Site License FAQs

Introduction

The answers provided are for general information purposes only. For specific information about Site Licenses, please e-mail ESRI's Higher Education Team at highered@esri.com.

Frequently Asked Questions

Get answers to the most common questions related to Esri's Site Licenses.

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Defining a Site License

What is a Site License?

A Site License grants an educational institution license to use a large collection of ESRI software products on an unlimited number of the institution's computers on one campus. The software may be used for teaching, research, and administrative* purposes. Any form of commercial use is explicitly prohibited. Distribution of the software to licensed end users on campus and other administrative maintenance of the Site License are handled by a Site License Administrator or Coordinator designated by the educational institution.

*Some software and data may not be used for administrative purposes, such as facilities management, bus routing, or other tasks related to the management/operation of the institution; see your site license agreement for details.

What are the roles and duties of the people who administer a Site License?

A Site License is managed and controlled at the institution by an individual or a team designated by the educational institution as defined below.

The Site License Administrator is responsible for establishing and signing the Site License Agreement with ESRI and is the primary contact between the institution and ESRI. The Administrator is the only individual who can officially designate or change the name of a Coordinator, Technical Support Contact, or Virtual Campus Annual User License Administrator by sending written notice (e-mail) to their ESRI Customer Service Representative. If knowledgeable about GIS and ESRI, the Administrator may also act as the Site License Coordinator.

The Site License Coordinator (and designated staff) is responsible for protecting, managing, and distributing the software throughout the campus. The Site License Coordinator is usually the main contact on the campus for faculty and staff who wish to participate in the Site License program. The Site License Coordinator typically creates and distributes the software keycodes. In addition, the Site License Coordinator may also act as a Technical Support Contact. The Site License Coordinator must be knowledgeable in GIS and ESRI software.

The Technical Support Contact(s) is/(are) authorized to contact ESRI Technical Support via fax, e-mail, or phone at 888-377-4575. Technical Support questions must be routed via the designated Technical Support Contact(s) who must be knowledgeable in GIS and ESRI software. The Technical Support Contacts are determined by the Site License Administrator at the time a Master Site License Agreement is signed. The Site License Administrator can change Technical Support contacts by sending written notice to the ESRI Customer Service. This can be done as often as necessary to provide adequate coverage to the campus.

The Virtual Campus Annual User License Administrator is the main contact for Virtual Campus License issues. The Virtual Campus License Administrator maintains and protects the Master Code used to access the Virtual Campus Annual User License account and to generate and distribute the individual course access codes used to enroll in the Virtual Campus courses. The Virtual Campus License Administrator can designate up to 10 faculty or staff as License Representatives to assist in the distribution of Virtual Campus course access codes.

The Virtual Campus Annual User License Representative is a faculty or staff member designated to assist the Virtual Campus License Administrator in the creation and distribution of Virtual Campus course access codes.

Faculty and staff participate in the Site License by securing and maintaining the ESRI software in their individual departments. The main point of contact for faculty and staff will be the Site License Coordinator.

There is a change of Site License Administrator or Technical Support Contact at my institution. How do we notify ESRI?

The Site License Administrator is the single point of primary contact between the campus and ESRI. The Site License Administrator must notify ESRI when a new individual replaces the Site License Administrator, Coordinator, Technical Support Contact, or Virtual Campus Annual User License Administrator by sending a written notice (e-mail) to ESRI Customer Service.

What is included in a Site License?

The Esri Education Site License provides the right to use select ESRI software and products for teaching, research, and administrative purposes throughout an institution. Some software and data may not be used for administrative purposes (such as facilities management, bus routing, or other tasks related to the management/operation of the institution), but may be used for teaching and research purposes; see your site license agreement for details. A Site License can cover a single campus, multiple campuses, a school system, or statewide system.

Note: Products may be added or discontinued at any time. Please contact highered@esri.com or your local ESRI office for specific information about Campus-Wide Site Licenses.

What are the permitted uses of the Site License?

Esri authorizes three main uses:

• Teaching
• Research
• Administration (e.g., campus mapping, facilities management, physical planning and land use, campus safety, alumni tracking, marketing activities, bus routing, pedestrian/bicycle trail design, regulatory compliance, or other activities not directly related to teaching, learning, or research). Some software and data may not be used for administrative purposes; see your site license agreement for details.

At no time is commercial use authorized. Commercial use is defined as use of the software, documentation, or data for any "for profit" purposes.

Note: Teaching and research uses may be in conjunction with a campus GIS center or similar campus programs in which students are exposed to real-world problem solving and internship opportunities that may be funded by grants from outside organizations.

Who can make copies of the software under the Site License Agreement?

