OpenLM for Bentley: Eliminate Bentley overages
Stop unintended billing with real-time visibility into SES and SELECTserver usage. Automate license harvesting to reclaim idle sessions and stay within your budget.
OpenLM provides a comprehensive governance layer for Bentley Systems software, ensuring financial predictability and operational efficiency.
Organizations use the OpenLM Platform to:
- Eliminate overage risks: Monitor real-time usage across MicroStation, OpenRoads, and ProjectWise to prevent exceeding “High Water Marks.”
- Automate license harvesting: Identify and close “zombie” sessions automatically to avoid unintended Quarterly Term License (QTL) charges.
- Unified SES & SELECTserver management: Centralize visibility for both legacy Activation Keys and the newer CONNECT Edition (SES) in a single dashboard.
- Verify usage precision: Distinguish between active engineering work and idle applications left open overnight with process-level heartbeat detection.
- Right-size agreements: Leverage independent, audit-ready data to negotiate E365 or ELA renewals based on actual consumption rather than vendor estimates.
The Bentley licensing reality
Bentley’s “Open Gate” licensing ensures your engineers are never blocked, but it shifts 100% of the financial risk to the customer.
Standard tools often fail to catch:
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QTL Spikes
Automatic billing triggered by “Trust Licensing” overages.
The 10-Minute Rule
Accidental launches billed as full sessions.
Credit Burn
Rapid E365 depletion from idle sessions left open overnight.
OpenLM provides the governance layer to enjoy Bentley’s flexibility without the financial surprises.
Solving Bentley licensing complexity
Stop reacting to Bentley invoices. Start managing your software as a strategic asset.
The Bentley challenge | The business risk | The OpenLM solution |
Trust licensing overages | Immediate, unbudgeted QTL invoices for exceeding seat counts. | Usage thresholds Set hard or soft limits that alert IT or block sessions before overages occur. |
The 10-minute “Bucket” rule | Accidental software launches are billed as full usage sessions. | Zero-minute detection Automatically detect and close mistaken launches before they register as billable events. |
Global license silos | Lack of visibility leads to over-purchasing in one region while another sits idle. | Centralized governance View and pool licenses globally to maximize the utility of every existing seat. |
Opaque project costs | Difficulty pinpointing which projects are consuming the E365 budget. | Automated chargebacks Map every second of usage to specific projects or departments via Active Directory. |
See how much your Bentley licenses actually cost
Integrated engineering governance for Bentley licensing
1
The Broker (Data collection)
A lightweight component that queries the Bentley License Server or API. It captures raw logs with 1-second resolution, providing the precision Bentley’s native portal lacks.
2
The Active Agent (Endpoint control)
Essential for Bentley users. It monitors the “heartbeat” of applications like MicroStation. It distinguishes between an active designer and an idle window, triggering a “Save and Close” command to reclaim the license before a QTL charge occurs.
3
Enterprise Sync
OpenLM maps technical usage to your Active Directory (AD). This allows for automated departmental chargebacks and ensures every second of usage is attributed to the correct project code.
Capability matrix: Bentley ecosystem support by OpenLM
From legacy SELECTserver environments to the latest SES-based CONNECT Edition, OpenLM provides a unified management layer for the entire Bentley portfolio.
Licensing model | Visibility and monitoring | Control and optimization |
 SES (CONNECT Edition) |  User-centric tracking via Connection Client; feature-level usage detail. | Active harvesting Idle session detection and automated closure. |
 SELECTserver (Legacy) |  Real-time monitoring of Activation Keys and concurrent seat usage. | Threshold alerts Real-time notifications for peak usage breaches. |
 E365 / OpenAccess |  Granular consumption tracking and daily credit burn-rate analysis. | Overage prevention  Automated license release to stay within daily caps. |
 Virtuoso (Subscriptions) |  Subscription intensity tracking and expiration lifecycle management. | Entitlement right-sizing  Identify and reallocate underutilized seats. |
Bentley investment guide—ROI beyond invoice
Shift from reactive payments to proactive governance with data-driven leverage.
- Establish an Independent “Source of truth”Â
Stop relying on vendor-provided analytics. Access a 100% independent audit trail to challenge discrepancies and eliminate unjustified “true-up” fines.
- Drive negotiation powerÂ
Enter your next E365 or ELA renewal with certainty. Right-size your inventory by identifying the 20–30% of licenses typically lost to idle sessions.
- Automate financial accountabilityÂ
Eliminate manual internal billing. Automatically map Bentley consumption to project codes or departments via Active Directory for 100% transparent chargebacks.
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Join Fortune 500 companies worldwide who have achieved significant ROI with OpenLM
Get full control over your Bentley environment
Stop the overage cycle. Start managing your E365 and SES licensing with 1-second precision.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes. Bentley’s own documentation acknowledges third-party managers for organizations that require strict usage enforcement and advanced idle-time tracking which their native tools don’t provide.
Yes. Using the Virtual License Manager (VLM) or the Active Agent, OpenLM can set hard limits on usage to ensure you never exceed your owned license count, effectively turning “Trust Licensing” into a “Controlled Environment.”
Bentley typically bills in 10-minute intervals. OpenLM tracks usage with per-second precision, allowing it to detect “accidental” launches and close them before they are logged as a billable session by Bentley.
Absolutely. OpenLM provides a unified view of legacy SELECTserver licenses and the new SES (Subscription Entitlement Service) licenses in a single dashboard.
OpenLM tracks which user is using the software and links them to their department or project group via Active Directory. This allows IT to generate “Chargeback” reports, ensuring the projects using the software are the ones paying for it.