Follow these steps to get started with Alastri products.
Alastri Login
New users may proceed to the licensing page and click "Register as a new user". Please check your inbox for a confirmation email to finalise your account.
Sample view of the Alastri user dashboard.
Get Licensed
Choose from the following options to license your account with chosen Alastri products.
- Ask your manager to log in as a License Admin and add you to the company license, or
- Email support@alastri.com.au for assistance.
Download the Hub
The Hub manages all Alastri product release versions and licenses. It can be downloaded by logging into the licensing page and pressing "Download Alastri Hub".
Install the Hub
Once the Hub has finished downloading, run the executable and click Confirm on security prompts to continue the install. Note that Alastri products will always be signed with "Verified Publisher: Alastri Software Pty Ltd".
Login to the Hub
Double click on the Hub shortcut, or click Start > Alastri Hub, to open the Hub login form.
Enter your email and password into the login form and press Login to continue.
The Hub uses the same password credentials as the licensing website. Passwords can be reset here.
Configure Proxy
If you are connecting through a company proxy, press "Configure Proxy" in the bottom right corner of the login form.
Contact your IT department to obtain the correct proxy credentials for your organisation.
Install Products
In the main Hub form,
- Select an item from the left hand product menu
- Select the latest public version
- Press Install
Enable Graphics
Dedicated Graphics Cards
Alastri products require a dedicated graphics card by NVidia or ATI to run. To check your graphics card, go to Windows Start > Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Device Manager > Display Adapters.
Alastri products require the latest graphics card drivers for best performance.
If you see this message, follow the links to download and run the latest graphics card drivers.
If any graphics related issues arise, navigate to the graphics card control panel and set Alastri products to run in high performance mode.
NVidia Graphics Cards
If you have an NVidia graphics card, it may be defaulting to the integrated graphics card instead of the higher performance NVidia graphics card.
To change the default video card for Alastri products:
- Right click on your desktop and select 'NVidia Control Panel'
- Select 'Manage 3D settings'
- Select 'Program Settings'
- Choose your Alastri product name from the dropdown menu
- Or navigate to %localAppData%\Alastri Hub\Programs\PROGRAM\VERSION\3DMark.exe
- Select your NVidia graphics card under "preferred graphics processor"
ATI Graphics Cards
If you are using an ATI graphics card, it may be defaulting to the integrated graphics card instead of the higher performance ATI graphics card.
To change the default video card to your Alastri product:
- Right click on the desktop and open Catalyst Control Center
- Select 'Power' from the left hand menu
- Select 'Switchable Graphics' from the list
- Browse the list of programs and find the executable (or %localAppData%\Alastri Hub\Programs\PROGRAM\VERSION\3DMark.exe)
- Set the program name to 'High Performance'
- Apply changes and restart your computer.
Work Locally
Alastri recommends saving all project files and data on the local hard drive before transferring to the network. This avoids issues with saving over interrupted connections or reading from a slow connection.
Work Offline
Licenses may be used offline by using the Extended Checkout feature in the Hub.
In the main Hub form,
- Select an item from the left hand product menu
- Press Extended Checkout
- Enter the hours to checkout the license
- Press OK
This will lock the license to your machine (online and offline) for the duration of the checkout.
Note that the license cannot be checked back in until the timer runs out.
Permissions
Users may encounter the 'Access is denied' error message when attempting to open a project file via the Hub or from Windows Explorer.
Stack Trace: System.ComponentModel.Win32Exception (0x80004005): Access is denied
This error occurs when the helper process 'PolygonicaService.exe' is blocked from running by a virus scanner, group policy, or Windows compatibility profiles.
Virus Scanner
Virus scanners may block PolygonicaService.exe, or prevent it from launching. Adding a whitelist / exception for this process can help avoid Access Denied errors.
The Alastri Hub installs products into the following location: %localappdata%\Alastri Hub\Programs
Group Policy
Occasionally group policy configuration may prevent applications from being launched from AppData\Local on machines.
Your IT administrators may need to provide an exception for RR2 to allow it to operate correctly.
Program Compatibility Assistant
In order to allow legacy software to work on your system, your IT department may have created a program compatibility profile which causes Windows to run applications with non-standard behaviour. This can affect RR2's ability to track instances of PolygonicaService.exe and make sure they are cleanly shutdown with the application.
Your IT administrators may need to modify the application compatibility profile to avoid affecting Rapid Reserver 2.
Warnings
Users may encounter the 'Application Compatibility Profile' warning when attempting to install the Hub.
We have detected an application compatibility profile on your machine, which may interfere with installation of Alastri Hub.
Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Contact your IT department to resolve this issue.