Everything you wanted to know

about licensing Windows workloads

on AWS, but were afraid to ask

Sean Lewis
Sales Leader, Microsoft Platform
April 19th, 2017
Agenda

 AWS Licensing Options

 Utilizing Licenses on AWS
 License Mobility
 Bringing Licenses to AWS
 SPLA and Self Hosted ISV
 Licensing for Common Microsoft Solutions
Before We Begin
Microsoft Licensing
in Public Cloud
• Public cloud infrastructure
is multitenant
• Individual servers host
multiple customers
• Customers utilize
Windows instances
licensed by the Public
Cloud Provider
Microsoft Server
Software Licenses
• For on-premises
environments
• Need identifiable server
hardware
• Need access to an
identifiable number of
sockets and physical cores
• License can be assigned to a
physical server
• Allow SQL to be brought to
Public Cloud under License
Mobility
Microsoft and AWS
Relationship
• Gold Certified Microsoft
Partner Network member
• Licensed to sell Microsoft
software under the
Services Provider License
Agreement (SPLA)
• Authorized License
Mobility participant
AWS Licensing Options

AWS Licensing

Buy License-included Bring Licenses to AWS

instances from AWS

Dedicated options for Default tenancy for License

licenses not eligible for Mobility eligible products
License Mobility with Software Assurance
License Included Instances
Buy License-Included Instances From AWS

Advantages:

 Provides “pay-as-you-go” option with

no upfront costs or long-term
investments
 Manages licensing compliance
 Supports current and many legacy
versions of Microsoft software
 Eliminates the requirement of Windows
Server Client Access Licenses (CALs)

Customer Choices:
• Amazon Machine Images (AMIs) with
Microsoft Windows Server
• Pre-installed Windows Server
• Pre-installed Microsoft SQL Server
License Included

 Windows Server (2003, 2008/R2, 2012/R2, 2016)

 Includes two administrative Remote Desktop Services
connections

 SQL Server (2005, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016)

 Standard, Enterprise, Web Editions
 Per-core, no CAL needed
 Amazon EC2 or Amazon RDS

 Pricing models
 On-Demand (per hour)
 Reserved Instances (1 year, 3 years, with or without upfront)
 Spot Instances
License Mobility
License Mobility

License Mobility through software assurance

allows existing on premise licenses to be moved
to shared tenant instances in the cloud.
As such you:
 Leverage the Software Assurance section of
Volume License Agreement
 Must maintain active Software Assurance
 Complete license verification
process within 10 days of
deployment.
License Mobility
 Several Microsoft Products are Eligible
 SQL Server
 Productivity Applications: SharePoint, Exchange, Lync/Skype for Business, Dynamics
 Windows Remote Desktop Services

 Allowing use on shared tenant Amazon EC2

 Per-Core licensing (except SPLA)
 Per-User licensing (CAL/SAL)

 Notes
 Per-Core Licensing applies per vCPU (hyperthread) and not by physical core
 SQL Server has a minimum of 4 Cores licensed per instance
 OS Licenses not eligible(Windows Server / Desktop)
 Desktop Applications not eligible (Office, Visual Studio)
 SQL Server passive failover benefits within the public cloud are enabled
SQL License Mobility

This table shows the number of

virtual representations of
hardware threads based on
instance type.

Customer brings a number of

cores equal to core counts on
table to launch specific instance.

This is a subset for example

purposes. For full list, please
visit:
https://aws.amazon.com/window
s/resources/licensemobility/sql/
BYOL Licensing
Bringing Licenses to AWS

BYOL is the process of bringing volume licenses

to dedicated hosts or instances.

