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by Jason Carmer, CompuCom Software Expert, Denver, CO
One of the most common questions I run into regarding Microsoft licensing is how to best license SQL? Today, there are two options customers can choose from: 1)Server and CALs or 2) Per Processor.
To determine which model is best for your organization, first you will need to answer the following core questions:
- What edition of SQL will best meet your requirements? Note – Which version of SQL do you need: Standard, Enterprise, Datacenter or Parallel Data Warehouse? Licensing rules vary by edition, so it is a good idea to keep the SQL edition and licensing chart handy.
- How many processors are in the server? Note – Microsoft counts the physical socket as one processor, so you don’t need to worry about the cores.
- How many users/devices are accessing the DATA? Note – Most folks have a number of questions around proxy servers and other issues, but it doesn’t matter! You just have to count the people accessing the actual data.
Once you have your answers, you are ready to review pricing options (this example uses Select level A retail pricing):
- Standard Edition. $800 US Dollars (would need quantity of one and the applicable number of CALs)
- Standard Edition per proc $6000 US Dollars (no CALs required…just license per the number of physical processors in server)
- Enterprise Edition $7100 US Dollars (would need quantity of one and the applicable number of CALs)
- Enterprise Edition per proc $23,000 US Dollars (no CALs required…just license per the number of physical processors in server)
- SQL CAL $150 US Dollars (licensed either per named user or per named device, whichever there are fewer of)
The final analysis reveals the following (assuming a server with two processors):
- The breakeven point for the Standard Edition is around 75 users/devices. If you have fewer, then you would want to purchase the server license and the applicable number of CALs. If more, then you would want to purchase a per-processor license.
- For the Enterprise Edition, the breakeven is around 260 users/devices.
On a separate note around SQL, it’s important to purchase Software Assurance (SA) for the following reasons:- Ability to spread payments over the term of your agreement
- SA-only pricing in subsequent agreements
- Rights to any versions released during term of agreement
Finally, probably one of the more important advantages is the ability to have a passive failover server licensed for free!
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