# PxPlus System Programs and Files

ACTIVATE.PVX | System Activation Keys Control File

The ACTIVATE.PVX file contains the internal activation information for your version of PxPlus. The information includes:

- System Name
- Software Serial Number
- System Identification Number
- Maximum Simultaneous User Count
- Expiry Date

#### Warning!
This file should NOT be modified or moved under any conditions.
Any attempt to modify or move this file may result in the partial or total deactivation of your software! Reactivation of your software caused by tampering with this file is a billable service.

## Location of the PxPlus Activation File

Depending on the version of PxPlus and the operating system, the activation file can reside in different places. The actual location of the file can be specified on the PxPlus Command line by using the -K: command line argument or by defining an ENVIRONMENT variable of PVXKEY with the pathname to the directory where the ACTIVATE.PVX file resides.

The following are the default locations for the activation file:

UNIX/Linux | The default placement of the ACTIVATE.PVX file is in the Lib directory where PxPlus is installed.
Windows - PxPlus Version 2014 and later | The default placement of the ACTIVATE.PVX file is in a PxpKeys directory one level above where PxPlus is installed. Example: If PxPlus is installed in the default "C:\PVX Plus Technologies\PxPlus 2014" location, then the ACTIVATE.PVX file will be placed in "C:\PVX Plus Technologies\PxpKeys". #### Note: This placement allows multiple versions of PxPlus to be installed on the same machine and to share the activation file/keys.
Windows - PxPlus V6 through V11 and ProvideX | The default placement of the ACTIVATE.PVX file is in a Keys sub-directory within the Lib directory where PxPlus is installed.

## Sharing the PxPlus Activation File

PxPlus allows you to share the common license file, ACTIVATE.PVX, between different instances and versions of PxPlus. Sharing the license file allows you to distribute the user counts between different systems or enable PxPlus version testing of your application.

Prerequisites

To share the license file, all installations must be of the same operating system and the same PxPlus machine class. An example would be Microsoft Windows (machine class 001), X86 Linux platforms (all 32 bit or all 64 bit), etc.

Each individual installation must have access to the PxPlus activation file and the directory in which it resides. This can be direct access (both on the same computer), a shared mapped drive or the UNC name (such as "//mainserver/pxplus/PxpKeys/ACTIVATE.PVX").

Sharing the License File

While there are many ways to share the license file, the most common approaches are explained below. The best approach to use will depend on your intended use and the environment in which you will be working (e.g. Production vs. Test/Development and Windows vs. Linux).

| For Windows and current UNIX/Linux environments, the application INI (pxplus.ini) file can be used by including an ActivationKey setting: [Config] ActivationKey=C:\PVX Plus Technologies\PxpKeys The ActivationKey entry in the Config section of the pxplus.ini file must point to the common activation file. See INI Contents.
| For Windows and UNIX/Linux environments back to and including ProvideX v9, you can include a –K: Command line activation parameter when launching PxPlus: pxplus.exe –k:"//MyMainServer/lib/KEYS" See Command Line Activation Parameters.
| For Windows and UNIX/Linux environments back to and including PxPlus v8, the PVXKEY environment variable can be set to the directory where the ACTIVATE.PVX file is found: PVXKEY=//MyMainServer/lib/KEYS

Special UNIX/Linux Sharing Option

While all the above approaches will work on UNIX/Linux systems, the simplest approach on these systems would be to use a UNIX/Linux file system link between the multiple installations.

Example:

If you had two versions of PxPlus installed, one in /usr/pxplusv11 and the other in /usr/pxplusv12, you could first register and activate the software in /usr/pxplusv11 and then issue the following Linux command to share the ACTIVATE.PVX file:

> ln /usr/pxplusv11/lib/ACTIVATE.PVX /usr/pxplusv12/lib/ACTIVATE.PVX

You can use either a hard link or symbolic link (ln -s) if the two installations are on different systems.