USB Key FAQs

See below for a summary of some of our most frequently asked questions regarding USB key usage.

For additional information on installation, System Requirements, and standard usage please see our USB Key Support page.

General Questions

What licenses does AFT offer?

AFT offers two types of copy protection, eLicenses (cloud-based licensing) and USB keys. Both eLicenses and USB keys come in either a network or standalone license profile. These options are described further here.

What kind of license do I have?

AFT sends a license details document to the primary contact when a license is purchased.

If you do not have access to the license details, there are a few ways to determine your license type. If you are running the software, check the tools menu. If an eLicense was used to run the software then an "eLicense Information" menu option will be available. Selecting eLicense information will show additional information on the eLicense profile, and license seats available.

If "eLicense Information" is not available in the Tools menu, then a USB key license was used to access the software. Standalone USB keys must be plugged directly into the local machine to access a license. Network USB keys may be located on a server, or on another machine on the local network to access a license.

Alternatively if you cannot open the software, The license error message will typically show the license type last used to open the software, as is shown below for an eLicense.

How do I view troubleshooting information for my license?

If you get a license error when launching the software, first determine what type of license you have as explained above.

Next, select your licensing type from the list in the License Error window, and click "OK."

A diagnostic window should now appear with detailed information on the error. This information may be used to determine troubleshooting steps as described in the eLicense or USB Key FAQs, or may be sent to Support to obtain additional assistance.

Can I switch from USB key licensing to eLicense?

It is possible to move from USB key to eLicense by reaching out to Support. The only associated fee with changing license types is the cost of shipping the USB key back to AFT.

For information on the eLicense requirements and the process of transitioning from USB key to eLicense see the USB to eLicense Transition Guide.

How can I check what license seats are available and who is using the USB key licenses?

For a standalone USB key, run HASP Key Find on the machine the USB key is plugged into, then click "Find Key." By default HASP Key Find can be found in C:\AFT Products\HASPKeyFind.exe. If you do not have HASP Key Find installed it may be downloaded from the USB Key Support Page.

For a network USB key information on the total seats and general information on seat availability can again be seen by running HASP Key Find on the machine the network USB key is plugged into. Note this may be on a server, or on another user's machine.

To view which users are accessing the key the Aladdin Monitor may be used, available on the server machine in C:\Program Files (x86)\Aladdin\Monitor\aksmon.exe. Click on a key in the list on the left to display the applications available on the key, the number of users currently using it and the maximum number of seats (users) available.

The AFT applications associated with each of the Program Numbers listed in the Aladdin Monitor are listed below:

Program Name Program Number Program Name (Legacy) Program Number
Arrow 6 Arrow CST 60
Arrow GSC 61 Fathom CST 50
Arrow ANS 66 Chempak Data 10
Fathom 1 Chempak Viewer 12
Fathom GSC 51 Chempak Add-in 13
Fathom XTS 52 EUS 7
Fathom SSL 53 Mercury 11
Fathom ANS 56 SteamCalc 8
Impulse 9 Titan 16
Impulse SSL 73    
Impulse PFA 74    
xStream 20    

How can I release a locked license seat?

License seats on a network USB key may not be returned to the server if the application is closed abnormally, such as if the application is forced closed.

If this happens, the license seat will remain locked until either the idle period has elapsed, or the license service on the server is restarted. For information on adjusting the timeout length see "How do I adjust the idle period?"

To restart the license service do the following:

  1. On the server machine open the Task Manager

  2. Go to the Services tab

  3. Restart "HASP Loader" by right-clicking the name in the list, then selecting Restart

How do I adjust the idle period?

The USB key idle period is the period of time after which the license seat will be automatically returned to the license manager. The idle period countdown resets every time the model file is run, or the application is reopened.

To edit the idle period do the following:

  1. Open the Control.aft file in the AFT Products/AFT Product folder

  2. Add “USBIdleTime = #” under [CONTROL FLAGS]

    1. The units will be in minutes

    2. Default is 36 hours

How do I track license usage?

Historic data for license usage can be tracked using the Sentinel Admin Control Center.

See Gemalto's help information on enabling the Access Log.

How do I update my USB key license version/license count?

To update the USB key you must generate and send an *.aki file to AFT. AFT will then generate an *.aku update file which must be applied to the key to update the licenses.

To generate an *.aki file do the following:

  1. Run HASP Key Find on the machine the USB key is plugged into.

    1. By default HASP Key Find can be found in C:\AFT Products\HASPKeyFind.exe. If you do not have HASP Key Find installed it may be downloaded from the USB Key Support Page.

