Create an Image Containing NI Software Without Activating on Each Computer

Primary Software: Other NI Software>>NI License Manager
Primary Software Version: 3.2
Primary Software Fixed Version: N/A
Secondary Software: LabWindows/CVI Development Systems, Other NI Software>>NI Volume License Manager

Problem:
Can I install National Instruments software and create an image so that when I deploy, the software does not need to be activated?

Solution:
Creating an image of a National Instruments product that is preconfigured for licensing is possible by using one of the following two methods.

Method 1

In this scenario, NI Volume License Manager runs on one computer.

One client computer would have National Instruments software installed and that client computer would be configured to look to NI Volume License Manager for permission to run.

The image should be created based upon this client computer.

When the image is used, those computers would already be configured to look to NI Volume License Manager for permission to run.

No additional configuration is required on the client computer. NI Volume License Manager allows you to control who should or should not have access to run the software, track software use, and manage your software licenses. Depending on the products and licensing models chosen, you can have a lot of control over the software access or you can let NI VLM automatically grant permission and handle license usage. For more information on using NI Volume License Manager, the NI Volume License Program and how to use this option, see the Related Links below.

Method 2

This option requires that you include a license file that has already been activated in the image you are creating. The ability to create an image with an activated license will be handled on a case by case basis. To inquire about eligibility, email agreements@ni.com with the following information:

Organization Name and Department
NI products to be included in the image
Version(s) of each product
Serial Number(s) of product(s)
The disk volume serial number of the C: drive of the computer which will be the source for the image. You can obtain this by completing the following steps:
1. Open a command prompt by clicking Start»Run .
2. Type cmd and click OK.
3. At the command prompt, type C: to change the active directory to your C: drive
4. Type vol to get your Volume Serial Number.

If you are eligible, National Instruments will respond with a special computer ID that will allow software installed as part of an image to work.

Once you have received this computer ID, activate all of your software on the computer which will be the source of the image using the Web activation option. The Web option will allow you to type in your custom computer ID. If you do not have Web access, you can use the Phone method to activate. The other activation options do not allow you to change the default computer ID. For more information on activation, see the Related Links below.

Once you have activated, make your image. As part of the process where you make your image, ensure that the disk volume serial number is copied to the hard drive of the target computers. This can be accomplished differently depending upon what type of imaging software you use. National Instruments does not provide imaging software, but there are many software programs available to help with this.

Hard Drive Imaging Tips

Imaging software replicates all of a hard drive (all of its software applications and hardware drivers required for a computer to run) and enables deployment to another hard drive. For more information on hard drive imaging, please consult the manual of your imaging software. The more similar the source PC and target PC, the better the chances for successfully deploying the image. The following table summarizes some preliminary testing and hints on accommodating hardware differences:

Hardware Difference	Actions Necessary
Same brand and model of peripherals, motherboard, RAM, Ethernet card, video card, some hard drives, etc.	Simplest hard drive imaging procedures
Different brand or model of peripherals, Ethernet Card, video card, some hard drives.	Either use the “New Hardware Found” wizard upon boot of the target machine, or use the free Microsoft Sysprep utility to include the necessary drivers for any device not currently installed on the host machine (the host machine is the machine that the image is based upon).
Different type of chipset (i.e. single, dual core).	You must choose a Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) for the host machine that will work on the target machine. This could cost performance on the target machine. Alternatively, you could create a separate image (which differs only in the HAL being used) for the two types of machines. On Microsoft Vista, the HAL is managed for you so this is not an issue.

More Hard Drive Imaging Tips:

Take the image while the computer is on a workgroup, but not on the domain. The target computer must join the domain after it has been imaged, otherwise troubleshooting steps may be necessary.
If you swap network cards on the target PC and intend to download your hard drive image from a network, be sure the new network card’s driver is on the boot CD.

Report Date: 11/23/2005
Last Updated: 06/11/2009
Document ID: 3RMBN1X6

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