I am pleased and excited to announce that we have just released QVGuard - a complimentary application to QlikView which helps protect your load scripts and macros.

QVGuard allows you to create a single 'master' copy of your QlikView application and unlock different features based on a licence file which you create and send to your end users.

For example, you might prevent the QlikView load script from running at all if no licence file is present, allow it to load 1000 rows of data if a 'trial' licence file is present and load all the data if a full licence is present. You can also use QVGuard in conjunction with macros, for example to alter how they run or perhaps by using a macro to prevent user selections if the licence file does not allow it.

There also many other features including the ability to expire a licence after a certain date or specifying that it can only be used in combination with an end user's particular QlikView Licence Key.

I'd like to give credit to the guys behind QVApps here as this project was started following a conversation with them and their innovative ideas for protecting QlikView applications. Judging from feedback from the recent preview release, QVGuard should be ideal for users publishing their apps through www.QVApps.com as well as a number of other scenarios and use cases and we are looking forward to hearing what you think.

For full details check out the website at www.qvguard.com where you can also grab a free fully functional evaluation.

As alluded to in an earlier post or two, we have been working on another new QlikView related product idea recently and I am pleased to be able to finally reveal some more information.

The product supports any developers out there who have a qool idea for a QlikView application they would like to be able to protect and license for more controlled distribution/usage or sale, perhaps directly to end users or through an online marketplace such as www.QVApps.com.

We are offering a beta preview release to QlikView developers who fit this description with the aim of getting some more focused testing and feedback. I think the product is actually in a better-than-beta state already but we would like to know what real end users think, in particular of the features and usability, so we that can resolve any major issues ahead of a public release.

If you are a QlikView developer interested in testing such a product please let me know and we will contact you with some more details.

UPDATE (30/3/10) - I have now closed the preview release program - Thanks to all of those who signed up and provided testing and feedback!