Windows server 2016 licensing on vmware ms licensing. Wvd helps deliver the best virtual desktop experience by providing remote access to modern desktop and applications from any device. This means customer can support workload mobility as it relates to external user access to its onpremises servers. This article will help you understand how to license windows for virtual desktop. Windows virtual desktop licensing allows you to apply a license to any windows or windows server virtual machine that is registered as a session host in a host pool and receives user connections. Licensing microsoft os and office in virtual environment. A clarification of windows server 2016 license stacking behavior for physical systems with cpus that contain 8 or fewer cores. The licence to run windows server in the azure environment is, by default, included in the perminute cost of your windows virtual machine. Microsoft holds that the minimum licensing purchase of windows server standard edition licenses 8x 2core packs allows for no more than two virtual instances of windows server standard edition. The new windows server 2012 licensing for virtual environments, its per cpu model. The standard and datacenter editions of windows server 2016 use a per corecal license model, which is a combination of corebased licensing for the server and cals for users or devices that access the server. The brief has been updated for windows 8 and windows server.
Windows server licensing for virtual environment ms. Also, well tell about the rules and licensing procedures when using windows server as a guest os in a virtual. I know that on the standard edition i can have two vms. Vmware esxesxi, microsoft system center virtual machine manager, virtuozzo and azure. Licensing windows server for use with virtualization technologies. Licensing microsoft server products for use in virtual. Microsoft takes a shot at vmware with windows server 2016. Vda is a use right that allows the end user the right to access a virtual desktop from a server environment. This is an update to the licensing microsoft server products in virtual environments volume licensing brief that was published in april 2012. Windows server virtual machine licensing datacenterinsider. License microsoft windows server in a vmware environment.
Licensing content for windows server microsoft docs. Windows server 2016 licenses on vmware virtual machines. Understanding windows server virtual machine licensing altaro. Guide to microsoft server licensing articles and howtos. Windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environment ms. Traditionally there were only perdevice licensing options to license windows 10 in a virtualized environment, until now. If you move a virtual machine to a different virtualization host, the host must contain a windows server license that includes the virtual ose licensing.
Licensing windows server for use on microsoft azure with software assurance coverage for window server standard andor datacenter, you have the additional option of running windows server in virtual machines in microsoft azure under the azure hybrid benefit for windows server. When your servers or other devices have multiple oses, you should check the. To give you a more consistent licensing experience across multicloud environments, we transitioned from processorbased licensng to corebased licensing for windows server. Licensing for a virtual machine on windows 10 for windows 10 under some conditions software assurance for windows 7, users are legally allowed to run a virtual machine of windows 7, on a legally licensed windows. Be core ready microsoft licensing changes for windows server and. Windows server licensing for virtual environments windows os hub.
Adobe validates all acrobat dc products in a windows terminal server environment. Support policy for windows virtual desktop and windows 10. Licensing windows server for use with virtualization. There are three ways to license and access a remote virtual machine running windows desktop software. We talked about licensing windows server on a vmware environment but thats only one part of the licensing nightmare. Will this suffice for the above scenario or do we need to buy additional licenses. Pricing and licensing support by windows server sku. Hii am trying to understand how the licensing works in a virtual environment. Windows server operating system software under the per corecal license model is licensed by physical core. Retail licenses should not be used in server based desktop virtualization scenarios. Up to two virtual machines with up to 8 virtual cores or.
Questions on windows 10 licensing for a hyperv vm i have a windows 10 pro machine which supports virtualization. The windows server 20162019 standard license also allows you to run up to two vms with windows server on the same physical host. Licensing microsoft server in a virtual environment youtube. In this article, well look on licensing features of the windows server 2019, 2016 and 2012 r2 operating systems from the point of view of new microsoft licensing model. The same is true for windows server datacenter edition, however you are able to run unlimited virtual. Windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environments.
Windows server 2016 and 2019 datacenter support a number of new technologies that are useful in a virtualization and the azure cloud environment. Microsoft licensing for virtual environments can be tricky and there are a lot of misconceptions out there on how. Windows virtualization rights windows virtualization rights allow for a licensed device or user to access virtual windows desktops either remotely andor locally, depending on how the device or user is licensed. Servers with windows server standard or enterprise licenses covered by software assurance can be stepped up to a windows server datacenter edition processor license to take advantage of its unlimited virtualization rights. Understanding windows server virtual machine licensing. Microsoft uses specific terminology that refers to physical server licenses and virtual machine licenses for virtualization. For example, the windows server 2016 datacenter supports. You have to license every processor on the host machine that will allow you to run 1 virtual instance either linux or windows for windows. Questions on windows 10 licensing for a hyperv vm computergeek. Again my two howtos above cover how to license a windows desktop os. Understanding hyperv vm licensing on windows server. Windows terminal server acrobat virtualization guide.
