Some users may wish to register to become developers so they can sell their work. To this end, the product has built in support for 3rd party developers including licensing, automated licence key generation and encryption. Its use is entirely optional and you may sell your work without using any of the provided Developer Services.
Becoming A 3rd Party Developer
On the Developer Menu, select the option "Register To Become A Developer". Once you have accepted the Terms & Conditions, a unique Developer ID will be configured into the system. Its important to to record your Developer ID and store it in a safe place in case of system failure.
Developer Menu
Register To Become A Developer
This option will show a dialog window allowing you to register to become a developer.
Unregister As A Developer
This option will show a dialog window allowing you to unregister as a developer. It's very important to consider the available options on the dialog window as they will have serious implications for your customers.
Show Key Urls For This ...
If you wish to use our licensing technology then a licence key will need to be provided to our web server. This can be automated or done manually. This option provides Url's for automated licence key provision for the currently loaded item. The first Url uses our web server to generate the licence key. The second Url allows you to specify the licence key.
These Urls are meant to be embedded into your website shop and called upon successful completion of an order.
These Urls must remain confidential otherwise your product licensing may become compromised!
Manually Add A Key For This ...
If you wish to use our licensing technology, but do not wish to automate license key generation, you can manually add a licence key for the currently loaded item using this option.
Remove Key For This ...
This allows the removal of a licence key regardless of how it was created.
Reset Licence Activation Count
Whenever a licence key is activated by your customer, the amount of activations is recorded. When the Max Activations limit is reached, no more licence key activations can occur and your customer will need to ask for you to reset the activations count. This option allows you to do this as well as optionally typing and sending an email to confirm the outcome. The email message can also be set as the default email message.
Generate New Product ID
This option changes the Product ID of the item currently loaded. Doing so allows the item to be saved with a new name so it can be separately licensed and used as a basis for a new product. Use this option with extreme caution, because if you accidently save over the top of an existing licensed product file, you will no longer be able to manage the licensing of that item unless you revert to a back up.
Developer Options
Developer Options appear for Components, Modules, Device Panels and Device Panel Groups in the Canvas or Part Config Panel when a Part is not selected.
Encrypt Files
It is important to enable this option before performing a final release Export if you are using our licencing technology.
Licensed
Enable this option if the item is be licensed using our licensing technology.
Inherit Licence
Enable this option if the item being built will use the licence from its parent item. For example, this allows licensed Components and Modules to use the licence key from the Device Panel that you are selling/licensing; otherwise every Module and Component would need its own licence key.
Allow Changes
Enabling this allows changes to made to the item by your customers.
Allow Config Changes
Enabling this option allows customers to change the state configurations of the item concerned.
Allow Drag & Drop
Enabling this option allows the item concerned to be dragged and dropped from the Items Panel onto the Canvas. This is useful, for example, if you are selling a Device Panel, but do not want the underlying Modules and Components to be used by your customers to build. Enabling this option on all Modules and Components used in the Device Panel would stop any customer building.
Max Activations
The sets the maximum number of times the licence key can be activated before needing a reset.
Developer ID
This shows your Developer ID. If its all zeros, you are not registered as a developer.
Best Practice
- Leave product licensing to the very end of the creation process in case you decide to abandon the project. I.e. Encrypt Files, Licensed and Max Activations.
- Do set Inherit Licence, Allow Changes, Allow Config Changes and Allow Drag & Drop as you create.
- License at the very top level product, and allow all subsequent products to inherit their licence from this top level product. This allows a single Licence Key to activate all the associated products.
- Never allow your Developer ID, Product ID's and Key Url's in the public domain as this will compromise your licensing.
- Test your exported product by importing it using the Virtual Hardware Builder Test product to ensure you have configured your licensing and restrictions adequately.
- See the Exporting Best Practice.
JSON Response From Key Generation URL Example
{"Status":200,"StatusMessage":"Key Added","Key":"6080-6658-9995-3718-8553"}