Advantages:

• Take advantage of the efficiencies of the

AWS Cloud while utilizing existing
investments in on-premise software
• Extend the lifecycle of prior software versions
• Import your existing Windows images to the
AWS Cloud
AWS Dedicated Host
BYOL: Dedicated Hosts

Bring on-premise licenses that do not have SA or that do not qualify for License Mobility

Take advantage of AWS Linux compute pricing

Manage expenses by utilizing existing on-premise software

Maintain control and visibility into physical core and processor count

Customer defines which host it will be running on for its placement and declares an
affinity between the instance and the host
Comparing Dedicated Hosts to Standard EC2 Instances

Standard Amazon EC2 Instances Amazon EC2 Dedicated Hosts

Customer 1
Customer 2
Customer 3
Customer 4 Customer X
Customer 5
Customer 6

 Multi-tenant servers host instances for multiple  Single-tenant servers host instances for only
customers’ workloads your workloads (1 AWS Account)
 AWS determines which host instances run on  You can determine which host instances run on
 You pay per instance  You pay per host
 You can continually reuse the same physical
server through targeted placement, or let EC2
EC2 Instance place your instances automatically
 Visibility into physical cores and sockets
Dedicated Host: Licensing Models

Dedicated hosts allow for:

 Windows Server BYOL

 MSDN

 Maximum virtualization using Windows Datacenter and SQL Enterprise

 User and server based licensing deployment

 Passive failover for SQL when Software Assurance is active

Dedicated Hosts: Licensing Models

Microsoft Product Terms allow for dedicated outsourcing

Outsourcing Software Management

Customer may install and use licensed copies of the software on Servers and other
devices that are under the day-to-day management and control of third parties, provided
all such Servers and other devices are and remain fully dedicated to Customer’s use.
Customer is responsible for all of the obligations under its volume licensing agreement
regardless of the physical location of the hardware upon which the software is used.

Customer must bring Windows Server. License Included is NOT available

Customer must host (or connect to) a Windows Key Management Server
Bringing your licenses to Dedicated Hosts

1 2 3 4
Import VM Allocate Launch onto
Activate AWS
images with VM Dedicated Dedicated
Config
Import/Export hosts Hosts
 Dedicated Hosts: Configuration Options
Customer brings enough
cores/socket licenses to
cover physical counts
shown on Dedicated Host
pricing page:
https://aws.amazon.com/e
c2/dedicated-hosts/pricing/

Windows Standard -
Two instances per
physically licensed host

Windows Datacenter -
Maximum Virtualization

SQL Standard –
One instance per
physically licensed host

SQL Enterprise -
Maximum Virtualization
Deltek experiences significant annual savings on Microsoft licensing costs
with EC2 Dedicated Hosts

“ When we moved our SQL Server

licenses to Amazon EC2 Dedicated
• Needed to gain agility, enable innovation, integrate
acquired companies, and save on licensing costs

Instances, we were able to save 15% on • Running customer-facing production applications on

SQL licensing costs. Additionally, when
we move our Windows licenses to
Amazon EC2 Dedicated Hosts, we will
save 10% on Windows licensing.
Cris Carlin
Vice President of Operations
AWS for over 20,000 organizations in 80+ countries
• Regulatory compliance a key driver (e.g., FedRamp,
ITAR, SOC)
• Many products integrate with Microsoft SharePoint,
Exchange, and SQL Server
• Keeps pace with global business growth

Deltek is an enterprise software and information

solutions provider for professional services firms
”
and government contractors.
AWS Dedicated Instance
BYOL: Dedicated Instances

Bring on-premise licenses that do not have SA or that do not qualify for License Mobility

Utilize Windows Server instances that are physically isolated at the host hardware level

Manage expenses by utilizing existing on-premise software

Comparing Dedicated Instances to Standard EC2 Instances

Standard Amazon EC2 Instances Amazon EC2 Dedicated Instances

Customer 1
Customer 2
Customer 3
Customer 4 Customer X
Customer 5
Customer 6

 Multi-tenant servers host instances for multiple  Single-tenant servers host instances for only
customers’ workloads your workloads (1 AWS Account)

 AWS determines which host instances run on  AWS determines which host instances run on

 You pay per instance  You pay per instance

 You have a regional fee

EC2 Instance
Dedicated Instances: Licensing Models

Dedicated Instances allow for:

 MSDN deployment

 User based BYOL options including Windows Desktop OS and Microsoft

Office

 BYOL SQL Server Virtual OSEs

 BYOL Windows Server Licenses NOT eligible

Dedicated Instance: Configuration Options
SQL Server is licensed by vCPU with
a four core minimum per instance.