The software may only be copied by the Site License Administrator in accordance with rules set forth in the Site License. Other licensed campus end users wishing to obtain a copy of software must contact the Site License Administrator or Coordinator.

Additional copies of media kits may be purchased by the Site License Coordinator at his/her discretion to facilitate software distribution.

Can the Esri software included in the Site License be installed on students' computers?

No. The software under the ESRI Site License Agreement can not be installed and operated on student-owned computers.

In the United States, a one-year license of ArcGIS Desktop software is available for use on student-owned computers.  At ArcGIS 10, this license consists of an ArcInfo level license and the following ArcGIS Desktop Extensions:  ArcGIS 3D Analyst, ArcGIS Data Interoperability, ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst, ArcGIS Network Analyst, ArcGIS Publisher, ArcGIS Schematics, ArcGIS Spatial Analyst, ArcGIS Tracking Analyst, ArcScan for ArcGIS, and Maplex for ArcGIS. (An ArcGIS 9.3.1 version of this license is also available at the ArcEditor level.)

There are two options for acquiring this license:

• Faculty may request the ArcGIS Education Edition one-year license for their students at www.esri.com/slpromo. This is provided at no charge to institutions with an Education Site License. Requests must come from a faculty member with a campus mailing address.
• Students may purchase the ArcGIS Desktop Student 1-Year License (includes Esri Data and Maps) by calling ESRI TeleBusiness at 1-800-447-9778 or sending an email to academicsales@esri.com

Outside of the United States, please contact your ESRI distributor in regards to software options for student-owned computers.

How can we obtain licenses for ESRI software and data products that are not included in the ESRI Site License program?

Some ESRI software and data products  are not included in the Site License program.   In some cases, these products can be added to a Site License for an additional fee.  In some cases, individual licenses can be purchased independent of the institution’s Site License.

For example, the ArcGIS Data Interoperability and ArcGIS for Server Data Interoperability Extensions as well as some data products (CommunityInfo, Tapestry) can be added to a Site License (with unlimited use) for an additional annual fee. For specific pricing information, please contact your local ESRI Account Representative, the ESRI Higher Education team (highered@esri.com), or ESRI Telebusiness (800-447-9778 or academicsales@esri.com).

Other products such as ArcGIS Business Analyst cannot be added to the Site License, but individual licenses can be purchased and maintained separately

How can we take advantage of the complimentary ESRI User Conference passes included with the Site License program?

The Site License program includes a number of complimentary ESRI User Conference passes including the ESRI Education User Conference. The number of passes is specified in the Site License Agreement. To obtain a complimentary pass, please contact your Site License Administrator. The Administrator tracks how many conference passes are available and determines how they are allocated. Unauthorized use of a User Conference pass will be billed to the faculty or staff.

How do I sign up for the HigherEd-L listserv?

The Higher Education community primarily communicates through the HIGHERED-L listserv. GIS in higher education resources, including additional listserv information are available here.

HIGHERED-L

This moderated list was created for the ESRI higher education user community. It provides an opportunity to post information and questions related to teaching and research at colleges and universities. This includes questions about the use of all of ESRI's software products, curriculum, pedagogy, lab set up and program development and support. Use HIGHERED-L to receive expertise/advice from other users of our software and discuss related GIS procedures and data in education. Please remember HIGHERED-L is not a general GIS discussion list (such as GIS-L), nor intended for advertisements, "help-wanted" or resume postings, etc.

To subscribe to HIGHERED-L, send an email to listserv@esri.com with the following in the body of the email: SUBSCRIBE HIGHERED-L

To unsubscribe from HIGHERED-L, send an email to listserv@esri.com with the following in the body of the email: UNSUBSCRIBE HIGHERED-L

You will receive a confirmation note that requires you to verify your email address. After approval, you will receive a welcome letter with additional information.

Software Distribution, Authorization/Registration, and Technical Support

My institution just purchased an ESRI Education Site License. How do I obtain licenses of the software?

Software licensing is managed by the Site License Administrator. New Site License Administrators must receive a login and password from ESRI Customer Service after the Master Site License Agreement has been finalized. If you are a Site License Administrator, please contact Customer Service if you have questions about downloading or authorizing ArcGIS software. Once the Site License Administrator has access he/she will be able to

• Manage and download ArcGIS 10 software.
• Manage and Provision ArcGIS 10 Authorization numbers.
• Manage EDN subscriptions.
• Update existing key code files.  (Version 9.x)
• Reissue existing key code files. (Version 9.x)
• Transfer licenses from one license server to another.

What is a Software Authorization number and what is the Software Authorization Wizard?

A Software Authorization number is the equivalent of a registration number or keycode; it allows the software to be “unlocked” for use on a particular machine.

