License Key Management

[rpettit]

Can anyone provide me with information on how tou manage licensing and MS software activation.

I have just downloaded and installed VAMT.

Do people use KMS or MAK?

Any advice will be gratefully received.

[plexer]

KMS for everything here.

Ben

[rpettit]

What setup is needed for KMS? Is there a GUI or do you run the commands to activate the KMS keys?

[Quackers]

If i remember correctly you just from from the command line slmgr /ipk PRODUCTKEYHERE for Office KMS you download an add on and prompts you for the key.

[rpettit]

Is this ran on any client machine? Or would you run the commands on a server?

Apologies for my stupidity...I have never setup KMS before so it is all new to me...I'm sure its a lot similar than I am thinking it is!

How do the clients point to the KMS?

[LeMarchand]

Try to use KMS where we have sufficient clients (especially as I found hints that one teacher's partner had downloaded an Office ISO and sniffed out our key).

It's been a while since I set it up, but I seem to remember that with VAMT you can just input the keys on the server and the clients (in theory) just check automatically.

[plexer]

The KMS server publishes entries in dns, kms aware apps such as windows 7 office 2012 use these to find the kms server.

Ben

[Hedghog]

The key (if you will excuse the pun) here is to have the server nominated in DNS as the KMS server running with a KMS B key.
For office you will need an addon for this server to run office KMS.
For activation to occur automatically you need at least 5 servers trying to activate or for office and win7/8 at least 25 clients trying to activate. For testing you may need to use the MAK key at first.
Another pitfall is that once you have passed the threshold with windows 7 and go to windows 8 you will need the minimum of 25 clients again. (I think this is the same for office 2010 and 2013)
I think that you can also use a windows 7 PC as the licence server as long as it is in DNS as the licence server.