Windows Server licensing reports

Licensing Windows Server environments is often one of the key challenges for software asset managers; it is time-consuming, and virtualization adds complexity. You can use the Windows Server Assessment reports and the Windows Server risks report in SAM Core on Snow Atlas to find the most cost-effective licensing of Windows Server in your IT environment and to identify potential deployment issues.

The Windows Server Assessment reports help you to find the most cost-effective way to make sure that every host is covered, regardless if it is running on a single server or in a datacenter cluster with thousands of virtual machines. The Windows Server risks report shows possible risk descriptions and suggestions to resolve potential deployment issues.

note

• The Windows Server Assessment reports assess the requirements for each host and provide a recommendation for the lowest cost option. The reports do not take existing licenses into account.

• When you set the Already licensed column in the Windows Server Assessment reports to No, the Windows Server hosts that are already fully licensed will be left out from the results. The remaining hosts still require a license to be assigned or purchased. This can be used to plan for a Microsoft True-up or an order, which also includes accurate cost planning.

Use the Windows Server Assessment report that matches your licensing:

Report name	Licensing model
Windows Server Assessment - 2022 or later licensing	Windows Server 2022 or later processor core-based rules
Windows Server Assessment - 2019 licensing	Windows Server 2019 processor core-based rules
Windows Server Assessment - 2016 licensing	Windows Server 2016 processor core-based rules
Windows Server Assessment - 2012 licensing	Windows Server 2012 R2 processor-based rules
Windows Server Assessment - Lowest-cost licensing	A mixture of licensing

Prerequisites

To receive recommendations, application costs need to be entered for the relevant Windows Server application. If application costs are not entered, the recommendations field will be blank and this will be noted in the Identified risks column of the reports.

Change cost and recalculate compliance

If you add or change the application cost for a Windows Server application, you must also recalculate compliance to make the change visible in the Windows Server Assessment reports.

Characteristics

The following section describes the columns included in the reports and how the result is grouped by default.

Windows Server Assessment reports

Windows Server Assessment: 2022 or later licensing

This report is recommended to use if you license Windows Server under the processor core-based rules for Windows Server 2022 or later versions. These rules are the same as for licensing Windows Server under the 2016 and 2019 processor core-based rules.

The results are by default grouped by Datacenter name. Every host will be listed by its datacenter name, in alphabetical order.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Windows Server version	The Windows Server version on which the assessment of the rules is based.
Datacenter name	The name of the datacenter, which either is automatically generated by the datacenter or manually created.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host is running.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently running on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster.
Recommended edition	The recommended Windows Server edition.
Recommended packs	License packs required for the recommended Windows Server version, and Windows Server edition for the host.
Recommended cost	The recommended cost, in your chosen currency.
Identified risks	Risk details for the host. For more information, see Identified risks.

Windows Server Assessment: 2019 licensing

This report is recommended to use if you license Windows Server under the 2019 processor core-based rules. These rules are the same as for licensing Windows Server under the 2016 processor core-based rules.

The results are by default grouped by Datacenter name. Every host will be listed by its datacenter name, in alphabetical order.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Datacenter name	The name of the datacenter, which either is automatically generated by the datacenter or manually created.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host is running.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently running on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster.
Recommended edition	The recommended Windows Server edition.
Recommended packs	License packs required for the recommended Windows Server version, and Windows Server edition for the host.
Recommended cost	The recommended cost, in your chosen currency.
Identified risks	Risk details for the host. For more information, see Identified risks.

Windows Server Assessment: 2016 licensing

This report is recommended to use if you license Windows Server under the 2016 processor core-based rules.

The results are by default grouped by Datacenter name. Every host will be listed by its datacenter name, in alphabetical order.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Datacenter name	The name of the datacenter, which either is automatically generated by the datacenter or manually created.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host is running.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently running on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster.
Recommended edition	The recommended Windows Server edition.
Recommended packs	License packs required for the recommended Windows Server version, and Windows Server edition for the host.
Recommended cost	The recommended cost, in your chosen currency.
Identified risks	Risk details for the host. For more information, see Identified risks.

Windows Server Assessment: 2012 licensing

This report is recommended to use if you license Windows Server under the 2012 R2 processor-based rules.

The results are by default grouped by Datacenter name. Every host will be listed by its datacenter name, in alphabetical order.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Datacenter name	The name of the datacenter, which either is automatically generated by the datacenter or manually created.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host system is hosting.
Operating system	The version and edition of Windows Server that is installed on the host.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently powered on or active on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server. Powered-off VMs are not included, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster; if this is enabled, the running Windows Server VMs on other hosts in the cluster are included, as they can potentially move to this host.
Recommended edition	The recommended Windows Server edition.
Recommended packs	License packs required for the recommended Windows Server version, and Windows Server edition for the host.
Recommended cost	The recommended cost, in your chosen currency.
Identified risks	Risk details for the host. For more information, see Identified risks.

Windows Server Assessment: Lowest-cost licensing

This report is recommended to use if you are assessing the lowest cost version of Windows Server across all versions and editions.

