How to Monitor IBM Rational Doors Licenses with Flex LM

IBM Rational DOORS is one of the leading requirements management tools, used in highly regulated industries such as automotive, rail, aerospace, and defense. It enables users to track, analyze, and verify requirements throughout the entire project lifecycle. Rational DOORS licenses are often distributed as floating licenses via FlexLM to enable flexible, centralized management in enterprise environments.

How can you manage IBM Rational DOORS floating licenses?

IBM Rational DOORS uses the FlexLM license manager to manage floating licenses. Monitoring usage requires remotely querying the license server, which can be done from both Linux and Windows environments.

The first step is to download the lmutil tool from the Flexera website. It is essential that the version of the tool be the same as or later than the one installed on the license server to avoid incompatibilities.

Second, you need to know:

• The communication port defined in the file .lic
• The server name (without DNS suffixes)

If the server name is not resolved correctly, it is recommended that you configure the ` hosts ` file (on Windows) or the ` resolv.conf ` file (on Linux).

How do I check the available Rational DOORS licenses?

To view the list of active licenses, use the following command:

lmutil.exe lmstat -a -c porta@nomeserver

In the case of a triad:

lmutil.exe lmstat -a -c porta@server1;porta@server2;porta@server3

On Linux:

lmutil lmstat -a -c porta@server1,porta@server2,porta@server3

Sample output:

Feature        Version   #licenses   Expires       Vendor
doors          9.7       25          31-dec-2025   rational
doors_rqtrace  9.7       10          31-dec-2025   rational

How do I monitor Rational DOORS license usage?

To view the licenses in use and active users, run:

lmutil.exe lmstat -S -c porta@nomeserver

Sample output:

Users of doors:  (Total of 25 licenses issued;  Total of 6 licenses in use)
  "doors" v9.7, vendor: rational
  floating license
    user1 dev-pc01 (v9.7) (doors-server/27000 2210), start Thu 02/05 08:00
    user2 dev-pc02 (v9.7) (doors-server/27000 2211), start Thu 02/05 08:10
    user3 dev-pc03 (v9.7) (doors-server/27000 2212), start Thu 02/05 08:15

Why use Observer to monitor Rational DOORS?

Manual querying is useful for spot checks, but impractical for continuous monitoring. Observer automates the entire process, offering:

• Intuitive dashboards for real-time license monitoring
• Historical collection of usage data for in-depth analysis
• Alerts for upcoming deadlines or capacity limits
• Report on Denied Requests, Multiple Sessions, and Inefficient Use

Observer is fully compatible with FlexLM and provides a clear, centralized view of Rational DOORS license usage.

Contact us to learn about all of Observer’s features, or request a free demo at your IT facility.