation. Before or after expiry you may purchase an appropriate license, and a license key will be sent to you by email.  You can then reactivate the software with a permanent license in order to continue to use DeltaXML.

Q: What can I do with an Evaluation license?

A: You may only use it for evaluation purposes. You cannot use DeltaXML to generate revenue or provide internal production services.  However, you can experiment with the developer tools and prototype applications using the DeltaXML APIs and your data.

Q: What does the node limitation on a Named User and Evaluation license mean?

A: The node limitation limits the size of data you can process with these licenses. The software will not run if the node limit is exceeded. A node is an element start or end tag, an attribute name or value, or a text item. Note that when you use word-by-word comparison, each piece of text is split up into words which are enclosed in an element. So each word will be three nodes, and each white space will also be three nodes. So you will reach the limit with a smaller file when you are using word-by-word comparison. Note that the Server license does not have this restriction.

Q: How can I evaluate DeltaXML using my large datasets?

A: We normally provide time-limited evaluation versions of our Named User licenses, which incorporate a (fairly large) data size limit.  However, by special arrangement, we can also provide time-limited evaluations of our other license types, please contact us and we will prepare an appropriate activation key or software download.

Q: Can I use a Server license for a subset of the CPUs in my big server?

A:  Yes, but you will typically need to configure/partition your server to achieve this. The license checking code in DeltaXML uses the information reported by the JVM about the number of available CPUs/cores; in particular it uses the information provided by the java.lang.Runtime.availableProcessors() method.  There are a number of techniques, usually platform specific, which could possibly (note: we haven't tested all of these) be used:

• The Solaris psradm command can be used to disable any surplus CPUs/cores at runtime.
• Virtualization technologies such as VMWare, Microsoft Virtual Server or Xen can be used to partition a large server.
• Large scale servers may provide hardware partitioning technologies, for example:  LPARs/DLPARs on IBM pSeries/AIX, Dynamic System Domains on large SunFire Sparc servers, HP/UX vPars and LDoms on UltraSparc T1 servers.

If these suggestions are too much hassle, consider using an Enterprise license where we will negotiate and enforce any limits using signed license agreements.

Q: Can I use multiple instances of my 2-CPU Server license on a server?

A: The license restricts the number of physical CPUs or cores which are simultaneously running the DeltaXML software.  You could have a number of test or development virtual systems/servers,  all using 2-CPU licenses mapped to the same physical CPUs.  However, running 4 instances of 2-CPU server licenses so as to maximise the CPU usage on an 8 CPU server would be in violation of the license agreement.

Q: Can a Named User license be used on a server?

A: The terms of the license restrict the operation/initiation of the software to be under the control of the designated or named user. This does not preclude using the software on a server, provided the software can only be accessed by the Named User.  On a practical level the licensing code currently requires the presence of a home directory or some alternative implementation of the Java Preferences API user-node store.  This allows Named User licenses to be used, for example, by a user with a login account on shared Unix machine/server.

What you must NOT do is activate a named-user license for a 'root'  or 'apache' user and then use DeltaXML to process requests on a web or application server from unknown/unauthenicated users.  This use requires a Server license. Please contact us if you would like to use Named User licenses in other server scenarios.

Q: Do you have Academic or non-profit licenses?

A: Yes. After verifying your status (for example we may ask for contact details of an academic supervisor) we will consider providing licenses to qualified applicants.  We normally provide these under the non-commercial/production terms of our evaluation licenses; in effect providing evaluation licenses with expiry dates matching the end of your project or other agreed timescale.

Q: Is the licensing per-core or per-CPU?

A: For the Professional licenses (server and named-user) our pricing is per core. With the Professional licenses we strive for ease of automated purchasing/fulfillment. This requirement, combined with the way the JVM only knows about cores rather than physical socketed CPUs, means that the activation mechanisms can only operate based on cores. We have been following the recent trends in processor/server pricing and so recently reduced our per-core prices when dual-core CPUs became the norm.  We will make future adjustments in line with technology trends.

Our Enterprise products are governed by a formal license agreement and allow us more flexibility with pricing for different types of CPU technology.  Please do talk to us if you are planning to use quad or even eight core systems because the Enterprise license is often cheaper than Professional.