Issue
When managing named user licenses in Posit Workbench, particularly in academic environments with rotating course terms, you may need to free up license seats from users who no longer need access.
Description
Under the named user license model, users count against your license total once they have logged in. However, locked users do not count toward license usage, even if they previously logged in. For example, if you have 32 active users and lock 5 of them, your license usage will drop to 27 seats.
Solution
There are two methods to lock users and free up license seats:
1. Using the Admin UI
You can lock users individually through the Posit Workbench administrative interface. While effective, this method may be time-consuming when managing multiple users.
2. Using the Command Line Interface (CLI)
For more efficient user management, especially when dealing with multiple users, you can use the CLI:
- To view current users and their status:
sudo rstudio-server list-users - To lock a specific user:
sudo rstudio-server lock-user <username> --force
For bulk operations, you can create a script to automate the locking process for multiple users.
Additional Considerations
- Locked users cannot log in until they are unlocked.
- You can monitor current license usage through the admin dashboard at http://<server-address>/admin.
- To track named user counts over time, you can use the counting script available at: https://github.com/sol-eng/rstudio-user-counts.
- Full user deletion from the system requires direct database modifications and is not recommended for typical license management.
If you're still having issues, you can reach out to Support by opening a ticket here.