In windows server 2012 r2 datacenter you can run an unlimited number of virtual machines on a single physical host recall that such virtual machines can be easily activated using the avma automatic virtual machine activation. Peak usage where all vms may end up running in 1 esx server hardware for example unless you can ensure this will never happen. A vhd file with exchange server 2010 installed on top of windows server. In that situation, you can do one of the following. The third virtual machine and any virtual machines after that require additional purchases.
Last week i had another nice discussion around the 90 day assignment rule for windows server licensing on a vmware environment. Sep 25, 20 windows server 2012 licensing is based on the number of cpus and virtual machines that servers are running. Licensing windows server 2012 in virtual machines on non. As fzb pointed out, there is a web site you can visit, or, better yet, they have a 24hour contact line so you can talk to a licensing expert any time day or. I think going forward, in case, we grow more then we should look into datacenter license. For more information about microsoft windows server pricing, see compute pricing. Windows server licensing for virtual environment ms. Let us assume that you already have created a remote desktop services deployment. Use one physical instance as a normal windows server, or. Windows server 2012 r2 standard the license allows to run only up to two virtual. Server 2012 also allows 2 vms with one standard license, so you only. Each set of 16 windows server core licenses with software assurance and each windows server processor license with software assurance, entitles customers to use windows server on microsoft azure on up to 16 virtual cores allocated across two or fewer azure base instances. Virtual servers are licensed similarly to physical servers. Avma lets you install virtual machines on a properly activated windows server without having to manage product keys for each individual virtual machine, even in disconnected environments.
Licensing windows server 2012 for use with virtualization technologies. A vhd file with exchange server 2016 installed on top of windows. Understanding windows server hyperv licensing vembu. That has been replaced by windows server 2012 standard edition, that now has all the features and scalability of the datacenter edition. License microsoft windows server in a vmware environment part 2. With the launch of windows server 2016, server licensing transitioned to a corebased model and the processor. We have the licenses for windows standard 16 core license1 nos and 2 numbers of windows 2012 r2 standard. Will this suffice for the above scenario or do we need to buy additional licenses. So if i buy one windows 2012 standard i can install two server 2012 standard in the vms on the same license. That means we need to assign 2 copies of windows server 2012 standard edition to each host. System environment ose and two instances in the virtual ose. The server must have the appropriate number of licenses assigned to it to ensure coverage. For example, the windows server 2016 datacenter supports.
However, other microsoft server licenses can be used in both the physical operating system environment and in one or more virtual environments. Jan 02, 20 here is a short blog about windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environments. Licensing microsoft server in a virtual environment. Vmware esxesxi, microsoft system center 2012 virtual machine manager, and.
Tech support scams are an industrywide issue where scammers trick you into paying for unnecessary technical support services. Licensing windows server for use with virtualization technologies. Windows server 2012 r2 will continue to have same licensing model as windows server 2012 with two editions available in volume licensing, standard edition and datacenter edition. Billing for the windows server license is based on perocpu, per. In the past we would have used enterprise edition on each host. You may move running instances between licensed servers without acquiring additional licenses. Apr 16, 20 windows server 2012 virtualization licensing example.
A similar policy also exists for windows server 2008 r2. Windows server 2012 r2 standard the license allows to run only up to two virtual machines. 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. Rd licensing configuration on windows server 2012 microsoft.
What windows server 2012 virtualization rights do i have. Vose or virtual operating system environment is a licensing term for virtual machine vm. Jul 05, 2012 microsoft goes public with windows server 2012 versions, licensing. 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 machine. Windows server 2016 and 2019 datacenter support a number of new technologies that are useful in a virtualization and the azure cloud environment. What if you want to continue to run standard edition, but you need more virtual oses. Licensing windows server 2012 for use with virtualization technologies september 2012 4 for customers that want to have a highly virtualized environment, windows server 2012 datacenter edition is the right edition to use. There is the concept of stacking the windows server os licensing when you want to run more than 2 vms that are allotted with the standard edition license. The cost of a microsoft windows server license is an additional cost, on top of the underlying compute instance price. Under 2012 r2 licensing on a server with 8 cores or fewer, you would. An installed copy of microsoft exchange server 2016 within a virtual hard drive vhd or other image format file is an instance of exchange server 2016. Windows server standard edition os license stacking. A clarification of windows server 2016 license stacking behavior for physical. 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.
Features exclusive to the windows server datacenter edition include shielded virtual machines, softwaredefined networking, storage spaces direct, and storage replica. Planning for windows server 2012 r2 if you are planning to deploy windows server 2012 r2, remember. Rd licensing configuration on windows server 2012 ask the. I am trying to understand how the licensing works in a virtual environment. Windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environments simulation. Probably the best example of virtualizationaware licenses is microsofts policy for windows server 2012. To give you a more consistent licensing experience across multicloud environments, we transitioned from processorbased licensing to corebased licensing for windows server 2019 datacenter and standard editions. You pay separately for the compute instance and the windows server license.
Microsoft licensing for virtual environments can be tricky and there. Licensing microsoft server in a virtual environment youtube. From a technical point of view, there are almost no differences between these editions of windows server 2012 r2, meaning you can build a large virtual environment using even the free microsoft hyperv server. While i always recommend that you talk to a credentialed expert in microsoft licensing about your situation, its imperative that you do so when it comes to desktop oss.
