IT Pro Top FAQs –July 08Licensing
Q) How do I downgrade?
A) As an end user you have the right to downgrade as set out in your Software Licence Terms.
Example: You’re buying a new computer system and it needs to run the same operating system as your existing 10 systems — Windows XP Professional. Pre-installed Windows Vista Business and Windows Vista Ultimate both include downgrade rights to Windows XP Professional.
You need to source your own media which should be a legally licensed version (bought as either boxed or pre-installed software, or through a Volume Licensing agreement). You don’t need to have one set of Windows XP Professional media for each PC you are downgrading because you have legitimate full operating system licences for Windows Vista Business/Ultimate, which provides you the right to downgrade. You can then run Windows XP Professional until you are ready to upgrade the system to Windows Vista Business/Ultimate—when you would already be licensed.
When you downgrade Windows Vista Business and Ultimate as set out in your Software Licence Terms and you use both Windows XP media and the associated product key that was previously activated you need to activate via the phone only, 0800 0188 354, Once confirmed that you have a valid Vista Business or Ultimate licence, the Customer Service Representative will help you activate your software.
Q) How do I license Microsoft SoftGrid application virtualisation?
A) If you’re a Volume Licensing customer and have Software Assurance coverage you can buy a subscription licence for the Microsoft Desktop Optimisation Pack (MDOP). SoftGrid is a component of MDOP — a suite of advanced technologies that improves desktop manageability and security, and decreases total cost of ownership. For more information, click here.
Q) With Microsoft Windows Server Standard 2008, how many instances can I run within the virtual operating system environment?
A) For each licence you assign, you can run at any one time on the licensed server:
- one instance of the server software in one physical operating system environment, and
- one instance of the server software in one virtual operating system environment.
If you run an instance in the virtual operating system environment, the instance of the server software running in the physical operating system environment can only be used to:
- run hardware virtualisation software
- provide hardware virtualisation services
- run software to manage and service operating system environments on the licensed server
For more information, click here. **
** Note: Refer to Section B of Microsoft Servers – Operating Systems in the Product Use Rights (PUR).
Q) Is my Microsoft Windows Client operating system licensed for multi-user scenarios?
A) No. The Windows client operating system licence terms don’t allow multiple users to access or otherwise use one licensed copy of software simultaneously. Microsoft Windows Server operating systems are both designed and licensed for multi-use scenarios and should be used whenever a multi-user scenario arises. For more information, click here.
Q) Can I reimage a PC using Volume Licensing media instead of the pre-installed Microsoft Windows desktop operating system media?
A) Yes. Volume Licensing customers can use their Volume Licensing media to reimage their pre-installed Windows desktop operating system provided that it is the same version and product as shown on the Certificate of Authenticity (COA) label that came with the PC. For more information, click here.