What is the licensing model for Windows Server 2022 Standard and Datacenter?
|
Windows Server 2022 has been on the market for a while now. This edition also has different variants. There is a reasonable price difference between the variants, so it is important to know what exactly the differences are. We'll show you the differences between Windows Server 2022 Standard and Windows Server 2022 Datacenter. Show
Windows Server 2022 Standard is the 'basic version' of Windows Server 2022. It is mainly developed for small to medium-sized businesses or for organizations that do not need things like Host Guardian Hyper-V Support. You also need CALs to access Windows Server Standard. Windows Server 2022 Standard includes:
Windows Server 2022 DatacenterWindows Server 2022 Datacenter is often chosen for virtualization, because it allows you to place an infinite number of VMs on a physical host. Windows Server Datacenter also requires CALs to access the server. Windows Server 2022 Datacenter includes:
Read all about using multiple Virtual Machines with Windows Server Licenses here. Read all about Windows Admin Center here. Read all about Windows Server 2022 compatibility here. Read everything you need to know about Windows Server Update Services here. Read all about Remote Server Administration Tools here.  Differences between Windows Server 2022 Datacenter and StandardAbove, the basic differences between Standard and Datacenter are already visible. Below we explain the differences one by one.
Windows Server 2022 Standard vs. Datacenter: comparison tableBuy cheap Windows Server 2022 licensesAre you looking for cheap Windows Server 2022 licenses and save up to 70% on costs? Softtrader offers pre-owned Microsoft licenses, because they are pre-owned they cost considerably less, while the functionalities are the same! Do you have questions? Contact us!For more information about which Microsoft software and licenses are best for you, please contact us. We are available from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. One major difference between Datacenter and Standard editions is the number of allowed operating system environments (OSEs) or Hyper-V containers. OSE is just a more general term for a virtual machine (VM). Windows Server Standard Edition license includes permission for two OSEs, Datacenter Edition - for unlimited number of OSEs. The most noticeable advantage of Windows Server 2022 Datacenter: Azure Edition is that it supports hotpatching. Hotpatching allows for most monthly updates to be applied without an operating system restart. For the complete list of differences between the editions see the Comparison of Standard, Datacenter, and Datacenter: Azure Edition editions of Windows Server 2022 web page. Note that Microsoft will not release a new version of the free Microsoft Hyper-V Server and the 2019 version is the last version of the product. What licensing options are available for Windows Server 2022?Windows Server 2022 Datacenter and Standard editions are licensed under the Per Core/CAL model. This model requires licensing all cores in a server with core licenses and licensing all users or devices accessing a licensed server with Client Access Licenses (CALs) or CAL equivalents. For more detail about the Per Core/CAL model see the following question: Windows Server 2022 Essentials edition is licensed on a single one-socket server with up to 10 cores and no CALs required. It is only available as Reseller Option Kit (ROK) through Microsoft OEM Server Hardware partners. What additional benefits does Windows Server Software Assurance provide?Software Assurance (SA) is an optional software support offering available through the Volume Licensing programs. SA must be purchased together with the product license and renewed on a periodic basis to remain active. Windows Server SA provides many benefits, including:
Note that starting with Windows Server 2022, there is one primary release channel available, the Long-Term Servicing Channel (LTSC). The Semi-Annual Channel (SAC) in previous versions of Windows Server focused on containers and microservices, and that innovation will continue with Azure Stack HCI. Customers using the SAC are advised to move to Azure Stack HCI. At the tme of writing the current SAC release of Windows Server, version 20H2 is still available to volume-licensed customers with Software Assurance, as well as via the Azure Marketplace or other cloud/hosting service providers and loyalty programs such as Visual Studio Subscriptions. For more information on these and other SA benefits, see the Software Assurance overview web page or the Product Terms - Software Assurance Benefits web page. What is Microsoft Azure Hybrid Benefit for Windows Server?Under the Microsoft Azure Hybrid Benefit (AHB) for Windows Server, customers may use Windows Server Virtual Machines on Microsoft Azure and pay only the cost of compute, excluding license and client access charges. Each set of 16-core Datacenter or Standard Editions licenses are entitled to two instances of up to 8 cores, or one instance of up to 16 cores. Datacenter Edition licenses allow for simultaneous usage both on-premises and in Azure (Dual Use Rights). Standard Edition licenses must be used either on-premises or in Azure, although customers get 180 days of concurrent use rights while they are migrating their servers. AHB can be applied either to new or existing Azure VMs. For more details about the process see the Azure Hybrid Benefit for Windows Server page. Azure Hybrid Benefit also allows customers to use any number of instances on an Azure Dedicated Host or other dedicated physical host in Azure (Unlimited Virtualization Rights) if customers allocate Windows Server Datacenter licenses with SA for all of the physical cores on that Azure Dedicated Host server. In this case concurrent use is permitted only during the 180 day migration period. How to license a Windows server under the Per Core/CAL licensing model?Windows 2022 server requires two types of licenses:
Core Licenses: Datacenter edition allows to run an unlimited number of Windows server OSEs (VMs) on a fully licensed server (e.i., a server with all cores licensed with Datacenter edition). On a server fully licensed with Standard edition customers are permitted to run Windows server software in two OSEs - one physical OSE and one virtual OSE. If the physical OSE is used exclusively to host and manage the virtual OSEs then an additional virtual OSE is permitted (two virtual OSEs in total). Standard edition core licenses are “stackable”. Additional licenses can be assigned to a server to increase the number of allowed Virtual OSEs. Each additional set of licenses covering all cores on a server and satisfying the per processor and per server minimums permits two additional OSEs. To estimate the number and cost of Windows Server core licenses required for different server deployment scenarios try our Windows Server Licensing Calculator CALs:
Additive CAL must be used in conjunction with a base CAL. CAL Equivalent License means one of the following:
CALs may be assigned by users or devices, as appropriate. A user CAL allows access from any device by one user. A device CAL allows access from one device by any user. CALs may not be used to access third party’s servers and only allow access to server software running on customer’s licensed servers. CALs are version specific and allow access only to the corresponding version or earlier versions of the server software. Multiplexing or pooling does not reduce the number of CALs required. To learn more about multiplexing and its impact on Windows Server access licensing see the Multiplexing - Overview brief. CALs are not required:
What is an External Connector License?Windows Server 2022 External Connector License (EC) is considered a CAL Equivalent License and used to provide server access for external users. External users are defined as users that are not employees, onsite contractors or onsite agents of Customer or its Affiliates. EC license is assigned per server and has no limit for the number of external users. Each physical server accessed by external users requires an External Connector license. Note that external users can be licensed either with CALs or EC licenses. Customers may use a combination of User and Device CALs, and External Connector licenses as required. The decision to use CALs or ECs will depend on many factors, including:
Similarly to the “regular” CALs, there are two categories of External Connector licenses: base, called Windows Server 2022 External Connector, and additive, such as:
External Connector licenses are version specific and allow access only to the corresponding version or earlier versions of the server software. How to license a container running Windows Server software?Windows Server offers two distinct technologies for running containers - Windows Server Container without Hyper-V isolation (previously called Windows Server Container) and Windows Server Container with Hyper-V isolation (previously called Hyper-V Container). The difference between the technologies lies in the mode of runtime isolation: process or Hyper-V isolation, and therefore in different degrees of isolation between the container, the host operating system, and all other containers running on that host. The two container technologies also have different licensing requirements. Windows Server Container with Hyper-V isolation utilizes a virtual operating system environment to host one or more Windows Server Containers. Each Hyper-V isolation instance is considered as one Virtual OSE for licensing purposes. On the other hand, Windows Server Container without Hyper-V isolation is a feature of Windows Server software and does nor require any additional licenses. Container TechnologyDatacenter EditionStandard EditionWindows Server Container without Hyper-V isolationUnlimitedUnlimitedWindows Server Container with Hyper-V isolationUnlimitedTwo Is Windows Server covered by License Mobility?Windows Server licenses are not eligible for License Mobility through Software Assurance. Customers may reassign a Windows Server License to another device, but not less than 90 days since the last reassignment of that same License, unless the reassignment is due to permanent hardware failure or loss. Only External Connector licenses with active SA coverage are eligible for License Mobility. How much do Windows Server licenses cost?As per the Pricing and licensing for Windows Server 2022 page the approximate costs for different license types are as follows (US$): What is the licensing model for Windows Server 2022?Similarly to the previous version Server 2019, the latest Windows Server 2022 software is licensed per-core. A minimum of 16 cores must be licensed even if your server has fewer than this - and any additional cores must then be licensed via the 'Additional Core' packs (sold separately).
When licensing Windows Server 2022 Standard or Datacenter What is the minimum number of cores that must be licensed per processor?Each physical server, including single-processor servers, needs to be licensed with a minimum of 16 core licenses. One core license must be assigned for each physical core on the server. Additional cores can then be licensed in increments of two or 16.
What is the difference between Windows Server 2022 Standard and Datacenter?Standard edition also lacks support for software-defined networking and the Storage Spaces Direct software-defined storage feature. The biggest difference between the Standard and Datacenter editions relates to virtual-machine licensing. Both editions support an unlimited number of Windows Server containers.
What is the Microsoft server licensing model?The three basic rules that you must adhere to with the core-based licensing model are as follows: Every processor must be licensed to cover a minimum of 8 cores. Every server must be licensed to cover a minimum of 16 cores. All physical cores in a server must be licensed.
|