The Software Authorization Wizard is a utility that allows users to install licenses on their machines.  The Software Authorization Wizard runs automatically at the end of the software installation process or can be accessed at a later time from the ArcGIS Administrator utility.  By default, the Software Authorization process uses an Internet connection to install the license, but other options are available if your machine is not directly connected to the Internet.

As new products are released, when does my institution get copies of these products/updates?

At ArcGIS 10, the primary method of software delivery is via download. If you are current on your Site License Maintenance, ESRI Customer Service will send authorization numbers and instructions for software download to the designated Ship-to Address for the Site License via e-mail.

Physical media for software products will be available several weeks after the release, and will be shipped to the designated Ship-to Address for the Site License as soon as they become available.

How do we purchase back-up software media?

Site License holders can purchase back-up software media by contacting ESRI TeleBusiness at 1-800-447-9778. Have your Customer Number ready.

In our state, we have a Statewide Site License Agreement and some of the universities would like to receive their own copy of the software and have their own Technical Support Contact with ESRI. How can we make that happen?

Campuses/universities that are part of a Statewide Site License can have their own Ship-to Address for an additional fee of $3,000 annually. An additional Technical Support Contact will cost $1,500 annually and additional User Conference passes cost $500 each. Please contact your Site License Administrator and request that these options be added to the Site License for the additional yearly fee.

What is the difference between a Single Use License and Concurrent Use License?

A Single Use license generally restricts use of a software product to one user/machine. A Single Use license must be dedicated for each computer that has use rights for the software, data, or documentation.

A Concurrent Use license allows users to gain access to the software from any computer on the network on which the software is installed. A license server manager administers a pool of licenses to be shared.  Concurrent Use licenses are recommended for Site Licenses because they provided centralized management.

For additional information, see the whitepapers ArcGIS 10 Licensing Concepts and Strategies [PDF] and ArcGIS 10 Enterprise Deployment.

How can I get technical support from Esri?

If you are the Site License Administrator or one of the designated Technical Support Contacts named in your Site License Agreement, you will be able to call ESRI Technical Support for help with your question. If you are not a designated Technical Support Contact, you must contact your Site License Administrator and get the contact information for the designated Technical Support contact at your campus and request assistance through that person.

If you are not a designated Technical Support Contact, there are other resources available through the ESRI Support Site, including the online Knowledge Base Resource Centers  and User Forums, Documentation and Web-based Help Systems for several products.  

Note: If your university is located outside the United States, please contact your ESRI distributor to find out how you can access Technical Support.

GIS Program and Curriculum Development

How do professors request or order desk copies of Esri Press books?

Each professor or instructor at a college or university can order ESRI Press desktop copies themselves without having to ask the Site License Administrator for assistance. ESRI Press provides up to three desk copies every four months to qualified educators. These include most available ESRI Press titles.

To order desk copies, please fill out the ESRI Press Desk Copy Request Form.

Where do I learn more about the Virtual Campus Annual User License provided through the Site License?

FAQs for the Site License Administrator can be found on the ESRI Training Web site as well as a list of the Virtual Campus courses authored by third parties that are available at an educational discount.

Note: Site Licenses provide unlimited access to ESRI-authored Virtual Campus courses to faculty, staff, and students.

Does ESRI provide curriculum development support or ready-to-use GIS exercises and lessons/data?

ESRI is happy to advise educators in curriculum development needs. ESRI also has collected some sample curricula from colleges and universities that can serve as samples of GIS-related higher education programs.

Esri Press offers a number of software workbooks with ready-to-use GIS exercises; visit www.esri.com/esripress for a current list of titles.

ESRI has also developed ArcLessons, a free resource for educators to share ready-made lessons for using GIS in the classroom.

Does Esri provide curriculum development support or ready-to-use GIS exercises and lessons/data?

Esri is happy to advise educators in curriculum development needs. Esri also has collected some sample curricula from colleges and universities that can serve as samples of GIS-related higher education programs.

Esri has also developed ArcLessons. ArcLessons is a free resource for educators to share ready-made LessonPacks for using GIS in the classroom. Educators can browse a list of lessons by category or use the search tools to find lessons of interest.

My institution just purchased an ESRI Site License. Do you have a document that outlines ways in which we can make our GIS program successful?

The white paper entitled Guidelines for Developing a Successful and Sustainable Higher Education GIS Program [PDF] provides guidelines that will support educators, researchers, and administrators at colleges and universities in developing a successful and sustainable GIS program. The paper defines fundamental GIS concepts, describes procedures and methods for planning and maintaining a GIS program (including hardware, software, faculty training, and laboratory needs), and provides links to funding and other resources helpful for long-term management and maintenance of a GIS program.