Corporate users dump microsofts software assurance. You have 90 days from the date of computer purchase to acquire software assurance for this oem license. Software assurance benefits are not the same as product licenses. Tech support scams are an industrywide issue where scammers trick you into paying for unnecessary technical support services. Software assurance is available to organizations that support as few as five devices. Do microsoft customers really need software assurance. People who bought into microsofts controversial threeyear software assurance scheme in july 2001 will now be ready for their third renewal. Software assurance benefits microsoft volume licensing. Upcoming expiration date of your software assurance benefits available from the vlsc. Guide to software assurance charity digital exchange. Click on any software assurance benefit name for a brief description. Software assurance, announced on may 10, 2001, radically changed the rules. How long does my microsoft software assurance last. Software assurance is optional and cloud services are not available.
Microsoft remove more software assurance benefits the. Microsoft open license is a software volume licensing program designed for corporate, government, charity, and academic customers who order as few as five licenses. When purchasing a product with software assurance online with a credit card, renewal is automatic and you will see a note about that in the license email you receive after the purchase. Should i buy software assurance with my microsoft licenses. These standalone offers provide two years of software assurance or software assurance renewal for a microsoft license. Software assurance benefits across microsoft volume licensing programs.
The software assurance benefits calculator is an online tool to calculate estimated software assurance benefits that customers may be entitled to. It is included with some agreements and is an optional purchase with others. A comprehensive program that includes a unique set of technologies, services, and rights to help deploy, manage, and use microsoft products efficiently, software. Changes to microsoft software assurance options at techsoup. Many companies will face a serious decision once their software assurance sa license comes up for renewal later this. Microsoft software assurance big risk for a small reward. Microsoft volume licensing frequently asked questions faqs. Software assurance is a collection of benefits for microsoft products. Buy microsoft sql server standard 2 core pack software assurance 1 year renewal open value 7nq00071 for only 811. How and why would i want to renew a microsoft open license. Microsoft software assurance sa is a microsoft maintenance program aimed at business.
Half of the platforms licenses are covered with software assurance. Customers who are current on their software assurance plan as of december 1, 2016 are entitled to upgrade the licenses from microsoft dynamics crm 2015 to microsoft dynamics crm 2016 as shown below upon renewal. Software assurance has an annual cost of 29% of the license price for. Customers with active software assurance as of december 1 will get rights to the new dynamics 365 onpremises release. Microsoft includes two years of software assurance with all volume licensing products it donates through techsoup south africa. Software assurance planning services training vouchers license mobility unlimited virtualization. Sa renewal is no longer just a question of whether you need upgrades there are many more factors to. In support of the nonprofit community, microsoft has generously included software assurance with virtually all of. Eliminating sa on some products can lead to savings of 20, 30 or 40 percent of your annual maintenance spend. After the initial order, customers can benefit from volume pricing for all licenses for the remainder of the term of their open license authorization number. Sql server licensing calculator microsoft sql server.
Microsoft microsoft 24x7 support microsoft sa planning services microsoft sa training vouchers microsoft software assurance software assurance benefits about rich gibbons rich has been in the world of it and software licensing since 2003, having been a software sales manager for a var, a microsoft licensing endorsed trainer. The default microsoft license prices used in the presets of this calculator are based on sql server 2017 open no level prices from. What is included in my microsoft software assurance benefits. To buy software subscriptions on behalf of a customer. Renewing your software assurance contact an authorized microsoft charity reseller. Microsoft sql server standard 2 core pack software.
Software assurance is easier to understand, manage and use through the mpsa and provides a comprehensive range of benefits to help organizations plan, deploy and use the latest microsoft software and services. Microsoft software assurance support incident submission. Software assurance helps keep your business up to date with a unique set of technologies, and services, and rights to maximize your microsoft investment. These offers are especially suited for organizations that want to renew their expiring software assurance coverage or decide that software assurance benefits are. Microsoft license terms may change upon software assurance.
Software assurance working out costs over 4 year period. These benefits include free software upgrades, office multilanguage packs, office suites for use at home, elearning courses, and more. To renew your software assurance benefits, request a standalone software assurance product through techsoup up to 90 days before your original benefits expire. You can help protect yourself from scammers by verifying that the contact is a microsoft agent or microsoft employee and that the phone number is an official microsoft global customer service number. Software assurance is a comprehensive volume licensing program that includes a unique set of technologies, services, and rights to help you deploy, manage, and use your microsoft products more efficiently. Please reference your agreement summaries for your software assurance agreement renewal date. Software assurance is included with some microsoft products available through techsoup, but it can also be requested on its own. How to use or renew your software assurance benefits techsoup. Microsoft collects money in advance for future upgrades during a volumelicensing agreement and then keeps the money if. Microsoft volume licensing product licensing search. Microsoft will expand the scope of license mobility through sa for eligible licenses with active software assurance sa, to be assigned to dedicated host cloud services from listed providers who are an authorized mobility partner amp, including azure dedicated host. However, its not an easy decision and its not the right move for every microsoft customer. Software assurance and support renewal reinstatement. Maximizing your microsoft partner network membership.
What is microsoft software assurance and how do i access it. For example, exchange server, sharepoint server, skype for business server, and sql server. Upon your next renewal once the 3 years of the license cost are paid, assuming you wish to keep this license, you would renew just the one item as exchange server enterprise sa, also known as a software assuranceonly sku for your exchange server enterprise license. How to decide which renewal is best for your organization. Can i renew my microsoft software assurance benefits through the donation program. Microsoft volume licensing microsoft software assurance. Sell software subscriptions through csp partner center.
