Installation and Set-Up

The details for the DDIs are slightly different in disconnected mode, running on an inventory beacon, and (for on-premises implementations only) running on connected mode on your central application server.

Disconnected mode on an inventory beacon

No installation or set up is required. The DDIs are installed (along with the Business Importer and the Business Adapter Studio) as a default part of the installation of the FlexNet Beacon software on the inventory beacon. The files are stored in the following directories:

Directory	Notes
C:\ProgramData\Flexera Software\Beacon\DDI	The adapter XML files for your use or customization
C:\ProgramData\Flexera Software\Beacon\ExampleCSV	Example CSV files matching the above adapter XML files.

In disconnected mode, you cannot use any SQL statements in your business adapter. The example adapter files in the above folder are for use in disconnected mode on your inventory beacons, and do not support connected mode access to your compliance database.

Connected mode on the application server

Connected mode allows greater flexibility, in that you can include SQL statements in your adapter.

You may wish to install the Business Adapter Studio on your application server, for which see the chapter Installing a Free-Standing Studio in the Installing FlexNet Manager Suite 2021 R1 On-Premises PDF file.

The DDIs are installed by default on your application server. The default location of the DDI files is C:\ProgramData\Flexera Software\Beacon\Master\DDI. (If you have a larger implementation with separate servers, this path is on your batch server.)

The DDIs rely on CSV (Comma Separated Values) example files that are installed by default in C:\ProgramData\Flexera Software\Beacon\ExampleCSV on the same server. It is good practice to keep these templates unedited, as original source copies.

Each DDI addresses a specific object in the central compliance database for FlexNet Manager Suite, and each uses a separate CSV file:

Database object	DDI Name	CSV File
Asset	Asset	Asset.csv
Business Unit	BusinessUnit	BusinessUnit.csv
Category	Category	Category.csv
Contract	Contract	Contract.csv
Cost Center	CostCenter	CostCenter.csv
License	License	License.csv
Location	Location	Location.csv
Purchase Order	PurchaseOrder	PurchaseOrder.csv
Software License Key	SoftwareLicenseKey	SoftwareLicenseKey.csv
Term and Condition (for contracts)	TermAndCondition	TermAndCondition.csv
User	User	User.csv
Vendor	Vendor	Vendor.csv

The Business Importer is also installed by default (its path is shown below as InstBIDir). Once in use, the Business Importer creates additional child directories as described below. File and directory names are not case sensitive:

InstBIDir

Location of the Business Importer executable (MGSBI.exe). The default value is C:\Program Files (x86)\Flexera Software\Inventory Beacon\DotNet\bin\.

Tip: The following recommended folders should be created manually for by the Business Importer when run in connected mode on the central application server (or batch server).

InstBIDir\Log

Location of the log files generated by imports using custom adapters and CSV files.

InstBIDir\Data

Location of the CSV files that are ready to import, after they have been populated with data. As you populate a CSV file with data ready to import, save it into this InstalledBIDir\Data directory.

InstBIDir\Templates\DDI

Location of the template DDI files (adaptor XML files).

Tip: You may create this folder and store unmodified XML adapter files here, if you wish. It is good practice to keep these templates unedited, as original source copies. Edited and operational XML files move to the InstBIDir directory, alongside the Business Importer executable (MGSBI.exe).

InstBIDir\Templates\ExampleCSV

Location of the matching CSV templates.

Tip: You may create this folder and copy the example CSV files here manually, if you wish. It is good practice to keep these templates unedited, as original source copies. Edited and populated CSV files move to the ..\..\Data directory.