SPLA
Contents
1 Introduction
SPLA partners are usually hosting providers that provide end-users with their IT infrastructure requirements using Virtual Machines hosted on the SPLA partner server farms. These SPLA partners hold pools of ready-to-go Kemp LoadMaster instances which can be licensed and unlicensed on demand. The SPLA partner is then billed for the usage of the LoadMasters.
SPLA builds are used where the LoadMaster is being deployed under a Service Provider Licensing Agreement (SPLA) or a Metered Licensing Agreement. SPLA builds will only license successfully against a Kemp ID that has been explicitly enabled by Kemp for SPLA or Metered Licensing.
1.1 Document Purpose
There are some differences between SPLA-licensed LoadMasters and regular LoadMasters. This document describes these differences.
1.2 Intended Audience
This document is intended to be read by anyone who is interested in learning more about SPLA-licensed LoadMasters.
2 Differences with SPLA Licenses
As SPLA customers already have a contract with Kemp, they can use a simplified method of licensing. Some differences that the SPLA process has to the regular one are listed below:
- There is a specific build for SPLA customers. If you are an SPLA customer, please contact Kemp for access to your build. Only SPLA Kemp IDs can be used to license SPLA LoadMaster builds.
To get a Kemp ID changed to an SPLA Kemp ID, please contact a Kemp representative.
- Features specific to customers who enroll past 20th March 2017 and are using LoadMaster firmware version 7.2.36 or above are:
- Any SPLA license type can be chosen when entering into a contract agreement.
- A single SPLA Kemp ID can license unlimited SPLA instances.
- The same SPLA Kemp ID can be used to license any other Kemp producs, such as trial/permanent Virtual LoadMaster, hardware LoadMaster, bare metal instances and/or cloud instances.
- For SPLA licenses provisioned before 20th March 2017 - the SPLA Kemp ID for a LoadMaster can be changed to another SPLA Kemp ID (and therefore one SPLA license type can be changed to another SPLA license type), if needed, by using the License Management feature and using the "new" SPLA Kemp ID. Kemp recommends rebooting after updating the license.
- SPLA downloads are sent to the associated Kemp IDs as per the information provided in Appendix A of the Service Provider License Agreement document.
- Online licensing and Kemp 360 Central Licensing are the only available options to license an SPLA LoadMaster. Offline and legacy licensing is not available. After initially installing an SPLA LoadMaster, you will be asked to select the license method to proceed. For step-by-step instructions on how to license initially, refer to the relevant document, depending on the chosen licensing method:
- Online Licensing: Licensing, Feature Description. However, keep in mind that online licensing is the only available licensing method in this document which is relevant for an SPLA LoadMaster.
- ASL licensing: Kemp 360 Central Feature Description
It is not yet possible to select the license to use when using ASL licensing. This functionality will be available in the future.
- The screen asking to enable the LoadMaster to check for firmware updates is not displayed and this function is enabled automatically. It is not possible to disable these checks in an SPLA LoadMaster.
- SPLA details such as the license type, support type, licenses allocated and maximum licenses allowed can vary. To check or change these details, please contact a Kemp representative.
- A LoadMaster will automatically receive a permanent license if licensed with an SPLA Kemp ID.
- A licensed SPLA unit can be killed when it is no longer required. This can be done in the System Configuration > System Administration > License Management or System Configuration > Miscellaneous Options > Activation Server screen of the LoadMaster Web User Interface (WUI), depending on the initial licensing method.
The LoadMaster automatically reboots after the license is killed.
Kemp can remotely kill a licensed SPLA LoadMaster for various reasons. The SPLA LoadMaster will stop functioning within 24 hours of the kill being initiated by Kemp.
- On a regular basis, Kemp will count the active units per SPLA Kemp ID. This is the number of licenses that Kemp will use for invoicing.
- The support for SPLA LoadMasters is unlimited, as the customer is in support as long as their agreement remains active with Kemp.
- RESTful API is enabled from the start with SPLA LoadMasters. There are some RESTful API commands that are available only to SPLA customers. Refer to the API Commands for SPLA LoadMasters section for more information.
- SPLA LoadMasters have a mandatory feature called Kemp Analytics. With this feature, the LoadMaster connects to the Kemp licensing server to get available license updates and to provide system status information to Kemp. This data is strictly about product usage, enabled capabilities, and statistics. No sensitive user data, or traffic of any kind is either collected or communicated. For more information, visit https://kemp.ax/KempAnalytics.
2.1 API Commands for SPLA LoadMasters
There are some API commands relating to SPLA LoadMasters. These are described in the sections below. Refer to the relevant section depending on whether you want to use the RESTful API or PowerShell API.
2.1.1 RESTful API Commands
The following sections contain details about the RESTful API commands for SPLA licensing. Refer to the relevant section below depending on whether or not you are licensing using Kemp 360 Central.
For further information on RESTful API in general, refer to the RESTful API Interface Description on the Kemp Documentation page.
2.1.1.1 License an SPLA LoadMaster Without Using Kemp 360 Central
Follow the steps in the following sections to license an SPLA LoadMaster without using Kemp 360 Central.
