With the launch of EBS 2008 at the beginning of Nov I thought it may be a good idea to cover off the licensing rules as this is a new offering for us in the channel

I have covered off the transition path from SBS right up to EBS, so this is simply the EBS licensing rules and Key points to note!

Lets look at what’s on offer

2 flavours – EBS Standard and EBS Premium

The Premium offering also contains these 2 extra components

• Windows Server 2008 Standard
• Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Standard technologies

Note: EBS is available in Open, Open Value, OEM and SPLA

EBS is licensed on a Server and CAL basis

Server Requirements!

Windows Essential Business Server 2008 license gives the right to install and use the server software. Purchase of a EBS 2008 comes with five CALs (except in VL channel) , which give the right to five devices or users to access the server software

CAL Requirements!

To allow for the most flexibility for customers, two CAL Suites for EBS 2008 are being introduced:

• EBS 2008 CAL Suite: For users or devices accessing EBS 2008 Standard
• EBS 2008 CAL Suite for Premium Users or Devices : For only those users or devices accessing the premium functionality of EBS 2008 Premium Edition

In addition to offering two CAL Suites, various CAL quantities to suit customer’s specific needs is also being introduced:

• EBS 2008 CAL Suite: Available in 1, 5, 20 and 50 pack quantities for either User or Device
• EBS 2008 CAL Suite for Premium Users or Devices: Available in 1, 5, 20 and 50 pack quantities for either User or Device

EBS Extended CAL Rights!

• Windows Essential Business Server 2008 CAL Suite or Windows Essential Business Server 2008 CAL Suite for Premium Users or Devices can be used instead of Windows Server 2008 CAL to access instances of Windows Server 2008 in the EBS 2008 domain
• Windows Essential Business Server 2008 CAL Suite or Windows Essential Business Server 2008 CAL Suite for Premium Users or Devices can be used instead of Exchange Server 2007 CALs to access instances of Exchange Server 2007 Standard or Enterprise Edition in EBS 2008 domain
• Windows Essential Business Server 2008 CAL Suite for Premium Users or Devices can be used instead of SQL Server 2008 CALs to access instances of SQL Server 2008 Standard or Enterprise Edition or SQL Server 2008 Workgroup Edition in the EBS 2008 domain

Choosing CAL Type

Customers can choose the CAL type based on how the server needs to be accessed on a regular basis. Both editions of EBS 2008 offer two types of CALs to choose from: device-based (Device CALs) or user-based (User CALs) options:

• Device CAL: is needed for every device—such as laptops, desktop computers, and Microsoft Windows Mobile-based Pocket PCs and Smartphones—that needs access to the server. With this option, any user can access the server on the licensed device. Device CALs might make the most economic and administrative sense for an organization that has multiple users for one device, such as shift workers. If device CAL is chosen, then each device that accesses the EBS 2008 server will consume a CAL; device CAL can be reallocated if device is retired
• User CAL: is needed for individuals who are given named access to the server. Licensed users can access the server from any device. User CALs might make the most sense for an organization that has many roaming employees who need access to the corporate network from mobile devices or employees who use multiple devices to access the network. User CAL can be reallocated if the reassignment is permanent, and can also be temporarily reassigned under specific criteria

EBS Virtualisation and System Center FAQ

Q: Does EBS 2008 licensing allow for virtualization?  E.g. Windows Server 2008 Standard includes Hyper-V with a license to run one server operating system in Hyper-V.

A: For EBS 2008 Standard Edition: you can run one instance of each of the management server software, the security server software and the messaging server software in one physical or one virtual operating system environment (OSE) on up to 3 servers at any one time.

For EBS 2008 Premium Edition: you can run one instance of each of the management server software, the security server software, the messaging server software and ‘premium server’ software in one physical or one virtual OSE on up to 5 servers at any one time.

For the premium server software,

• you can run an instance of Windows Server 2008 Standard on one physical and one virtual operating system environment ;
• AND if you run both of these instances, the instance on the physical OSE may be used only to run hardware virtualization software, or provide hardware virtualization services, or run software to manage and service OSEs on the licensed server
• you can run any number of instances of SQL in one physical or one virtual operating system environment and that operating system environment it must be joined to the EBS domain

 

Q: How does the licensing work with respect to the System Center Essentials component of EBS? Does the EBS 2008 CAL cover the licensing requirement?

A: The Systems Center Essentials 2007 component of the EBS 2008 solution has two categories of management licenses – server and client.

For the server management, the EBS 2008 CAL does not cover the management licensing requirement.

However, the EBS 2008 Standard Edition license includes twelve Server Management Licenses (SMLs) – ten for the customer’s use and one for each of the messaging and the security servers.

The EBS 2008 Premium Edition license includes fourteen or fifteen SMLs, depending on the customer’s use of the premium software – ten SMLs for the customer’s use, one for each of the messaging and the security servers, one or two SMLs for the fourth copy of Windows Server 2008 Standard, depending on whether this copy is being run on a physical or virtual machine, and one for SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition.

For the client management, the EBS 2008 CAL does cover the management licensing requirement. Note that there may be scenarios where a device may not access the server (therefore does not require an EBS 2008 CAL) but need to be managed and therefore a client management license (CML) would be required (i.e. purchased separately) in order to be in compliance.

 

Note: EBS 2008 Standard Edition can be run on up to three hardware servers and Premium Edition can be run on up to five hardware servers

Note: EBS 2008 is designed for the medium business, both editions have a 300-user limit, this is TECNICALLY enforced!

Note: CAL Compliance, When completing the CAL license document, you can specify whether you would like a per-user or a per-device CAL for the initial 5 CALs shipped with the server, For CAL add-in packs, separate versions are available for per-user and per-device, For license compliance, it is recommended that you maintain records of your purchase and CAL assignments

More info on SBS 2008 Keys HERE