EES license

[zag]

So I'm a little confused.

 

We have been sposored by microsoft for many years but that sponsorship has now run out. We "own" the licenses we already have under a "select 6" agreement. This includes Server 2008 R2, cals, and Office 2010 professional.

 

So now I am looking to get the new Microsoft servers and a few other things. What do I need to buy?

 

I've got a quote for the EES agreement relating to how many full time staff we have, what does that license actually include if we buy it?

[Boredguy]

Windows 7 Enterprise Upgrade (with software assurance so you can put Win 8 on now as well), Office 2010 (with SA too) and a bunch of cals which vary if you go for core or enterprise. See Microsoft UK Education - Types of Educational Licence - EES for full breakdown.

[witch]

Spooky - I have just this minute heard from Civica that the LA have terminated their licensing agreement with microsoft and I am not sure where this leaves me. Why they didnt tell us I really dont know.

We are unlikely to make any big purchases in the next few years as the IT suite and netbooks are all Windows 7 and Office 2010 and I have a new Server 2008R2, and so I dont think EES is going to be the way forward for us.

I really dont understand all this and have no idea which is the right way for us. Any advice gratefully accepted

[CyberNerd]

Sub question:

Given that EES covers licenses for MSOffice - how does this now square with th Office 365 'A3' plan?

Compare Office 365 Plans and Pricing for Schools - Office 365

 

Do you pay EES for Office and then pay again with the A3 plan?

[AngryTechnician]

When Office 365 was launched I was told by a Microsoft rep that there would be preferential pricing for EES customers. We don't have a paid plan, so I don't know if that actually is the case, but hopefully someone else can verify.

[zag]

Windows 7 Enterprise Upgrade (with software assurance so you can put Win 8 on now as well), Office 2010 (with SA too) and a bunch of cals which vary if you go for core or enterprise. See Microsoft UK Education - Types of Educational Licence - EES for full breakdown.

 

So basically I get nothing extra (we are already licensed for windows 7 and office 2010).

 

I dont care about the steaming failure that will be Windows 8

 

What I do care about though is the server 2012 licenses. How much are these?

Edited October 10, 2012 by zag

[localzuk]

So basically I get nothing extra (we are already licensed for windows 7 and office 2010).

 

I dont care about the steaming failure that will be Windows 8

 

What I do care about though is the server 2012 licenses. How much are these?

 

Datacenter 2 processor - £175ish

Enterprise - doesn't exist any more

Standard - £30ish I believe

[Boredguy]

If you have sufficent licences for your current devices then it won't be worth moving over, but when you get round to your next upgrade cycle it might be worth looking then, as the cost will be on number of staff over 200 hrs of computer use instead of number of computers (which for us was a saving of thousands last year). Only downside is the annual payment, but even so it meant that after 3 years we're still quids in compared to buying the same licenses via select last year.

[FN-GM]

When Office 365 was launched I was told by a Microsoft rep that there would be preferential pricing for EES customers. We don't have a paid plan, so I don't know if that actually is the case, but hopefully someone else can verify.

 

For education Office 365 is free

[tmcd35]

I'm not convinced that Server licences are worthwhile under EES. I'm looking at going into EES next year for desktop licences but sticking with Academic Select for server. I can't see us wanting to upgrade our server OS often enough to make the annual subscriptions affordable.

 

Datacenter 2 processor - £175ish

Enterprise - doesn't exist any more

Standard - £30ish I believe

 

Those prices look about right for what I was paying under our LEA held Academic Select Agreement. We are looking at becoming an Academy and I've just received a quote for us as a standalone legal entity separate from the LEA. Prices were closer to £90 for standard and £500 for Datacenter.

[CyberNerd]

For education Office 365 is free

 

Not entirely: Compare Office 365 Plans and Pricing for Schools - Office 365

[localzuk]

I'm not convinced that Server licences are worthwhile under EES. I'm looking at going into EES next year for desktop licences but sticking with Academic Select for server. I can't see us wanting to upgrade our server OS often enough to make the annual subscriptions affordable.

 

Those prices look about right for what I was paying under our LEA held Academic Select Agreement. We are looking at becoming an Academy and I've just received a quote for us as a standalone legal entity separate from the LEA. Prices were closer to £90 for standard and £500 for Datacenter.

 

Part of the thing with EES is lack of hassle - you just give a number, and pay the price yearly. No having to handle multiple license types.

