FontAgent Server Overview

What is FontAgent Server?
FontAgent Server is the world’s only object-based font server and the most advanced solution for organizing, optimizing, distributing and tracking your fonts.

Why do I need a font server?
Organizations used font servers to simplify font distribution, drive font consistency across users, smooth creative workflows, eliminate font corruption, stop rendering problems, and help ensure font license compliance across the organization.

What is the difference between FontAgent Server and CloudServer?
The only difference is how the servers are deployed. If you choose to use FontAgent Server, you deploy it on your own hardware and network. If you opt for CloudServer, you connect to a server in an Insider data center over the Internet. The servers use the same admin tools and function identically.

What is the difference between FontAgent Server and FontAgent Sync?
FontAgent Sync is a version of FontAgent designed for teams and individuals who want to share and sync fonts across users and computers through the cloud—without having to manage a server. FontAgent Server is a centrally controlled, on-premises font server that runs on your own network. In general, if you want top-down control of who’s using your fonts, you should deploy FontAgent Server or CloudServer. If you want to place control in the hands of users to share fonts among themselves, you should try FontAgent Sync.

New FontAgent Server Features

What are the newest features in FontAgent Server?
The Bondi Release (V9) adds a great deal more organization, configurability, control and consistency to FontAgent Server.

Font Organization and Metadata

New tagging and nested set managers let you:

  • Use server- and client-based tags to describe and associate your fonts — by client, project, vendor, department, publication, etc. — and distribute those tags to users
  • Define subsets to organize your fonts into subcategories — such as project subsets within a client set — to deliver more clarity, consistency and productivity to all your users

Client Configuration and Control

Tighter controls on connected clients let you:

  • Restrict users from importing fonts locally
  • Stop users from exporting fonts
  • Prohibit changes to system font folders
  • Show or hide system fonts
  • Enable Kerberos login
  • Specify how often clients sync with the server
  • Manage group permissions and assignments

Administration, Stability and Performance

Foundational and administrative improvements include:

  • Enhanced FontFlex™ architecture that now includes subset and tag objects
  • Expanded directory integration via Microsoft Azure
  • New server manager that installs, launches and updates the FontAgent Server application
  • Performance and stability improvements

How FontAgent Server Works

How do users access FontAgent Server?
You first install FontAgent Server software on a networked Windows, Mac or Linux server on your network. Users run FontAgent Connected Clients for Mac or Windows on their desktops and connect to the server software to manage and gain access to fonts.

How do Connected Clients differ from standalone FontAgent software?
Connected Clients that access FontAgent Server have all the same industry-leading power of FontAgent font management software.

How fast a network connection do users need to connect to FontAgent Server?
For best performance, users should have a high-speed, broadband connection such as WiFi, cable, DSL, fiber or a local network connection.

Can users still get work done when they don’t have a connection to the server?
Absolutely. Users can continue working with their fonts at all times, even when they are working remotely or have no network connection.

How many fonts can my organization manage with FontAgent Server?
There is no actual limit to the number of fonts that the Server can manage. Best practices call for organizing your fonts into sets of reasonable size to keep them manageable.

How does FontFlex architecture work?
FontAgent Server is built on Insider’s FontFlex™ technology, which understands the basic elements of font management. As you define fonts, sets, users, groups, licenses and directories—and relate them to each other—the Server automatically assigns relevant rights to users and distributes the fonts securely to them. It’s fast, scalable and simple to maintain.

What is FontDNA?
FontAgent Server and clients are built on Insider’s FontDNA integrity engine. It fingerprints your fonts to eliminate corrupt and duplicate ones from your collection. So your users enjoy top performance and their documents render and print precisely.

How does font expiration work?
When you assign fonts and sets to users, you can specify an expiration date. When that date is reached, FontAgent Server automatically recalls the expired fonts from user systems and puts them back in a shared pool where they can be re-assigned to others.

Can I purchase fonts from FontAgent Server?
FontAgent Server manages your organization’s existing font library. It dispenses fonts to your users and tracks their usage. You can purchase fonts from your choice of font vendors and upload them to the Server.

Licensing and Deploying FontAgent Server

How can I deploy FontAgent Server?
FontAgent Server is available via cloud-based subscription or traditional on-premises network configurations. In the cloud configuration, your users access a server in Insider Software’s internet data centers. In an on-premises configuration, you run the server software in a Java Virtual Machine (JVM) on a Mac, Windows or Linux server connected to your network.

What connected client platforms does FontAgent Server support?
The Bondi Release (V9) of the Server supports FontAgent 8, 9 and 10 Connected Clients. So it supports client connections from macOS Monterey, Big Sur, Catalina and Mojave (macOS 10.14 and later). The Windows client runs on Windows 10 and 11.

How do I administer FontAgent Server?
You use FontAgent Server’s browser-based Server Manager to manage users, groups, fonts and sets — and for controlling which users have access to which fonts. And you initially upload fonts from a connected client application.

Can I use the FontAgent Server to track font usage and license compliance?
FontAgent Server lets you enter the details of your font licenses and tracks when users download and activate fonts. You use its browser-based Server Manager to see which users are using which fonts, to download font usage data, and to know when your organization falls out of compliance.

How much does FontAgent Server cost?
The cost of using FontAgent Server depends on the number of users you have and whether you deploy your server on-premise or in the cloud. Contact Insider for details.

Can I try FontAgent Server before I purchase a license?
Yes you can. Click here to request a 30-day free trial.

Ready to try FontAgent Server?   Have more questions?

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