Licensing programs eligibility requirements microsoft. Software assurance spans microsoft s range of software products and services, helping you get the most out of your microsoft investment. Seth explains the benefits to software assurance and helps you weigh. Software assurance is a collection of benefits included with microsoft products requested through charity digital exchange. For more information, see the microsoft product list and product use rights. These benefits include free software upgrades, office multilanguage packs, office suites for use at home, and more. Microsoft exchange server delivers bestinclass emailbased collaboration services that are highly secure, thoroughly reliable, and easy to access, giving information workers better control of their business communications so that enterprises of all sizes can make decisions more efficiently and compete more effectively. Visit microsoft software assurance or contact your microsoft volume licensing reseller. Microsoft software assurance for volume licensing helps boost organizational productivity with 24x7 support, deployment planning services, and technical training, the latest microsoft software releases, unique technologies, plus support for cloud services adoption, all in one costeffective program. A comprehensive program that includes a unique set of technologies, services, and rights to help deploy, manage, and use microsoft products efficiently, software assurance helps keep your business up to date and ready to respond quickly to change and opportunity. The sa support offering is governed by microsofts current software assurance terms and conditions. So you can keep using the license forever, but your sa benefits will end at a certain point. The value and benefit gained under microsoft volume licensing programs and through use of microsoft software and services may vary by customer. Software assurance benefits help you take full advantage of your investments in it.
Effective july 1, 2016, in markets where the mpsa is available, microsoft no longer accepts new orders and software assurance renewals through existing commercial select plus agreements at the customers next agreement anniversary date. Stepup your microsoft licensing with software assurance. License mobility through software assurance gives microsoft volume licensing customers the flexibility to deploy eligible server applications with active software assurance on azure. You can get support at a microsoft store, or call microsoft, or contact us online. The programme costs users 25% of a full server software. For products that come with microsoft software assurance, your organisation will receive benefits for two years from the time of your.
Sign into the partner center dashboard from the partner center menu, select customers, then choose a customer from the list from the customers detail page, select add products, and then follow the onscreen instructions to create and pay for your order. Microsoft license terms may change upon software assurance renewal if your department owns a microsoft select or select plus license covered by software assurance software assurance is maintenance or upgrade protection, and you renew that software assurance after the terms of the license have changed, then you are bound by the new terms. Customers should refer to their agreements for a full understanding of their rights and obligations under microsofts volume licensing programs. Even after microsoft software assurance expires, benefits that were accrued in that period are still valid. You will continue to be eligible to upgrade to any new versions of your products that were released within the twoyear period of the benefit, but you will not be eligible for upgrades to versions that were released later. Microsoft dynamics 365 onpremises faq updated 252017 what happens to customers with active sa for dynamics crm on premises before renewal. This is why your sa renewal will cost only a fraction of what you paid.
Software assurance benefits calculated by this tool are an estimate only, and the results generated do not constitute an offer. What happens after my microsoft software assurance expires. For products that come with microsoft software assurance, your organisation will receive benefits for two years from the time of your original donation request. With this software assurance benefit, there is no need to purchase new licenses and no associated mobility fees so, you can easily deploy existing licenses on the. Find out about the basics of microsoft volume licensing programs, which include software assurance, shared source, open license, select license, select plus, enterprise agreement, enterprise subscription agreement, and product keys. Microsoft makes significant licensing changes softwareone. When purchased through one of our reseller, partner, software integrator channels or via a purchase order then manual subscription renewal is required. Software assurance is only available through volume licensing and is purchased when you buy or renew a volume licensing agreement. Volume licensing service center software assurance. Are my microsoft product licenses still valid after software assurance expires.
Software assurance can be purchased on retail or oem licensed products if done within 90 days of acquiring the retail or oem license. You can use software assurance to upgrade your software for free. When you buy a license with sa, it is important to remember that the license usually is perpetual but the sa will expire after two or three years. Ninety days prior to expiration, your vlsc account owner should receive an email from microsoft saying that the benefits are expiring soon. One of the major benefits customers have seen from microsofts software assurance sa is the ability to migrate from a lower to higher edition software without incurring full licensing costs for both editions by using what is called a stepup license. Assure software support is a subscription service that gives you one year of assisted technical software support on up to five personal devices, and oneonone inperson training, as often as you need it. Software assurance does not provide a license to use the product. Microsoft software assurance has always been a gamble. The core premise behind sa is to give users the ability to spread payments over several years, while offering free upgrades to newer versions during that time period.
Using software assurance benefits can help you take full advantage of your investments in it. Your software assurance coverage must be renewed every two or three years, depending on your type of volume license agreement. Software assurance training vouchers satv microsoft. Microsoft offers software assurance only with its volume licensing programs. Organisations such as businesses that purchase software through microsoft volume licensing must normally purchase software assurance as a separate option.
Software assurance benefits included with microsoft donations. Get genuine operating systems do not include software assurance benefits. For example, you purchase a new computer with a microsoft office oem license. Increase your sales and services revenue by at least three times and be more productive with access to the latest microsoft software to run your business and train your staff, using internal use right benefits provided. Software assurance is a comprehensive volume licensing program that includes a unique set of technologies, services, and rights to help you deploy, manage. Microsoft software assurance sa is a microsoft maintenance program aimed at business users who use microsoft windows, microsoft office, and other server and desktop applications. Not every microsoft customer needs software assurance on all of the vendors offerings. Microsoft has removed its grace periods on software assurance sa renewals for the following products on new contracts enterprise agreement ea enterprise agreement subscription eas select. June 14, 2016 upperedge no comments share i recently conducted a meeting with a cio to discuss his companys options going into its microsoft renewal negotiation, and he acknowledged that he, like most of my clients, was largely in the dark about the costs and benefits of software.