Re: CALS and public resources

Tech-Archive recommends: Repair Windows Errors & Optimize Windows Performance

From: Joe (joe_at_jretrading.com)
Date: 09/24/04 

Date: Fri, 24 Sep 2004 19:52:02 +0100

In message <#Qa6oAmoEHA.260@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl>, "David Copeland
[MSFT]" <davidcop@online.microsoft.com> writes
>
>Here are answers to some of your questions..
>
>
> Q. Is each per user license tied to a specific user?
>
> A. If you choose per user CALs, then each Windows Small Business
>Server 2003 user will consume a CAL, and that CAL is tied to that specific
>user. You can re-allocate a user CAL if that reassignment is permanent. You
>can also temporarily re-assign if the user or device is disabled or on
>leave.
>
And this is where it gets murky, isn't it?

How does SBS tell the difference between a dummy user, created to allow
some obscure email/group requirement, and a real user? What happens if a
single human being needs to actually log in to (or runas) two different
accounts e.g. an unprivileged one and an admin one? Does he/she really
need two CALs? Surely all the admins in an organisation need this second
account. If they all used the Administrator account (does that need a
CAL?) then accountability is gone and auditing is pointless.

The License Manager in NT4 took an extreme, and rather naughty, position
on this. As far as it was concerned, every user and computer combination
needed a licence. I was new to Microsoft servers when I encountered a
rather terse instruction to 'purchase more licenses'. Since the
installation had 15 seat licences and there were only nine workstations
and a maximum of three laptops, I wondered what was going on. I
discovered that I was the problem, having logged into all nine
workstations as admin, plus a couple as a normal user. Presumably, if
everyone had logged in via all possible machines, twelve people would
have required 144 licences. Or at least, so the License Manager would
have claimed. As business practices go, I would consider that to be
verging on 'sharp'. It was pretty obvious that something funny was
happening in a network that small, but I could imagine a harassed IT
manager in a large organisation just paying up without actually counting
heads.

OK, it didn't take me too long to find the group configuration, though
strangely enough this wasn't mentioned in the Microsoft Press MCSE core
training manuals. 

-- 
Joe

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Another Silly User CAL Question
    ... But doesn't SBS at some point start denying logins due to excess license ... Les Connor [SBS MVP] ... not to a particular AD logon account. ... how many CALS are consumed by that model? ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs)
  • Re: Another Silly User CAL Question
    ... If you have a total of 5 user CALs and 5 Device CALs, then take 10 post-it notes and write USER on 5, and DEVICE on 5. ... For the users that log onto the SBS via more than one device, hand them a USER CAL. ... and to be able to demonstrate license compliance - keep track of these assignments. ... not to a particular AD logon account. ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs)
  • Re: Need help with config for outlook/exchange 2k3 and multiple email
    ... does not consume any additional license. ... Defined accounts on the server have no relationship to CALs. ... This customer recently asked how to send mail from their other domain. ... Create a seperate user and assign that user the email account and add ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs)
  • Re: SBS CALS returned/repurchased w/SA, now what about old Keys?
    ... You originally purchased SBS CALs without SA under Open Business, ... and a Dell server preinstalled with SBS OEM license. ... then within 30 days you can simply purchase the SBS ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs)
  • Re: Repost: SBS2003 Upgrade and Licensing Questions
    ... > Since the 5 built-in CALs can be split between User and Device CALs it is ... >> and circle it...write Users at the top. ... >> to make the second sheet of paper list the 4 users of Bob, Carol, Ted ... If a license audit is ever conducted, ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs)