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Installation, Licensing & Management

Created: July 27, 2016 | Updated: November 11, 2016

This documentation page references Altium Vault, which has been discontinued. All your PCB design, data management and collaboration needs can now be delivered by Altium Designer and a connected Altium 365 Workspace.

 

Installation of any software application should be straightforward, intuitive and, perhaps above all, fast. Furthermore, when you have that software installed, you want to be able to update it as and when you deem necessary, and in a streamlined fashion.

The Altium Vault is installed through use of an efficient, intuitive installer - an installer that not only expedites the initial installation process, but lets you update with ease to a later version, at any time in the future. In addition, tools are available to monitor the health of your vault, and to back-up and restore your valuable design data.

Initial Install

Related page: Installing the Altium Vault

Installation of the Altium Vault is performed using the Altium Vault Setup wizard. This is accessed by running an executable - Altium Vault <VersionNumber>.exe . This executable is downloaded from the Downloads page of the Altium website, and can be saved anywhere on your hard disk.

Due to the observed unpredictable behavior of antivirus software, it is recommended to disable such software during the installation of the Altium Vault.
Each version of the Altium Vault has its own dedicated installer.

Streamlined installation, courtesy of the Altium Vault Setup wizard.
Streamlined installation, courtesy of the Altium Vault Setup wizard.

Licensing the Altium Vault

Related page: Altium Vault Licensing

Licensing for the Altium Vault essentially consists of the following two components, that together comprise a two-tiered licensing system:

  • Server License - this license makes the features and services of the Altium Vault installation available to the organization.
  • Client Access License - this license enables users within an organization to access, and sign-in to the organization's Altium Vault.

Licensing for the Altium Vault can be handled through the cloud, or locally through license files (*.alf).

Two licensing pairs are available, depending on whether you are using an Altium Vault with the standard Firebird database (Altium Vault and Altium Vault CAL), or your own Oracle database (Altium Vault Oracle and Altium Vault Oracle CAL).

Getting your Altium Vault licensed is a breeze, thanks to self-serve licensing from those licenses available to you through your account.
Getting your Altium Vault licensed is a breeze, thanks to self-serve licensing from those licenses available to you through your account.

Both Server and Client Access Licenses are timed licenses, lasting 12 months. Subscription must be renewed on an annual basis in order to provide continued access to the Altium Vault for the users in an organization, as well as to access new features and functionality developed by Altium as part of the Altium Vault. If this annual subscription renewal lapses, a single Server and CAL license will be provided to access your data for backup and configuration purposes.

Updating to a Later Version

When you want to upgrade to a later version of the Altium Vault, the Altium Vault Setup Wizard can handle this automatically for you. Simply run the installer for the later version. The older version will be detected, and you will be asked if you wish to upgrade to the later version - click Yes. As part of the installation process, the Installer will make a backup of the current vault data, using the Backup & Restore tool. The default backup folder is \ProgramData\Altium\VaultServerData, but can be changed as required. The backup data is stored in a file with the format AltiumVault<Version>_backup.zip.

While the Altium Vault installer includes automated backup of your existing vault, it is always a good idea to make a pre-update backup of your data yourself - taking a redundancy copy off to one side as it were. This provides additional safety, should any unforeseen technical difficulties arise. Additionally, it is advised to test out a new release of the Altium Vault on a different machine, before updating your production instance. Use of Virtual Machines can be invaluable in this respect.


When updating to a later version of the vault, a backup of your data will be made, before the old vault is removed,
and the new one installed.

Uninstalling

Uninstalling the Altium Vault is performed from the standard Programs and Features page (accessed from the Control panel in Windows 7 and above). Simply right-click on the entry for the Altium Vault <VersionNumber> and use the Uninstall command from the context menu. A couple of dialogs will appear, in turn, asking:

  1. If you want to completely remove the vault - click Yes.
  2. If you want to delete all your data - click Yes. If you wanted to keep your data, for example you are manually updating to a later version of the vault, click No.

A final confirmation dialog will appear once the uninstall is complete.

Uninstalling the Altium Vault.
Uninstalling the Altium Vault.

 

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