An installed copy of the windows server 2012 r2 operating system on a hard disk is an instance of windows server 2012 r2. Windows server 2012 r2 licensing datasheet microsoft. Apr 25, 20 in this post well take a high level look at deploying vdi full virtual machines in windows server 2012. Understanding windows server virtual machine licensing. Windows server 2012 r2 licensing in relation to veeam backup. Jul 12, 2012 with microsofts announcement of windows server 2012 versions, licensing, and pricing, i thought it would be a good idea to take a look at what a typical environment might look like. The new windows server 2012 licensing for virtual environments, its per cpu model. Since its inception in 2008, microsoft released many versions of the os. It allows to run two vms installed with windows server 2012 as an os. Licensing windows server for use with virtualization.
Windows server 2012 and windows server 2012r2 are licensed under the. Licensing windows server 2012 for use with virtualization. Select the edition of windows server 2012 r2 based on your virtualization needs and edition features. Windows server also includes features like unlimited windows server containers. Client access licenses cals in windows server 2012 duration. If you have a volume licence then at the website where you download server 2012 you can also download the previous versions of the software and get the keys needed to install them. You will also need client access licenses also called cals. Licensing windows server for use as a host and guest os. For vmware, we have licenses for each esxi blade socket. If you have previous versions of the software with transferable licences. May, 2019 the windows server 20162019 standard license also allows you to run up to two vms with windows server on the same physical host. One more standard edition license will provide licensing for another two virtual instances. How to calculate proper windows server 2012 virtualization.
Be core ready microsoft licensing changes for windows server. As virtualization consultant i got frequently questions about windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environments such as vmware and. Aug, 20 lets say you have a server with either one or two processors and you own one license of windows server 2012 standard. When this is the case, if the server operating system or application is installed in more than one environment on a single server computer, a separate license is required for each environment. The windows server 2012 licenses are based on the physical processor. The licence to run windows server in the azure environment is, by default, included in the perminute cost of your windows virtual machine. Editions are differentiated by virtualization rights only two oses for standard. Microsoft goes public with windows server 2012 versions. Windows server 2012 is currently the most popular, and stable version of the os. Windows server is a server side operating system from microsoft.
If your host server runs windows server 2012 and hyperv and no other applications, you are entitled to a specific number of virtual instances of windows server 2012, in accordance with your edition. Licensing microsoft server products for use in virtual. Windows server standard licenses were already bought long ago and then vmware was introduced to the environment. The windows server standard edition will allow a limited number of 2 vms to run on up to two processors.
Windows server offers additional features in standard and datacenter editions. 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. An installed copy of microsoft exchange server 2010 within a virtual hard drive vhd or other image format file is an instance of exchange server 2010. You have a session based collection and a virtual desktop based. I know that on the standard edition i can have two vms. Move windows server licenses to azure and save up to 40 percent. Jul 26, 2012 in other words, to run windows server vms, you need to purchase the requisite number of windows server licenses each license does provide the right to run up to four virtual instances. Windows server 2012 licensing in virtual environments. Aug 23, 2010 we talked about licensing windows server on a vmware environment but thats only one part of the licensing nightmare. Microsoft server licensing in a virtual environment revisited. Deploying virtual desktops with windows server 2012.
For 2012 and 2012 r2, the bound hardware is one or two physical cpus in a single motherboard. Understanding windows server virtual machine licensing altaro. Licensing windows server 2016 in a virtual environment. Windows server 2012 r2 datacenter edition allows the sysadmin to create unlimited number of vms. If you do use both windows server 2012 virtual licenses, the physical install of. Guide to microsoft server licensing articles and howtos. Windows server licensing for virtual environments windows os hub. Feb 12, 2015 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. License windows server 2012 editions in virtual environments. Windows server 2012 r2 licensing datasheet product overview windows server 2012 r2 captures microsofts experience of delivering globalscale cloud services to provide an enterpriseclass server and cloud platform. Dec 19, 2014 microsoft licensing for virtual environments can be tricky and there are a lot of misconceptions out there on how to ensure you comply, but also special benefits some may be unaware of. We talked about this a bit on brian and gabe live this week, but we havent written about it or flushed out any thoughts. But what if i dont want server 2012 standard in my.
Windows server licensing permits use of the software in both the physical ose an instance of the software serving as the host operating system or os in the case of a virtualized server and virtual oses instances of the software running as guest. For example, a physical server running windows server 2012 and exchange server 20 would require a windows server 2012 server license and an appropriate number of client access licenses, as well as an exchange server license and an. Windows server 2012 comes with a slew of features and licensing models. You can help protect yourself from scammers by verifying that the contact is a microsoft agent or microsoft employee and that the phone number is an official microsoft global customer service number. In addition of the windows server 2008 license you also need a windows server 2008 client access license also called cal. Today we are going to discuss the steps in installingconfiguring windows server 2012 remote desktop services licensing in your environment using various available options. Jan 06, 2012 so, for all the windows server licenses bought through the volume licensing program, if those vms need to be freely moveble within an esx farm such as drs initiated vmotion, each esx host physical hardware need to be licensed for the worst case scenario aka. Windows server licensing for virtual environments windows. Before we continue, if you run or manage virtual environments that have. Automatic virtual machine activation microsoft docs. Windows server 2012 datacenter edition will allow you to run unlimited virtual instances with each license on a single server. An installed copy of the windows server 2012 operating system on a hard disk is an instance of windows server 2012.
1249 923 510 825 1224 813 1101 590 32 215 504 888 1545 691 860 383 1069 877 1134 1544 266 503 645 887 1193 1119 1498 181 1023 1043