Licensing microsoft server in a virtual environment altaro software. We found that 7 vms is the breakeven point to switch to datacenter edition licensing. Acrobat does not support shared device licensing sdl in virtual. License mobility across server farms is not available for windows server, so in a multihost environment where osesvms are expected to move between hosts on a regular basis, each of the.
For example, oem licenses do not permit remote access to a windows virtual machine running in a data center. The sa give you the rights to run the vms within a farm aka. In addition to the base windows server cal or external connector license, some functionalities will continue to require the purchase of an. Move windows server licences to azure and save up to 40 percent. Windows virtual desktop wvd is now generally available.
A single windows server standard license is a complete package that covers one windows server standard edition as the physical operating system environment pose and up to two virtual instances on licensed cores. The twocore pack for each edition is 18th the price of a two proc license for corresponding 2012 r2 editions. Wvd is a managed desktop and application virtualization service thats hosted on microsoft azure. In this article, well look on licensing features of the windows server 2019, 2016 and 2012 r2 operating systems from the point of view of new. Server 2012 also allows 2 vms with one standard license, so you only need one license for your 2 vms of that. Previous versions of windows server have also been transitioned to this licensing. How does microsoft license windows for virtual environments. In addition of the windows server 2008 license you also need a windows server 2008 client access license. In addition to the base windows server cal or external connector license, some functionalities will continue to require the purchase of an additive access license. The bottom line is that windows desktop operating systems do not have a simplistic licensing model in a virtual environment the way that windows server operating systems do. We have the licenses for windows standard 16 core license 1 nos and 2 numbers of windows 2012 r2 standard. For every 2processor windows server license or set of 16 windows server core licenses with software assurance, you can run either of the following at the base compute rate. Microsoft server licensing in a virtual environment revisited. Understanding windows server hyperv licensing vembu.
If the virtual environment is going to run more than 7 virtual machines on top of an esx server, datacenter licensing is the way to go. Windows server licences are not eligible for licence mobility through software assurance, but customers licensing windows server with software assurance can utilise the azure hybrid benefit for a cheaper perminute cost when running a windows virtual. So windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environ ment ms licensing. Microsoft licensing for virtual environments can be tricky and there are a lot. The microsoft cloud provider csp agreement now includes a windows 10 peruser license option with virtualization. Understanding windows server virtual machine licensing if you plan to use your physical server as a hypervisor on which several vms with the windows server are running, you need to choose the os edition depending on the number of vms that will be running on your server. Volume licensing now includes a peruser license option with option of having your windows 10 vm hosted on your behalf both onprem or in the cloud. Running a windows server os within a vm in a vdi scenario does not require. Guide to windows server editions and licensing techsoup. Server 2012 also allows 2 vms with one standard license, so you only need one license.
Licensing windows server 2016 in a virtual environment. Server operating systems and server applications can run in either physical or virtual operating system environments oses. Windows server core licensing calculator hewlett packard. You will also need client access licenses also called cals. With the windows server 2012 r2 standard edition licensing model, you can grow your virtualization environment by either buying a stepup license to datacenter edition if you have software assurance, or by simply buying additional standard edition licenses and assigning them to the same physical server. Apply windows license to session host virtual machines. The third virtual machine and any virtual machines after that require additional purchases. Vmware esx esxi, microsoft system center virtual machine manager, virtuozzo and azure. The environments used for validation were set up in the following ways. Microsoft 365 is available in two options, e3 and e5. License microsoft windows server in a vmware environment part 2. The answer is that the licensed windows server 2016 provides more features and opportunities for your virtual environment than free hyperv.
Licensing windows server 2019 the operating system that bridges onpremises and azure services overview of windows server 2019 windows server 2019 is the operating system that bridges on. While i always recommend that you talk to a credentialed expert in microsoft licensing. Solved use of windows oem license on virtual machine ms. It includes updated references and diagrams to all current microsoft licensed products. License windows 10 for use in virtualization environment. Licensing microsoft server products for use in virtual environments. Licensing microsoft server products for use in virtual environments december 2017 4 products licensing do apply to windows server external connector licenses with software assurance coverage.
Licensing windows for vdi environments uf procurement. How to license windows in a virtual environment there are three ways to license and access a remote virtual machine running windows desktop software. If i wanted to run two windows vms on a single physical server, i just needed to buy one windows server license. Windows server standard and datacenter editions continue to require windows server cals for every user or device accessing a server see the product terms for exceptions, or windows server external connector licenses for servers accessed by external users.