  2. Click "Find Key" in the lower left.

  3. Click "Save Key ID" at the bottom of Key Find.

    1. This will prompt the user to enter a file name and save the Key ID file.

    2. Please name the file with the Key ID and the name of the company – “1234567890 – Flow Company.aki”.

  4. Send the *.aki file to support@aft.com.

When AFT replies with the *.aku file apply the file to the USB key as follows:

  1. Launch HASP Key Find from C:\AFT Products on the machine the USB key is plugged into.

  2. Click "Find Key" in the lower left.

  3. Click Update Key

    1. This will prompt the user to select a file.

    2. Navigate to the appropriate file received from AFT – update files cannot be applied to USB Keys other than the one they were created for.

  4. After some time, a message will appear that the USB Key has been updated. To verify the update was applied click Find Key again.

Common Error Messages

In the license Diagnostics window a information on the specific license error can be seen at the top of the window. For example see the diagnostics window below showing the error message a user will see when launching a product version which is not valid on their license.

Descriptions of other common error messages are given below.

"It appears all licenses are in use"

Either all of the licenses are in use by other users, or the license seats have become locked up.

If the license seats have become locked up, follow the steps above to release the locked seats.

"Invalid Vendor Code"

The USB key License Manager is not able to find a USB key with AFT's vendor code. There can be multiple causes:

  • A HASP USB key for another software is plugged into the same machine as AFT's USB key. Unplugging the other HASP key(s) while using AFT software can resolve this.

  • The HASP dll files may be installed incorrectly. Reinstall the dlls as follows:

    1. Delete the hasp_com_windows.dll and hasp_windows_68889.dll files in C:\Windows\SysWOW64

    2. Download a new copy of each dll from our website and place it in the same directory (https://www.aft.com/support/usb-key-support)

      1. Note that you will need to be logged in to the website to download the dlls

    3. Run Windows PowerShell(or other command prompt window) as an administrator

    4. Register the hasp_com_windows.dll file. You can do that by entering these two commands:

      1. CD C:\Windows\SysWOW64

      2. RegSvr32.exe hasp_com_windows.dll

"Terminal Services Detected"

This error indicates that either a virtual environment or remote connection was detected on the machine that the standalone key is plugged into. Remote connections and virtualizations are not allowed to be used with standalone licenses.

The key should be used by directly accessing the machine the key is plugged into, and any virtual environments on the machine should be disabled.

"Hardware key driver not found (haspStatusDriverNotFound)"

This error often indicates there is a problem with the Copy Protection Setup, or the installation of the AFT software. It is advised to re-run the installer for the software and to re-run the copy protection setup installation. Make sure that the installers are run as an administrator on an account with administrator privileges.

If re-running the installers with administrator privileges does not help, and the usb key is a standalone (green) key, try the following steps to re-register the hasp_com_windows.dll file:

  1. Delete the hasp_com_windows.dll and hasp_windows_68889.dll files in C:\Windows\SysWOW64

  2. Download a new copy of each dll from our website and place it in the same directory (https://www.aft.com/support/usb-key-support)

    1. Note that you will need to be logged in to the website to download the dlls

  3. Run Windows PowerShell(or other command prompt window) as an administrator

  4. Register the hasp_com_windows.dll file. You can do that by entering these two commands:

    1. CD C:\Windows\SysWOW64

    2. RegSvr32.exe hasp_com_windows.dll

"Container not found (haspStatusContainerNotFound)"

This error indicates that the software was not able to detect any HASP keys. Potential causes could be the USB key is unplugged, the drivers are not up-to-date, or the local machine is not properly connected to the server machine hosting the USB key. Try the following troubleshooting measures:

  • For standalone (green) keys:

    1. Check that the key is plugged in, and that the red light on the end of the key is lighting up when plugged in

    2. Reinstall the copy protection setup to ensure the drivers are up-to-date

  • For network (red) keys:

    1. Check that the key is plugged in to the server machine, and that the red light on the end of the key is lighting up when plugged in

    2. Check that the Nethasp.ini file is configured, and is present in the application folder on the user's machine. Instructions for configuring the nethasp.ini file can be found on page 8 of the USB Installation Guide.

      1. For a Server installation the nethasp.ini should be in the Windows/SysWOW64 folder on the server, and the application folders on the server

    3. Check that the machine has access to the server, and that Port 475 is open and not blocked by a firewall or any other security measures