More About the Expiring Entitlements Job
The Expiring Entitlements job finds entitlements that are nearing their expiration date and generates email messages to end user accounts with expiring entitlements.
Like other jobs, producers can schedule the Expiring Entitlements job and subscribe to its alerts in the Producer Portal. However, when the Expiring Entitlements job finds entitlements that are soon to expire for an account, FlexNet Operations generates an email message about that account’s expiring entitlements and attempts to send the message to the account’s users. End users who elect to receive renewal notifications will receive an email message when their account’s entitlements are nearing their expiration date.
The FlexNet Customer Growth module also adds an End-User Portal page to list expiring entitlements and to highlight those entitlements that are closest to their expiration date. From this Expiring Entitlements page, end users can click the Request button to send the producer an email message that indicates their intent to renew.
For producers, a number of system configuration settings determine when email messages are triggered, which entitlements are included in the Renewal Reminder message, whether or not an email is to be sent, and how frequently an account can receive such email messages. Producers can also customize the email template FlexNet Operations uses when it sends these renewal notifications.
Tip:In determining when to send an Renewal Reminder email message, FlexNet Operations uses the system configuration settings Renewal Look Ahead (default: 200 days), Expiring Window (default: 90 days), and Expiring Email Frequency (default: 30 days). These values are set in the Renewals settings on the FlexNet Operations system configuration page at System > Configure > FlexNet Operations. For details about these system configuration settings, see Configuring System Settings.
Understanding When FlexNet Operations Generates a Renewal Reminder Email Message
When the Expiring Entitlements job runs, it scans all of your end user accounts’ entitlements to see if any are approaching their expiration date. For a given account, FlexNet Operations first looks to see if any of the entitlements have line items or maintenance lines expiration dates that fall within the Expiring Window. If so, FlexNet Operations then checks when that account last received an Renewal Reminder email message.
| • | If FlexNet Operations has recently sent an Renewal Reminder email message to the account, no new email messages are sent, even if newly expiring entitlements (per the Expiring Window setting) are discovered when the Expiring Entitlements job runs. |
| • | If FlexNet Operations has not sent an email to the account within the number of days specified in the system configuration setting, Expiring Email Frequency, it generates a new Renewal Reminder email message for that account. |
Using the default system configuration settings, when an account has expiring entitlements, FlexNet Operations limits the frequency of its renewal reminders to once every 30 days per account. Producers can customize this frequency (Expiring Email Frequency) to best suit the needs of their end users.
Note:The decision of whether or not to generate an email is made at the account level. The choice to receive renewal notifications happens at the user level. End users who belong to multiple accounts may receive multiple Renewal Reminder messages (one for each account that qualifies for an Renewal Reminder email message).
Anticipating the Content of the Renewal Reminder Email Message
The content of the Renewal Reminder email message that FlexNet Operations generates depends mainly on two factors:
| • | The Renewal Reminder email template content. Producers can customize the content of the email template FlexNet Operations uses to send Renewal Reminder email messages. (See Managing Email Templates for instructions on editing an email template.) |
| • | The account’s entitlement line items and maintenance lines that expire within the number of days specified in the system configuration setting, Renewal Look Ahead. |
For the Renewal Reminder email message, FlexNet Operations compiles a list of all the account’s entitlements with line items or maintenance lines that expire within the Renewal Look Ahead range. All the account’s line items and maintenance lines that expire within that range are all included in the Renewal Reminder email message that FlexNet Operations generates.
Tip:The Renewal Look Ahead is a separate system configuration from the Expiring Window setting. The Expiring Window determines whether or not to generate an Renewal Reminder message. The Renewal Look Ahead determines which line items or maintenance lines are included in the message itself.
Understanding Who Receives Renewal Reminders
After generating a Renewal Reminder message for an account, FlexNet Operations sends the message to that account’s End-User Portal users who have opted to receive expiring entitlement email. If none of the account’s end users is subscribed to receive renewal reminders, FlexNet Operations instead sends the Renewal Reminder message to the address you specify for the system configuration setting, Renewal Failed Notification Email (optional). If there are no end users who have subscribed to receive renewal reminders and no valid email address specified for Renewal Failed Notification Email, then FlexNet Operations does not send any renewal reminders for that account, even if the Expiring Entitlements job finds qualifying, expiring entitlements.
Tip:To receive renewal reminders, end users must select the Expiring Entitlements Email check box in their user profiles.
Important:End users must have the View Expiring Entitlements permission to subscribe to see the Expiring Entitlements Email check box, receive renewal reminders, or see the Expiring Entitlements page in the End-User Portal. (End users with the Portal Administrator User role have the View Expiring Entitlements permission by default.)
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