Customer brings enough cores to

cover vCPUs on desired instance
size.

Software Assurance not required.

User based products can be deployed

on dedicated instance without regard
to vCPUs.

This is a subset for example purposes. Full list of configurations

available at: https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/purchasing-options/dedicated-
instances/
Service Provider Options
Use your own SPLA

 The Service Provider License Agreement (SPLA) is intended for customers offering software as a
service to third parties.

 Common scenarios include web hosters, ISVs, application service providers.

 SPLA is pay as you go with no upfront commitments.

 SPLA licenses can be used on shared tenancy for all user (SAL) based applications.
 AWS is referred to as a “Data Center Provider” in the use rights (SPUR).
 SPEligible products include Microsoft Office, Remote Desktop Services and Exchange.
 UR designates products eligible to be run in AWS shared tenancy as “DCP eligible”.

 SPLA products licensed by core or physical processor can be deployed on dedicated hosts.
Self Hosted Application Licensing

 If a customer’s application qualifies for self hosting under Microsoft Product Term language,
customers can use their volume license agreement to offer software as a service.

 This benefit is described in the Software Assurance Section of the Microsoft Product Terms
with very specific language.

 Deployments utilizing self hosted licensing benefits can be deployed on AWS. Windows
would be purchased from AWS, all other products in solution would be purchased from
Microsoft with Software Assurance.

 License mobility is what enables these scenarios to be deployed on AWS.

Licensing Common Solutions
Licensing Failover Servers

With SQL 2014, passive failover benefits in the public cloud became available for customers with
active Software Assurance (SA).

Customers with active Software Assurance receive this benefit when bringing SQL Server to AWS.

Without Software Assurance, both active and passive servers must be separately licensed.

If the active instance is using dedicated hardware, the passive is required to be on dedicated
hardware. If the active instance is on 3rd party shared servers the passive is required to be on
shared servers.

Customers do not need to buy additional SQL licenses for the passive instance, however they will
need to acquire Windows Server and compute to run the passive instance.
Licensing for Common Microsoft Solutions
Exchange Server is eligible
for License Mobility under
the Software Assurance
program.
A license must be assigned
for each instance of the
server software that is being
run.
There are two main SharePoint Server is
licensing models that apply eligible for License Mobility
to SQL Server: under the Software
Assurance program.
• Server+Client Access
License (CAL)
• Per Core licensing
Mixed Licensing Model is a Win-Win situation

 Use BYOL for core (slowly varying) infrastructure

 Large potential savings by reusing licenses

and

 Use License Included for varying infrastructure

 Take advantage of AWS Auto Scaling
 Less management overhead, pay-as-you-go
Conclusion
What Do You Really Need to Know?
License Included
•On demand, Spot, or Reserved
Instance
•Pay-as-you-go pricing
•Multi-tenant or Dedicated Instance
•AWS provides images
•Legacy versions supported
•Amazon manages the licensing and
compliance
License Mobility
•Requires active Software Assurance
•Includes SQL Server, Remote
Desktop Services, Exchange,
SharePoint
•Does not include Windows Server,
Windows Desktop and Microsoft
Office
•Requires a verification process with
Microsoft
•Customers import and use their own
software
BYOL
•Includes Dedicated Host and
Dedicated Instances
•Software Assurance/license mobility
not required
•Windows Server can be deployed on
a Dedicated Host
•MSDN eligible for Dedicated Host or
Dedicated Instance
•Customer is responsible for
compliance with Microsoft
•Customers import and use own their
software
References

For more information on Microsoft Licensing on AWS, visit our FAQ:

https://aws.amazon.com/windows/faq/

To view the steps to sign up for License Mobility, visit the link:
https://aws.amazon.com/windows/resources/licensemobility/

AWS Dedicated Host information

https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/dedicated-hosts/

AWS Dedicated Instance information:

https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/purchasing-options/dedicated-instances/

For any questions on Microsoft licensing on AWS, write to Microsoft@Amazon.com

Thank you!