MS volume licensing questions.

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cyclone3d

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We use MS volume licensing for all the Windows machines where I work.

We are needing to buy a couple more systems and i was asking our Dell rep about getting a no OS option put onto our builds.

He came back saying that MS licensing only cover upgrades/downgrades of the OS and that every machine we buy has to be purchased with an OS.

Anybody know for sure if that is really the case?
 
I don't think you can buy a dell without an OS. Instead, ask them to put linux on it.

Also -- I think each licensing agreement is different, so you would have to talk to your MS rep to be certain.
 
If it's a really large company (thousands anyway) they will just do an annual audit or similar stats gathering to determine how many have connected to AD or something similar. I don't know the exact details but I guess if it's that large you wouldn't need to worry about this yourself. :)
 
wand3r3r said:
If it's a really large company (thousands anyway) they will just do an annual audit or similar stats gathering to determine how many have connected to AD or something similar. I don't know the exact details but I guess if it's that large you wouldn't need to worry about this yourself. :)
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Just trying to see if I can save a little per machine we order.

I am the lone IT support person at the location I work at, and have been givrn the task of ordering these machines... I am a miser when it comes to stuff like this.

If corporate is already paying for Windows licenses, then why do we need to buy a Windows license for each seperate machine?
 
Your Dell rep is correct. The OS that you get with your EA is only a "Upgrade" version. Depending on how you get the OS upgrade it may be assigned per user. So if you are upgrading a user to a newer machine you don't have to get another "Desktop Pro" (this is the old name of what I was buying at the previous workplace. It included Desktop OS, Office Pro Plus, Windows CAL, Exchange CAL, SharePoint CAL, System Manager CAL, and one other).

Again check with your Microsoft Rep to make sure you are not getting bad advice from us.
 
cyclone3d said:
We use MS volume licensing for all the Windows machines where I work.

We are needing to buy a couple more systems and i was asking our Dell rep about getting a no OS option put onto our builds.

He came back saying that MS licensing only cover upgrades/downgrades of the OS and that every machine we buy has to be purchased with an OS.

Anybody know for sure if that is really the case?
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If you buy an PC from a OEM and it comes with Windows installed, you can use it like that in your environment. There is no need to buy a volume license if you do not intend on using the media on the machine. If you want to use your volume media on it, then you must have a license. The volume licenses are upgrade/downgrade. The OS must come installed with at least the professional/business version. You cannot use volume media to 'upgrade' Home edition to volume Professional.
 
This may be the case with Dell pc's but you can most definitely buy a Dell Poweredge server with no OS. I do it regularly.
 
Mister Natural said:
This may be the case with Dell pc's but you can most definitely buy a Dell Poweredge server with no OS. I do it regularly.
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Yep, and I have done so as well.

The Dell rep was referring to volume licensing though.

I shot off an email to MS about it, and here is what they had to say.

"This is in response to your email regarding Microsoft Operating System License Requirements.

We understand the importance of ensuring that any machine you buy is running properly licensed software.

You will find below a paragraph that addresses your question. It can be found on the Microsoft Volume Licensing website at http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/

Frequently Asked Questions
If a volume licensing customer purchases new devices that do not have an operating system preinstalled (?naked? PCs) how can they license the Windows operating system?

Options for acquiring full licenses for the Windows operating system are through an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) or retail (also known as full packaged product [FPP]). If a customer purchases naked PCs, the customer needs to license the Windows operating system as FPP. Because of the cost of FPP, customers might prefer to request that their new devices come with a licensed desktop PC operating system preinstalled (for example, the Windows Vista Business operating system or the Windows XP Professional operating system). Microsoft Volume Licensing programs are not a source for full licenses for the Windows operating system. These programs offer only upgrade licenses for the Windows desktop PC license. A customer using the Volume Licensing Windows desktop PC operating system media to install a full operating system is not legally licensed for desktop PC operating system software if they acquire a PC that does not have a licensed copy of the software preinstalled or they acquire the Volume Licensing upgrade license without having a licensed copy of a qualifying desktop PC operating system installed on their device."

so yeah, the crazy per-year price for volume licensing only covers up/downgrades of the OS.
 
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