FineReader PDF 16 can be deployed in an Azure-based virtual environment. This article:

• Outlines requirements to Azure-based virtual environments in which FineReader PDF can be deployed.
• Describes, in general, the deployment process.
• Describes Azure features supported by FineReader PDF and known limitations.
• Lists the types of FineReader PDF licenses that are suitable for deployment in Azure.

In what Azure-based virtual environments FineReader PDF can be deployed

FineReader PDF can be deployed in a virtual environment that has the following:

• Virtual machines used as user workstations for installing and running FineReader PDF.
• A virtual machine that is used as a server for FineReader PDF License Server installation.
• Blob cloud storage for storing FineReader PDF licenses.

The use case is applicable for Azure virtual machines as well as for usual virtual machines based on computer architectures, and physical machines. 

Please note that due to the variety of Azure-based systems and their configurations, it’s not possible to describe in exact details all configurations or list all third-party (commercially available or custom developed) Azure-based systems in which FineReader PDF deployment will be possible. ABBYY provides free full-functional trial licenses for deployment in Azure, and we recommend testing compatibility with your system. To get the Trial, contact us using this form.

How to deploy FineReader PDF in Azure-based virtual environment

In general, deployment of FineReader PDF in Azure consists of the following steps. For details on each step, please refer to FineReader PDF documentation (Administrator’s Guide, Help in Fine Reader PDF License Manager) and Microsoft documentation.

1. Create License Administration installation (License Server and License Manager) and deploy FineReader PDF on virtual workstations as described in the Administrator Guide by the link.
2. Create and configure a Block Blob storage in Azure. Creating a separate storage account for FineReader PDF is recommended so that the account settings and credentials are not modified by accident.
3. Activate the licenses in License Manager. Refer to the article Activating licenses in Azure Blob storage for detailed instructions on adding and activating FineReader PDF licenses in Azure.
4. Run installed FineReader PDF on the workstations to use its functions.

Supported Azure features and known FineReader PDF limitations for deployment in Azure

• Only Block Blob Storage is supported. Find more information about Azure Blob objects in this Microsoft article.
• The main FineReader PDF software for end users, FineReader PDF License Server and License Manager do not work in the Azure web interface. They are installed and run on workstations.
• Managing of Azure Blob storage for storing FineReader PDF license files is performed via Azure web interface.
• Regular FineReader PDF licenses, suitable for deployment in LAN or in other (supported) virtualization environments such as Citrix and Microsoft Windows Server with RDS, are not suitable for deployment in Azure. 
• Only the licenses created for using with Azure can be used for deploying FineReader PDF in Azure (see License types that support FineReader PDF deployment in Azure below for details). Please contact your Sales Manager or submit a request if you are interested in licenses for Azure.
• The licenses for Azure are not suitable for deployment in LAN or in other (supported) virtualization environments such as Citrix and Microsoft Windows Server with RDS without using Azure Blob storage for storing the licenses.

License types that support FineReader PDF deployment in Azure

FineReader PDF licenses of the following types can be used for deployment in Azure:

• FineReader PDF Standard, Volume license (Remote User) for Azure
• FineReader PDF Corporate, Volume license (Remote User) for Azure
• FineReader PDF Corporate, Volume license (Concurrent) for Azure