2.1.1.1.1 Retrieve the List of Available SPLA Licenses
To retrieve the list of available SPLA licenses for the specified Kemp ID, run the following command:
curl -k -v "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/alsilicensetypes?kempid=<KempID>&password=<KempIDPassword>"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
kempid |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
This command returns a list of available licenses. The ID of the desired license is needed when running the command to license the LoadMaster.
2.1.1.1.2 License the LoadMaster using a Specific SPLA License
To license the LoadMaster using a specific SPLA license, run the following command:
curl -k -v "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/alsilicense?kempid=<KempID>&password=<KempIDPassword>&licensetypeid=<LicenseTypeID>"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
kempid |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
| licensetypeid | String | The ID of the license you want to apply to the LoadMaster. You would have retrieved this in the previous section by running the alsilicensetypes command. | Yes |
2.1.1.1.3 Set the 'bal' User Password
You can set the password for the default admin user (bal) for an SPLA LoadMaster using a RESTful API command if the password has not yet been set. Run the following command if setting the password for the first time:
curl -k -v "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/set_initial_passwd?passwd=<NewPassword>"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
passwd |
String |
The new password for the bal user. |
Yes |
2.1.1.1.4 Kill an SPLA License
You can kill an SPLA license using a RESTful API command. The LoadMaster must be able to communicate with the Kemp Licensing Server for this to be successful.
Kemp can remotely kill a licensed SPLA LoadMaster for various reasons. The SPLA LoadMaster stops functioning within 24 hours of the kill being initiated by Kemp.
To kill an SPLA license, run the following command:
curl -k -v -u "bal":"<BalPassword>" "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/kill_spla_instance?name=<Kemp ID>&passwd=<KempIDPassword>>&kill=1"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
kempid |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
| kill | Boolean | Set this parameter to 1 to kill the license. | Yes |
Killing, relicensing, and killing again is not recommended - this leads to unexpected behavior.
2.1.2 License an SPLA LoadMaster Using Kemp 360 Central
Follow the steps in the following sections to license an SPLA LoadMaster using Kemp 360 Central.
2.1.2.1 Retrieve the List of Available SPLA Licenses from Kemp 360 Central
To retrieve the list of available SPLA licenses from Kemp 360 Central, run the following command:
curl -k "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/aslgetlicensetypes?aslhost=<Kemp360CentralIPAddress>&aslport=<Kemp360CentralPort>"
This command returns a list of available licenses. The ID of the desired license is needed when running the command to license the LoadMaster.
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
| aslhost | String | The IP address of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| aslport | Integer | The port of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
2.1.2.2 License the LoadMaster using a Specific SPLA License
To license the LoadMaster using a specific SPLA license, run the following command:
curl -k "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/access/aslactivate?lic_type_id=<LicenseTypeID>&aslhost=<Kemp360CentralIPAddress>&aslport=<Kemp360CentralPort>"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
| licensetypeid | String | The ID of the license you want to apply to the LoadMaster. You would have retrieved this in the previous section by running the alsilicensetypes command. | Yes |
| aslhost | String | The IP address of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| aslport | Integer | The port of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
2.1.2.3 Set the 'bal' User Password
You can set the password for the default admin user (bal) for an SPLA LoadMaster using a RESTful API command if the password has not yet been set. Run the following command if setting the password for the first time:
curl -k -v "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/set_initial_passwd?passwd=<NewPassword>"
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
passwd |
String |
The new password for the bal user. |
Yes |
2.1.2.4 Kill an SPLA License
You can kill an SPLA license using a RESTful API command. The LoadMaster must be able to communicate with the Kemp Licensing Server for this to be successful.
Kemp can remotely kill a licensed SPLA LoadMaster for various reasons. The SPLA LoadMaster stops functioning within 24 hours of the kill being initiated by Kemp.
To kill an SPLA license, run the following command:
curl -k "https://<LoadMasterIPAddress>/access/kill_spla_instance?name=<KempID>&passwd=<KempIDPassword>&kill=1"
Killing, relicensing, and killing again is not recommended - this leads to unexpected behavior.
2.2 PowerShell API Commands
The following sections contain details about the PowerShell API commands for SPLA licensing. Refer to the relevant section below depending on whether or not you are licensing using Kemp 360 Central.
For further information on PowerShell API in general, refer to the PowerShell Interface Description on the Kemp Documentation page.
2.2.1 Import the Kemp PowerShell Module and Initialize the Connection
To import the Kemp PowerShell module, run the following command:
Import-Module -Name .\Kemp.LoadBalancer.Powershell.psd1 -Verbose
It may be easier to run the following command to initialize against the relevant LoadMaster once, rather than providing credentials for every command. The password to enter is the default bal user password.
Initialize-LmConnectionParameters -Address <LoadMasterIPAddress> -LBPort <Port> -Credential "bal" -Verbose
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Address |
String |
The IP address of the LoadMaster. |
Yes |
|
LBPort |
Integer |
The port of the LoadMaster. |
Yes |
| Credential | String | The LoadMaster username. | Yes |
2.2.2 License an SPLA LoadMaster Without Using Kemp 360 Central
Follow the steps in the following sections to license an SPLA LoadMaster without using Kemp 360 Central.