The results are by default grouped by Datacenter name. Every host will be listed by its datacenter name, in alphabetical order.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Datacenter name	The name of the datacenter, which either is automatically generated by the datacenter or manually created.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host is running.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently running on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster.
Recommended edition	The recommended Windows Server edition.
Recommended packs	License packs required for the recommended Windows Server version, and Windows Server edition for the host.
Recommended cost	The recommended cost, in your chosen currency.
Identified risks	Risk details for the host. For more information, see Identified risks.

Windows Server risks report

This report displays common risk factors in environments where Windows Server is deployed, for example, VM usage and visibility gaps.

The results are by default grouped by Identified risk and Datacenter name.

The following columns are included in the report:

Column name	Description
Risk description	The description of the risk, including a recommendation if applicable.
Host name	The name of the host.
Organization	The complete organization structure for where the host currently resides.
Processors	The number of processors in the host.
Total cores	The total number of processor cores in all of the processors in the host.
Running VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host system is hosting.
Running non-Windows Server VMs	The number of non-Windows Server VMs that the host system is hosting.
Running Windows Server VMs	The number of Windows Server VMs that the host system is hosting.
Peak potential Windows Server VMs	The potential number of Windows Server VMs that the host can run. There are two factors that affect this value: the number of Windows Server VMs that are currently powered on or active on the host, including the host itself, if its operating system is Windows Server. Powered-off VMs are not included, the host is part of a cluster that is configured with high availability and/or it is part of a VMware DRS cluster; if this is enabled, the running Windows Server VMs on other hosts in the cluster are included, as they can potentially move to this host.

Identified risks

All of the Windows Server Assessment reports contain the Identified risks column which can show one or several identified risks. The different risks are explained here:

Identified risk	Description
Old Windows Server version in estate	A Windows Server version that is older than Windows Server 2008 is either installed on the host and/or on one or more virtual machines running on the host. These versions of Windows Server are no longer within the date for the end of extended support by Microsoft. You should consider upgrading these to a later version.
Non-inventoried Windows Server VMs	<x> Windows Server VMs running on this server are not inventoried. The installed Windows Server version or edition may be missing, which impacts licensing results. Consider inventorying the VMs.
No application cost add for <os name>	The application cost for Windows Server <Version and Edition> has not been added. This cost is used to calculate the lowest cost version that can be used to license each host.
Has suspended or powered off Windows virtual machines	There is one or more Windows Server VMs on this server that is suspended or powered off. The current recommended edition to license this server is based on the running Windows Server VMs - however if more Windows Server VMs are powered on this could change.
Inventoried Windows Server VMs that do not report power state	<x> Windows Server VMs have no information about their power state, which may impact our license calculations. Ensure that a connector is configured to the hypervisor that manages this host.
Windows Server VMs that report an unknown power state	<x> Windows Server VMs report an unknown power state, which may impact our license calculations. Consider reviewing the power state of the VMs in your hypervisor.
Possible overspend of Datacenter licenses due to low number of Windows Server virtual machines	This host has a low number of Windows Server VMs that can potentially run on it, however one or more VMs have datacenter edition installed. This means that Datacenter editions is recommended to be legally compliant, however licensing this host with Windows Server Standard would be less expensive due to the virtualization rights. Consider moving installations of Datacenter to a different host, or running more Windows Server VMs to make use of the unlimited virtualization granted by the datacenter edition licensing.
Low virtualization on host with Datacenter edition installations	Licensing with Standard edition would cost less. Move Windows Server VMs to this host to maximize virtualization or remove installations of Datacenter so that you can license using Standard instead.
Non-Windows Server VMs running on datacenter host	<x> non-Windows Server VMs run on this host. Move non-Windows VMs to another host and add Windows Server VMs to this host to maximize use of the unlimited virtualization rights that are provided by licensing with Datacenter edition.
Hosts with fewer than eight cores per processor	<x> processors have fewer than eight cores. Windows Server 2016, 2019 and 2022 require a minimum of 8 cores per processor. Consider an upgrade of your processors to increase resources without adding license cost.
Host with less than 16 cores per server	This host has fewer than 16 cores. Windows Server 2016, 2019 and 2022 require a minimum of 16 cores per server. Consider an upgrade of your processors to increase resources without adding license cost.
Host without inventoried Windows Server VMs	This host contains no inventoried Windows Server VMs. To calculate license compliance for this host, at least one VM must be inventoried.
Non-inventoried VMs that do not include operating system information	<x> VMs that run on this host do not display operating system. If Windows Server is used as operating system for these VMs it may impact our recommendations. Inventory these VMs to resolve the matter.
Suspended or powered-off Windows Server VMs on a Windows Server Standard host	<x> Windows Server VMs on this host are suspended or powered-off. If more Windows Server VMs become powered-on, it may be more cost effective to license host with Datacenter edition.
Windows Server Support End Date reached	<x> Windows Server VMs run on this host. Their Windows Server version is no longer entitled to extended support.
The cost for Windows Server <version> has not been added	The application cost for Windows Server <version> has not been added. This cost is used to calculate the lowest cost version and edition that can be used to license each server.
Host is quarantined	The information about this host may not be up to date. Validate if this server is no longer reporting in or has been retired.
Windows Server VMs are quarantined	<x> Windows Server VMs that could run on this host may have information that is not up to date. Validate if the VMs are no longer reporting in or have been retired.
Host is inactive but has active VMs	The host is defined as inactive, but hosts Windows Server VMs that are either active or quarantined. This will impact compliance calculations.