Software Asset Management (SAM) Blog

With around 20 percent of the enterprise IT budget being spent on software, Gartner has identified license optimization as a key area in which businesses can make significant savings. Gartner recommends building a framework to continually manage and improve the SAM process - mapping how to take efforts from the discovery of software assets and recording of software licenses through to a strategic approach to vendor management and license analysis.

The report identifies five levels of maturity, from ‘Nonexistent’ to ‘Optimzed’. The stages are not hugely dissimilar to those used by Microsoft in its ‘SAM Optimization Model‘ - although Microsoft refers to four, rather than five stages of maturity.

The Gartner research can be purchased online at Gartner.com

As of December 9, 2008, the VLSC licensing dashboard includes a notification area for site alerts, a Volume Licensing news and announcements section and links to key tasks.

Accessing VLSC

Designed for midsize and enterprise businesses that accessed their Microsoft License Statements through Microsoft Volume License Services (MVLS) and Microsoft eOpen websites, VLSC provides a simpler interface and more robust features to help reduce time spent on licensing-related administrative tasks.

VLSC offers key benefits for licensed software management: Licensing information, composed of the Licensing Summary and the Relationship Summary.

Licensing Summary

You can use VLSC to view current and past Microsoft License Statements across programs and agreements—all in simple format. 

Volume License Relationship Summary

VLSC includes a report that shows all Volume Licensing agreements associated to a user’s profile.

Downloads
Accelerated download speeds and a simple, secure user interface make it easy and safe for you to use VLSC to find the right product, based on your licensing entitlements.

Product Keys 
 
VLSC makes it easy for you to request product keys for the Windows Vista operating system, enables retrieval of volume license keys for all Microsoft licensed products, and provides access to technical support.

The licensing of SQL Server 2008 will remain consistent with SQL Server 2005
The notable SKU related changes for SQL Server 2008 from SQL Server 2005 are:

Addition of a Web SKU. This is a SKU for hosting public facing web sites and applications only, and is available in SPLA and VL channels
Individual binaries for SQL Server 2008 Enterprise Edition 32-bit, 64-bit and Itanium platform will be available on a single DVD as against a separate DVD for each platform.
SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition is no longer available for Itanium processors
Note for ISVs: A nominal charge has been introduced for ISV Royalty runtime servers

The licensing model for SQL Server 2008 is also similar to that of 2005. The notable differences are:

SQL Server 2008 licenses are no longer platform specific (32 bit, 64 bit or Itanium) and a license may be used to run the software on any these supported platforms.
Sample code for SQL Server 2008 will be available for download from the corporate website, instead of being installed via the DVD.

 For more details on SQL Server 2008 licensing visit: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/howtobuy/default.mspx

There is a lot of confusion surrounding Microsoft Enterprise Agreements (EA)and customers can find themselves non compliant due to a lack of understanding how these agreements work. Some customers believe an EA licences them for every Microsoft product and therefore do not need to worry about compliance. Microsoft are putting a lot of focus into the way customers covered by an EA are managing their compliance. Below is a summary of how an EA works.

Enterprise and Enterprise Subscription Agreements are for customers with 250+ PCs who want to standardise all their PCs on 1 or more MS Platform Product

EA means you cover all Qualified Desktops* that you own with 1 or more of the Platform Products

Available only from Enterprise Software Advisors (ESAs) and Large Account Resellers (LARs).
For corporate customers with 250 or more desktops making a strategic decision to standardize on Microsoft software.
Customers are able to license Microsoft software to standardize on their choice of the Microsoft enterprise software (Office Professional Plus, Office Enterprise, Windows Vista Business Upgrade, Core Client Access License, and Enterprise CAL Suite, which includes the Core CAL plus seven additional CALs: Office SharePoint Enterprise CAL, Office Communications Server Standard and Enterprise CALs, Exchange Enterprise CAL, Forefront™ Security Suite, Operations Manager Client OML, and Windows Rights Management Server CAL).
Savings for a three-year agreement term and platform software.
Requires only a single annual true-up order for new platform software licenses used in the year.
SA included providing the most comprehensive benefits offering available.
Renewal for an additional one- or three-year term.
 

Microsoft Enterprise Subscription Agreement

Available only from Enterprise Software Advisors (ESAs) and  Large Account Resellers (LARs).
For corporate customers with 250 or more desktops.
It is the most comprehensive benefits offering available if they prefer to subscribe to, rather than acquire, Microsoft software licenses.
Has the same benefits as EA (above).
Renewal or license buyout options are available at agreement end
Enterprise Subscription Agreement permits you to reduce your PC count at the anniversary date if you have a fluctuating or seasonal business, bear in mind you cannot reduce lower than the program minimum of 250PCs
 

Training and Evaluation Licenses

The Select License, Enterprise Subscription Agreement, and Enterprise Agreement programs offer a limited number of training and evaluation software license use grants.
Twenty copies per software title for use in a dedicated in-house training facility.
Ten copies per software title for 60-day evaluation.
 

Definitions

*“qualified desktop” means any personal desktop computer, portable computer, workstation or similar device that is used by or for the benefit of an enrolled affiliate or any affiliate included in its enterprise and that meets the minimum requirements for running any of the enterprise products.  Qualified desktops do not include: (i) any computer that is designated as a server and not used as a personal computer, (ii) any system dedicated to run ONLY line-of-business software (e.g., an accounting or bookkeeping program used by an accountant, or a computer-aided design program used by an engineer or architect); or (iii) any system running an embedded operating system (e.g. Windows 9.x for embedded, Windows XP embedded);
“qualified user” means a person who accesses any Core CAL server software licensed within your enterprise. It does not include a person who accesses the software under an External Connector License.  It also does not include a person who accesses the software in some other way that does not require a CAL