Microsoft SQL Server Licensing For Dummies..

Microsoft SQL Server Licensing For Dummies..  

Don’t let the above title fool you!  Have you been confused on the Microsoft SQL Server Licensing requirements?  Per Processor, Per CAL, Per Core, Per Socket, Per Node – Per haps (space intended :-), we should revisit the issue again, and try to offer some assistance as you go forward in making your purchasing decisions.  While I would like nothing more than clarity to prevail, I can’t offer guarantees - just some links and discussions that may help in most scenarios.

At the end of this article, you may have even more questions, and some lasting vagueness, but don’t feel too bad - even the folks from Microsoft aren’t 100% sure what the right licensing requirements are for your implementation!  And, that’s after Microsoft said not too long ago, that we’re making the license requirements easier to understand.

OK, maybe we’ll have some answers for some straightforward installations, but in certain failover scenarios, the debate rages on about how many licenses we actually need.

To quote one potential Microsoft customer who was searching for answers in planning for his highly available failover infrastructure “We had the conversation with Microsoft [and], never really got a definitive answer to it. One rep said we needed more licensing; the other didn't, then change their minds.”

Let’s focus on the latest publicly available versions, SQL Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2.  So, to be fair, Microsoft did implement what’s called per processor, or processor-based licensing model.  According to Microsoft’s 2008 Pricing and Licensing Sheet, they offer a processor-based licensing model to help alleviate complexity. Processor licenses can be used for any type of application (not limited to Web-based scenarios).  The official definition of this type of licensing is offered below:

Processor License. A Processor License is required for each processor installed on each operating system environment running SQL Server or any of its components (for example, Analysis Services). It includes access for an unlimited number of users or devices to connect from either inside or outside the firewall. Customers do not need to purchase additional client access licenses (CALs) when licensed under the per processor model.
Processor licenses are available in Enterprise, Standard, Web and Workgroup editions and offer more simplicity for certain scenarios.

Read more: SQL Sercer Central

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