TUFLOW Licensing

Introduction

A TUFLOW dongle or TUFLOW software licence is required to run TUFLOW, but is not required when using third party software such as a GIS, text editor or SMS. As of 2010, two brands of dongles are available from BMT, and several third-party dongles are supported that are licensed and maintained by on-sellers of TUFLOW. For the latter, please refer to the vendor’s documentation for setting up the dongle.

BMT licences are either:

• WIBU (metal) Dongles / WIBU Software Licences; or
• Softlok (blue) Dongles

WIBU Dongles / WIBU Software Licences

WIBU dongles were introduced in 2010 and support 64-bit platforms. Two licence types are available, local and network:

• With local licence dongle TUFLOW simulations can only be run on the computer hosting the dongle.
• With network licence dongle the computer or server that the dongle is plugged into becomes the licence host and any computer within the organisation can pull licences from the licence host over the network.

WIBU software licence is recognised by the 2016-03-AE release onwards and provided in a form of a digital file. The computer or server where the software licence is installed on becomes the licence host from which any computer within the organisation can pull licences from. The software licence is more restrictive compared to the network licence dongle in that it is locked to a single computer.

WIBU dongles (and WIBU software licences) have several advantages over the Softlok dongles:

• Support for 64-bit platforms and future options for non-Windows platforms;
• Network licence manager runs as a service (ie. the computer with the network dongle needs to be on, but no one needs to be logged in);
• Much more flexible licensing options (for example, it is now possible to have a Network 10 TUFLOW licence with a Network 5 Multiple 2D Domains Module licence – with the SoftLok dongles a Network 10 Multiple 2D Domains Module would have to have been purchased);
• Multiple WIBU dongles (local and/or network licensed) are accessible together (ie. if all licences from one dongle are taken, licences from other dongles are automatically checked and taken);
• No network ghost licences (thus far!); and
• No need for TUFLOW to control limiting of local licences (TUFLOW’s run key is not used if the number of CPUs/cores exceeds the local licence limit).
  

Note, for the 2009-07, 2008-08, 2007-07 and 2006-06 releases, the “DB” builds or later will need to be used to recognise a WIBU Codemeter dongle.

Softlok Dongles

Softlok dongles are no longer issued as of August 2010 as they are unable to provide 64-bit support, however the dongles continue to be supported for 32-bit versions of TUFLOW. Softlok dongles may be exchanged for a WIBU dongle for a nominal fee, please contact sales@tuflow.com.

Fequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Do I require a TUFLOW licence to create TUFLOW inputs and view results from a TUFLOW simulation?

No, a TUFLOW licence is only needed to run simulations (excluding tutorial, demo and example models or small models eligible for free mode). Running TUFLOW.exe is required to:

• Process control files (.tcf, etc), check the data inputs and to construct the model using the GIS layers and other inputs. As part of this process any ERROR, WARNING or CHECK messages are issued to help resolve input data conflicts. Check files and GIS layers representing the final model construct are also produced to quality control the model’s inputs.
• To carry out the hydraulic computations provided the Step 1 above produces no ERROR messages.

No licence is needed for all other tasks, including:

• Creation and editing of all input files and GIS layers.
• Running GIS plugins such as the QGIS TUFLOW Viewer.
• Running utilities (e.g. asc_to_asc.exe).
• Reviewing check files/layers in GIS.
• Viewing results (e.g. using TUFLOW Viewer in QGIS).

All TUFLOW inputs and outputs use free open formats that are readable and editable by third party software, for example QGIS and Notepad++:

• Download Notepad++ to create and review tabular data: Notepad++ installation and tips.
• Download QGIS: QGIS installation and tips.
• Install the TUFLOW Plugin: TUFLOW QGIS plugin installation and tips.
• Use TUFLOW Viewer to review XMDF results: TUFLOW Viewer.