Watch Your Assets

Microsoft - Software Audits and SAM Assessments

OverviewMicrosoft has definitely increased their software audits (and Software Asset Management or SAM Assessments) within the United States and globally. While in the past there were specific organizations that were at risk based...

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 Planned Release – Major Licensing Changes

Microsoft has recently announced a planned change to how it licenses Windows Server that could have a substantial impact on your organization. Even though you may have no plans to move to Windows Server 2012 at release, this will...

Microsoft to move to license-by-core for SQL Server 2012

Hmmm…think back to 2005, Microsoft is marketing its plans to release a new version of Microsoft SQL Server (2005) –remember how Microsoft executives were swearing that “unlike Oracle”, they would never count the number of cores, only...

How to stop overpaying Microsoft, Part 2: How to limit your Enterprise Agreement

There's nothing wrong with a Microsoft Enterprise Agreement if you really need one. However, because Microsoft requires the EA to cover certain bundled software, many organizations actually wind up overspending with an EA, instead of...

How to stop overpaying for Microsoft licensing

Microsoft Enterprise Agreements (EA) have long been a favorite for both Microsoft and resellers, if you have over 250 computers in your organization chances are someone has proposed an EA to you at least once! While there are a...

An Independent View of Microsoft Software License Agreements

Microsoft has a number of volume software license agreements available for its commercial customers. Each of these agreements has different benefits and different restrictions - understanding these can help you at the negotiating...

Microsoft Office licensing now a bit easier for Citrix users!

Microsoft Office, Visio and Project are all device licensed applications. This means that a device holds the license, not the user. So every device that uses one of these products has to hold a license for the product.That can make...

Tips for Negotiations with Microsoft in June

If you’re in the middle of a Microsoft licensing purchase or renewal you will probably have noticed that you’re being pushed really hard to complete it…now! In fact, you might well be told that Friday, June 18th is the deadline.The...

Why June is the perfect month to negotiate with Microsoft

It's June...that means my allergies are flaring up and my phone is ringing off the hook. The first part will make sense to anyone who suffers from allergies and the second to anyone who realizes that June marks the end of Microsoft's...

Microsoft CALs…Part II

I started this topic last week in the interest of making Microsoft Client Access Licenses (CALs) easier to understand, now it’s time to take a slightly deeper dive…In addition to the CALs discussed last week, there are additive CALs...

Microsoft CALs and External Connector Licenses…Part I

At least once a month I run into a seasoned IT professional who will finally admit that they’ve never quite figured out how to license CALs (and at least once a quarter that someone asks “What is a CAL?”).Don’t be embarrassed, ask...

Welcome to Watch Your Assets!

Hi, welcome to “Watch Your Assets”, Network World’s blog dedicated to understanding Microsoft licensing. The complexities of Microsoft licensing have enthralled me for over 15 years (LOL, what can I say – I like puzzles) and I’ve...