FAQ - CONNECTION Client


Table of Content

 

What is the CONNECTION Client?

The CONNECTION Client is a key part of the Subscription Entitlement Service, where users sign in to activate their products instead of using product activation keys. It also provides access to services that cut across applications, such as notifications and service updates, for use within desktop applications. Within CONNECT Edition applications, the CONNECTION Client provides access to data and services in the context of a project/asset.

What operating systems are supported by the CONNECTION Client? 

Do you need to have administrator rights to install?

Yes, administrator rights are needed to install 

Are there any prerequisites?

Yes, .NET Framework 4.7.2 (included) or later and Microsoft Edge and Microsoft Edge Runtime (included)

Do you need an Internet connection to install?

If .NET Framework 4.6.2 is installed you don't need an Internet connection.  If it isn't already installed on the machine the installer will attempt to download and install it. If there's no internet connection the installation will fail.

Which domains does the CONNECTION Client access?

Whitelist the following wildcard domains, or explicitly define each domain as provided below.

Wildcard Domains:

Explicitly defined domains and description of each domain's purpose:

NOTES:

We do not give IP addresses as they are not static and could change at any time. IP range is also not available, also see IP Address Hosted Server.

The web services above may not have web pages for display in a browser since their intended audience is a Bentley product, not an end user. The list provided is to ensure any outgoing web traffic to these addresses is not blocked.

What port needs to be open?

Port 443

How are usage logs transmitted?

Logs are transferred with the normal https protocol and port.

How much network traffic does the CONNECTION Client generate?

When signed in and running idle, estimated usage is 900 KB per hour. Usage increases when interacting with the CONNECTION Client, especially when downloading software updates or using project sharing features. Unless SES-based products are functioning in offline mode, they transmit usage every minute to maintain a heartbeat with the server. This enables real-time usage tracking to function

What if my organization has a proxy server? Where do I enter the server address, user name, and password?

Proxy information is read from the Bentley Licensing Tool. The Bentley Licensing Tool is found in "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Bentley Shared\CONNECTION Client\LicService\Bentley.Licensing.LicenseTool.exe". You can also do a search for Bentley Licensing Tool in the Windows Start menu. In the Bentley Licensing Tool go to Tools > Options > Proxy Configuration tab. CONNECTION Client 10.00.18.13 and later supports the use of system proxy settings as configured in the Internet Options control panel like the example below:

For most users, ensure "Use System Proxy Settings" is selected as shown in the screenshot below. To manually configure proxy settings, select the "Use Custom Proxy Settings" radio button instead. Then enter a proxy server name in the Proxy Server field. If communicating on a port other than 80, add a colon and the port number following the name. For example, if the proxy was named proxy.company.com with a port of 8080, the Proxy Server field would be populated with the following value:
proxy.company.com:8080

If a user name and password are required toggle on the "Proxy server requires authentication" box and enter the user name and password.

Click the Test Proxy Configuration link that appear in the lower right corner after entering proxy settings to ensure they are valid.

Where do I find the CONNECTION Client logs folder?

Typically when having an issue with the CONNECTION Client you're asked to zip the entire Logs folder and send it in to support. It's located at C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Local\Bentley\Logs or use this shortcut in the browser address bar %localappdata%\Bentley\Logs.

In CONNECTION Client version 10.00.13.17 and newer there's a Bentley Log Collector that will gather all of the logs that support needs to begin troubleshooting a CONNECTION Client or Subscription Entitlement Service issue.

Type Bentley Log Collector in the Windows search field to locate it, or go to "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Bentley Shared\CONNECTION Client\LogCollector.exe"

Simply click the Collect button > Browse to a folder > Name the file > Click Save >  a zip file is created with all of the log files support requests.

Do I need to keep signing in?

When a user signs into the CONNECTION Client initially, a security token is generated which is valid for seven days. Starting with CONNECTION Client 10.00.10.22, when this token is within one day of expiration the CONNECTION Client (if running) will now renew the token for another seven days to keep the user signed in. If you are not signed in or you are offline when the token expires you will be signed out of the CONNECTION Client and the next time you connect you will have to sign in manually.

Are there any known issues?

If your Windows username has a special character (abc#123) in it you will not be able to install. If it has a space in it (ex. John Smith) updates through the CONNECTION Client will fail. The space issue only affects updates and will not prevent you from manually downloading and installing the update. Workarounds are:

This applies to both scenarios. Open the command prompt (type cmd in the search field) and run the following commands:

1.Mkdir C:\temp\ ENTER
2.Set TEMP=C:\temp\ ENTER
3.Set TMP=C:\temp\ ENTER
4.Depending on where the installer/exe is located you may need to run a similar command to change the location of the directory: "cd C:\BentleyDownloads\"
5. blg6410001511en.exe (CONNECTION Client executable name for version 10.00.15.11 Change to match the name of the .exe file)

This applies to the space issue: Download and install updates manually, or you can log into the same machine with a Windows account that doesn't have a space in the name to do the update.

Why is installation of the CONNECTION Client required?

All workstations with Bentley desktop applications should install the CONNECTION Client and sign in for the following reasons:

  1. All new product releases going forward use the Subscription Entitlement Service system which uses a Bentley login to obtain a license. The CONNECTION Client is responsible for activating these products. Following is a current list of products using Subscription Entitlement Service.
  2. The Earned Value Discount (formerly Earned Volume Discount) program is available only to organizations that are using the CONNECTION Client.
  3. CONNECT Edition versions of products require a Bentley login to access cloud-based features such as context-sensitive help through CONNECT Advisor or project collaboration with CONNECTED Projects.

Can application updates in CONNECTION Client be turned off?

Yes, updates can be disabled two ways.  Updates can be disabled on a machine with command line options at install time.  Please see Installation -- Silent Options.

To turn updates off for the entire organization, an admin navigate to the Subscription Services Portal and choose the Software Administration tile. Options in Software Administration will allow updates to be disabled for everyone in the organization.

What information does CONNECTION Client transmit to Bentley?

The following wiki explains what usage data is transmitted through the Subscription Entitlement Service licensing system included with CONNECTION Client.

By default, CONNECTION Client transmits the names and versions of installed Bentley products to a Software Update service to recommend updates when available. However, update checks can either be disabled or managed as discussed in the question above.

How to prevent CONNECTION Client from automatically starting with Windows?

Currently there is no feature built into the CONNECTION Client to disable it from autostart, however, it can be disabled in Windows:

The above method persists even if CONNECTION Client is ever started.

Another method can be performed by an administrator by executing a logout script to delete the following registry keys (if they exist) to keep CONNECTION Client from starting on the same user account:

However, these registry keys are recreated whenever CONNECTION Client is opened, hence why the script must continuously delete them. Otherwise, the first method is recommended.

Other language sources

Français

Deutsch

Español

Nederlands