2.2.2.1 Retrieve the List of Available SPLA Licenses
To retrieve the list of available SPLA licenses for the specified Kemp ID, run the following command:
$lictype = Get-LicenseType -KempId <KempID> -Password <KempIDPassword> -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress>
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
KempId |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
Password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | The IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
2.2.2.2 License the LoadMaster using a Specific SPLA License (PowerShell)
To license the LoadMaster using a specific SPLA license, run the following command:
$lic = Request-LicenseOnline -KempId <KempID> -Password <KempIDPassword> -LicenseTypeId $lictype.Data.License[0].id -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress>
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
KempId |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
Password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
| LicensetypeId | String | The ID of the license you want to apply to the LoadMaster. You would have retrieved this in the previous section by running the Get-LicenseType command. | Yes |
2.2.2.3 Set the 'bal' User Password (PowerShell)
You can set the password for the default admin user (bal) for an SPLA LoadMaster using a PowerShell API command if the password has not yet been set. Run the following command if setting the password for the first time:
$setp = Set-LicenseInitialPassword -Passwd <BalPassword> -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress>
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Passwd |
String |
The new password for the bal user. |
Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
2.2.2.4 Kill an SPLA License
You can kill an SPLA license using a PowerShell API command. When you kill a license, the Current Licenses Allocated value is decremented by one, freeing up a license to be used elsewhere.
Kemp can remotely kill a licensed SPLA LoadMaster for various reasons. The SPLA LoadMaster stops functioning within 24 hours of the kill being initiated by Kemp.
To kill an SPLA license, run the following command:
$remove = Remove-SplaInstance -KempId <KempID> -Password <KempIDPassword> -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress> -Credential bal
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
KempId |
String |
The email address used when registering for a Kemp ID. |
Yes |
|
Password |
String |
The Kemp ID account password. |
Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | The IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
Killing, relicensing, and killing again is not recommended - this leads to unexpected behavior.
2.2.3 License an SPLA LoadMaster Using Kemp 360 Central
Follow the steps in the following sections to license an SPLA LoadMaster using Kemp 360 Central.
2.2.3.1 Retrieve the List of Available SPLA Licenses from Kemp 360 Central
To retrieve the list of available SPLA licenses from Kemp 360 Central, run the following command:
Get-AslLicenseType -aslhost <Kemp360CentralIPAddress> -aslport <Kemp360CentralPort> -LoadBalancer <LoadBalancerIPAddress>
If you already know what license ID to use, there is no need to execute this command. You can simply run the Request-LicenseOnPremise command.
This command returns a list of available licenses. The ID of the desired license is needed when running the command to license the LoadMaster.
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
| aslhost | String | The IP address of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| aslport | Integer | The port of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | The IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
2.2.3.2 License the LoadMaster using a Specific SPLA License
To license the LoadMaster using a specific SPLA license, run the following command:
Request-LicenseOnPremise -aslhost <Kemp360CentralIPAddress> -aslport <Kemp360CentralPort> -LoadBalancer <LoadBalancerIPAddress> -LicenseTypeId <LicenseTypeID>
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
| licensetypeid | String | The ID of the license you want to apply to the LoadMaster. You would have retrieved this in the previous section by running the Get-AslLicenseType command. | Yes |
| aslhost | String | The IP address of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| aslport | Integer | The port of the Kemp 360 Central machine being used for licensing. | Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | The IP address of the LoadMaster. | No |
2.2.3.3 Set the 'bal' User Password (PowerShell)
You can set the password for the default admin user (bal) for an SPLA LoadMaster using a PowerShell API command if the password has not yet been set. Run the following command if setting the password for the first time:
$setp = Set-LicenseInitialPassword -Passwd <BalPassword> -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress>
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Passwd |
String |
The new password for the bal user. |
Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
2.2.3.4 Kill an SPLA License (Central PowerShell)
You can kill an SPLA license using a PowerShell API command. When you kill a license, the Current Licenses Allocated value is decremented by one, freeing up a license to be used elsewhere.
Kemp can remotely kill a licensed SPLA LoadMaster for various reasons. The SPLA LoadMaster stops functioning within 24 hours of the kill being initiated by Kemp.
To kill an SPLA license, run the following command:
Stop-AslInstance -LoadBalancer <LoadMasterIPAddress> -Credential bal
|
Name |
Type |
Description |
Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Credential |
String |
The LoadMaster username.. |
Yes |
| LoadBalancer | String | IP address of the LoadMaster. | Yes |
Killing, relicensing, and killing again is not recommended - this leads to unexpected behavior.
3 References
Unless otherwise specified, the following documents can be found at http://kemptechnologies.com/documentation.
RESTful API, Interface Description
Licensing, Feature Description
Kemp360 Central Feature Description
Last Updated Date
This document was last updated on 31 January 2022.