Virtual Classrooms and Account Limit Reached Error

This article is applicable ONLY to Adobe Connect users who have purchased a Named Virtual Classroom Manager license within the Training Module and are running into Account Limit Reached messages unexpectedly when they are launching Virtual Classrooms.

With the release of Adobe Connect 9.4 in May of 2015, we introduced a new training license model called the “Named Virtual Classroom Manager”.  This is specifically for Connect users to create and host Virtual Classrooms (plus it gives you access to the Events module).  It is basically another way we are licensing access to Virtual Classrooms.  This means there are technically two different types of Virtual Classrooms that can be created when you have the Training module enabled:

1. The ‘traditional’ model of Virtual Classrooms (VC) which use the Concurrent Learner seat quota on the account (up to 100 seats per room), and…
2. The Named Virtual Classroom Manager (NVCM) model of Virtual Classrooms which use a built-in 200 seat quota and does not use any Concurrent Learner seats.

When accounts are provisioned and quotas and features purchased, customers have the option of buying ONLY a Named Virtual Classroom Manager license.  They do not need to buy any additional training seats for Concurrent Learners.  In the older traditional model, in order to use a Virtual Classroom, you had to buy Concurrent Learner seats (say 250 seats for sake of discussion).  When a training manager created a VC, it would utilize seats out of that (in this example) 250 seat quota, up to 100 attendees (the rest of the concurrent seats could be used for another VC or other training content).  It was capped at 100 per VC.  With the new Named Virtual Classroom Manager license, you can now have only the NVCM feature enabled (and essentially have purchased no other training seats…so Concurrent Learner quota =0) or you can have it in conjunction with other training seats purchased in case you have a need for on-demand courses and curriculum, etc.. The NVCM model VC will not use any Concurrent Learner seats. It has a built-in 200 seat quota per room.  However, the caveat here is that the VC created for intended use with the NVCM model needs to have one of a few conditions in place in order to take on that NVCM model.  Otherwise, it may inadvertently take on the behavior of a traditional model VC and it could lead to unexpected circumstances like an ‘Account Limit Reached’ when the very first person joins the VC.

Let’s explain…

To create a Virtual Classroom, no matter what type of training features/quotas were purchased, all you need to be is a Training Manager, Named Virtual Classroom Manager, or Administrator.

The process of creating a VC is always the same.  You click on the “New Virtual Classroom” button from within the Training module.

Each time a Virtual Classroom is launched, Adobe Connect checks a few conditions to see how the VC should be licensed when it launches.  The result of which will dictate the quota used for the seats.  Where this becomes very problematic and confusing for customers is when the customer ONLY purchases a NVCM license and doesn’t have any Concurrent Learner seats (so Concurrent Learner = 0).  It is possible for a customer to create and launch a VC that is trying to use a Concurrent Learner quota by mistake.  If that happens, you will get the error ‘Account Limit Reached‘ right away.

For the sake of the scenarios below that explain how the VC’s are licensed when they launch, I will also mention that when a VC is created in a NVCM’s individual user folder under the Training tab, it automatically is a NVCM model room.  If it’s created under the Shared Training area of the Training tab, then there is a setting you can check or uncheck called ‘Named Virtual Classroom Model‘.

The value can either be Yes or No.  Below in the listed scenarios, that is what ‘set to yes’ or ‘set to no’ means.

Also below in the listed scenarios, a ‘NVCManager‘ is a person who is in the group ‘Virtual Classroom Managers’ in the Users and Groups area of Connect.  That is what gives that person the ability to utilize the NVCM model.  A ‘non-NVCManager‘ indicates someone who is NOT in that group.  This would be a normal Training Manager or Administrator.

Here are the conditions and scenarios (assuming the room is Public) where a VC can be launched with or without the 200 seat expected NVCM quota:

Green = NVCM is used and quota will be 200 seats
Red = traditional model is used and quota will be taken from Concurrent Learner seats and could result in an “Account Limit Reached” error if that quota is 0.
Orange = NVCM is used but there could be some confusion due to the lack of NVCM in the room or permissions for that NVCM.

Scenarios:

• VC created in My Training folder by NVCManager – launched by NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200)
• VC created in My Training folder by NVCManager – launched by non-NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200) however will not have the host present even if non NVCM who launched the room is a host (permission-wise).  A NVCM needs to be present for the room to have an initial host, similar to Named Host Meeting.  If the VC is ‘public’ as far as access level, it will launch and use the 200 seat quota for that owner, but if the owner isn’t in the room, the users who have entered will be participants.
• VC created in Shared Training folder by NVCManager (set to yes) – launched by NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200)
• VC created in Shared Training folder by NVCManager (set to yes) – launched by non-NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200) however will not have the host present even if non NVCM who launched the room is a host (permission-wise).  A NVCM needs to be present for the room to have an initial host, similar to Named Host Meeting.  If the VC is ‘public’ as far as access level, it will launch and use the 200 seat quota for that owner, but if the owner isn’t in the room, the users who have entered will be participants.
• VC created in Shared Training folder by NVCManager (set to no) – launched by NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200)
• VC created in Shared Training folder by NVCManager (set to no) – launched by non-NVCManager = Will use Traditional VC license (quota 100 taken from Concurrent Learners quota).  IF there is no quota for Concurrent Learners purchased, user will get ‘Account Limit Reached’ error.
• VC created in Shared Training folder or My Training folder by non-NVCManager (set to yes) – launched by NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200)
• VC created in Shared Training folder or My Training folder by non-NVCManager (set to yes) – launched by non-NVCManager – the room will behave like a Named VC and will use the 200 quota. But The room will not be owned by anyone, to be more precisely, there will not be an active host until an Named VC manager enters the room. Also all other non-NVCM hosts and presenters will be downgraded to participants until NVCM, who is assigned as a host, arrives.
• VC created in Shared Training folder or My Training folder by non-NVCManager (set to no) – launched by NVCManager = Will use NVCM license (quota 200)
• VC created in Shared Training folder or My Training folder by non-NVCManager (set to no) – launched by non-NVCManager  = Will use Traditional VC license (quota 100 taken from Concurrent Learners quota).  IF there is no quota for Concurrent Learners purchased, user will get ‘Account Limit Reached’ error.

So ultimately if you have purchased a NVCM license and you are expecting a VC to open and allow 200 seats, but you are getting an Account Limit Reached error either right away OR after a lower number of people access the room (so under 200), then most likely one of the situations above (in RED) has occurred.  To confirm, make sure that the creator of the room is in the NVCM group, the room exists inside of a NVCM’s My Training folder, the host launching the room is a NVCM, or at the very least the room has ‘YES’ set for the ‘Named Virtual Classroom License Model’ setting if the room is in the Shared Training area.