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Category: Microsoft Licensing Tip

Microsoft Changes Cloud Licensing

We all know how big cloud computing is. And you might be aware that a lawsuit was brought against Microsoft alleging its practices in the cloud were unfair. Technically, this case was brought in the European Union, but now Microsoft has responded to it by changing these practices worldwide. It is not clear that this will suffice in settling the lawsuit. These changes do not apply to what Microsoft refers to as “Listed Providers” – that is, Microsoft, Alibaba, AWS, […]

Microsoft Products Reaching End-of-Life in 2025

It’s not that far away. 2025. That year (and into 2026) spells the end of some on-premises software and end-of-support dates. This could leave your organization with unsupported software. And if there are regulations imposed whereby that cannot be abided, then there’s some work to do. However, some of the alternatives could be limiting – or, at least, more costly. Microsoft has increased its focus on subscriptions be they on-premise or cloud-based. This blog intends to provide an overview of […]

8 Secrets Microsoft Won’t Tell You

Microsoft keeps a lot of secrets from its clients. They can cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars in compliance penalties and wasted expenditures. They can also cost you your job. 1. You’re Paying for Cloud Whether You Use It or Not Microsoft Enterprise Agreements typically include an “Azure Monetary Commitment” fee. This is Microsoft charging you for using their cloud, even if you didn’t want it or ever use it. Not only do Microsoft reps usually not explain what […]

5 Unusual Ways to Save on Microsoft Licenses & Subscriptions

You know the basics, but do you know these advanced strategies for saving on your Microsoft spend? Your organization could save hundreds of thousands of dollars by taking advantage of these special techniques and Microsoft programs, but only if you know what to ask for. 1. Independent Contract Review When your contract is up for renewal, many organizations simply assume that there’s no need to review the details more than in the past. Unfortunately, a lack of diligence and oversight […]

BYOD and IoT

In a January 5, 2016 report entitled “BYOD, WEARABLES AND IOT: Strategies, Security, Satisfaction” (click here for access to the report – requires a valid Tech Pro Research member account) Tech Pro Research released its findings of a survey in which there were 206 respondents from the U.S., Canada, Europe, India, Asia-Pacific, China, Australia and New Zealand. These findings were quite clear that BYOD (Bring-Your-Own-Device) is something of a new normal, especially for smaller companies. It is also clear from […]

Change to Microsoft Enterprise Agreement

Let’s say your current commercial Enterprise Agreement – scheduled for renewal this coming September – is for 325 seats of Windows client, Office, and perhaps one of the Client Access License (“CAL”) Suites. Your company hasn’t seen significant growth in user population, so the anticipation is that the renewal will be for that same number of licenses. Nope! Based on Microsoft’s change (their “refresh” as Microsoft refers to it), you are not eligible for the Enterprise Agreement any longer. That […]

Windows Server “Per Core” Licensing

Microsoft Window Server Per Core licensing here we come! With the general release of Version 2016 expected in the second half of 2016, Windows Server will switch from “Per Processor” licensing to “Per Core”. As might be expected, there are caveats to this. Microsoft architected a transition for SQL Server 2008 R2 in the “Per Processor” metric to SQL Server 2012 in the “Per Core” metric. And Microsoft will adopt a similar process for Windows Server. First off, customers with […]

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Licensing

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 comes with the availability of two primary editions – Standard and Datacenter. The versions are identical from a technical perspective with the only difference being virtualization rules. Both primary editions can only be licensed in the Processor Plus CAL metric . . .unlike the limited functionality editions for Windows Essentials and Window Foundation that are licensed by Server with CALs included. So, which do you choose? Since the functionality levels are equal, it’s something of […]

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