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Installing VSN License Keys

There are two ways of installing VSN license keys. The easiest way is to use the license key installation menus built into the software. These are accessible from the menu displayed when starting an unlicensed product and via Help on the main menu bar. The latter method can be used when updating a license key, for example after renewal of support or maintenance. Alternatively, you can install the license manually. This is simply a matter of storing the license key in a text file, in a specified location. This is described further below. It may be more convenient doing this when you are performing a large installation over a network or in a computing laboratory with a lot of PCs.

Obtaining license keys

Following registration of your software (or request for a trial license key) you will be sent a key by email. The key will be provided as an attachment bearing the name of the software (i.e. genstat.lic) and the information will be repeated in the body of the message in case your email system has problems with file attachments. The information is the same in each case and either version can be used for installation, whichever is more convenient. If you work in a larger company or institution, you may not need to register the software yourself. In this case the license key will be provided by your system administrator. It may be provided as a file, or as an email. Again, either method may be used with the menu options described below.

Install from file

Select this option if you wish to install from a file, then specify the file name. Use the Browse button to locate the file. The file does not need to be located on your hard drive as it will be copied to a default location (see below).

Install from license text

If you select this option you can enter the text of the license key into the field provided. This is intended to be used for pasting in the license text (using the Paste button), which would normally have been copied to the clipboard from an email message. The license text can be typed in directly although this is not normally recommended as it is very easy to make a mistake.

Successful installation

The license key will first be tested to ensure it is valid and then copied into a standard location. Successful completion of this step will be indicated by a popup message showing the location of the stored license file. Any file which previously existed at this location will be renamed by appending a serial number (for example genstat.lic.1). The serial number will be incremented until a unique name is generated. 

Manual installation

If, for any reason, there are problems installing a valid license key, you can choose to perform a manual installation, which is quite straightforward. You may also find manual installation more convenient if you are installing many copies of the software, for example on a network or in a teaching room. Simply save the license text (from the email text or attached file) in one of the following locations:

  • \appdata\VSNi\genstat.lic. The exact location for appdata is explained
    here. This is the preferred location for the license.
  • \Bin\genstat.lic. This is more suitable for a network installation
    as it stores the license with the application, not on every machine that needs to access it. The application directory is the location where the software was installed.
Updated on April 30, 2019

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