Siemens is slowly migrating to a cloud-first subscription model via the Siemens Xcelerator platform. This uses a new licensing system called "Xcelerator Share" or direct online entitlement. However, for large enterprises with air-gapped networks (defense, aerospace, automotive), the on-prem SPLM server remains mandatory.
If a user "borrows" a license for offline use and fails to return it, you can manually return it via the Licensing Tool under the "Borrowing Settings" tab. splm license server
This single error has caused millions of dollars in idle engineering time. The typical investigation: Siemens is slowly migrating to a cloud-first subscription
For an engineer, the SPLM server only becomes visible when something breaks. And when it breaks, it breaks spectacularly. If a user "borrows" a license for offline
Here is an interesting look at the SPLM license server, moving beyond the user manual.
"NX License Error: Cannot connect to license server system. The server (lmgrd) has not been started yet, or the wrong port@host is used. (-15,10:10061 "WinSock: Connection refused")"