[CyberNerd]

Part of the thing with EES is lack of hassle - you just give a number, and pay the price yearly. No having to handle multiple license types.

 

Except for the things it doesn't cover, like non-upgrade licenses.

[tonyd]

EES can look like an amazing deal when viewed in the right light. If you are paying thousands per year for antivirus, web and mail filtering, then by switching to the MS options bundled with EES (I believe Enterprise is needed for mail filtering) then you can effectively pay for EES in the savings made by not paying for these elsewhere. In effect, you pay MS for your protection and then get free access to the latest Office and Windows! If you are in the position where these services are supplied by a local learning grid, then they may not be happy about un-bundling them, in which case you may be able to save again by switching to a non-LEA ISP.

[localzuk]

Except for the things it doesn't cover, like non-upgrade licenses.

 

Not come across anything it doesn't cover yet! What doesn't it cover?

[zag]

EES can look like an amazing deal when viewed in the right light. If you are paying thousands per year for antivirus, web and mail filtering, then by switching to the MS options bundled with EES (I believe Enterprise is needed for mail filtering) then you can effectively pay for EES in the savings made by not paying for these elsewhere. In effect, you pay MS for your protection and then get free access to the latest Office and Windows! If you are in the position where these services are supplied by a local learning grid, then they may not be happy about un-bundling them, in which case you may be able to save again by switching to a non-LEA ISP.

 

I still don't get why anyone pays 1000's for antivirus, when there are perfectly good free clients available! Managed anti virus is such a con.

[localzuk]

I still don't get why anyone pays 1000's for antivirus, when there are perfectly good free clients available! Managed anti virus is such a con.

 

Name a free client that is free for schools to use... AVG isn't, Avast isn't, Avira doesn't appear to be, MSE isn't...

[tmcd35]

Part of the thing with EES is lack of hassle - you just give a number, and pay the price yearly. No having to handle multiple license types.

 

True, but I have Scottish blood! Rather not pay more than we have to and Server licensing, as far as I can work out, is more expensive under EES. EES on the desktop though seems a no brainer. AV and Config Center are the icing on the cake

 

I still don't get why anyone pays 1000's for antivirus, when there are perfectly good free clients available! Managed anti virus is such a con.

 

Not aware of any that are free for commercial use? I'm pretty certain the EULA for all the free AV packages I've seen are for domestic home use only.

[alan-d]

For a rough guide on EES costs this is from a recent quote I had. Obviously there will be some slight variations so use as a ball-park figure.

 

1 microsoft DsktpEdu ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc Ent x 100 £37.27each = £3,727.00

2 microsoft ExchgSvrStd ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP x 1 £43.22 each = £43.22

3 microsoft SharePointSvr ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP x 1 £300.83 each = £300.83

4 microsoft SQLSvrStdCore ALNG LicSAPk OLV 2Lic E 1Y Acdmc APCoreLic x 2 £218.86 each = £437.72

5 microsoft SysCtrDPMSvrMLEnt ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP x 4 £26.34 each = £105.36

6 microsoft SysCtrDPMSvrMLStd ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP x 12 £9.59 each = £115.08

7 Microsoft WinSvrDataCtr ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP 2Proc x 4 £176.20 each = £704.80

8 Microsoft WinSvrStd ALNG LicSAPk OLV E 1Y Acdmc AP 2Proc x 5 £29.17 each = £145.85

TOTAL: £ 5,579.86

[witch]

I am still at a loss to know what to do given that we have a new server and almost all clients are windows 7 and office 2010 already. If I was buying under an LA licence, and that has stopped, is EES my only choice?

[Edu-IT]

How many clients do you have?

[localzuk]

I am still at a loss to know what to do given that we have a new server and almost all clients are windows 7 and office 2010 already. If I was buying under an LA licence, and that has stopped, is EES my only choice?

 

No, you can just buy under Select from any license reseller.

[CyberNerd]

Not come across anything it doesn't cover yet! What doesn't it cover?

 

Well from the article it provides updrade win7 licenses for desktops rather than full licenses - so presumably you need to pay extra for machines that don't come with windows licenses installed by the manufacturer. For machines that do come with windows licenses from the manufacturer, you already own the license so you pay for it again through EES. To quote " EES on the desktop though seems a no brainer" - I don;t think so. It only makes sense for MSOffice, not for windows - even then it only works if you upgrade irregularly and don't plan on any form of home access.

[glen_j]

microsoft volume licensing has always provided an upgrade os for desktop and not a full version. this is nothing new to ees, you don't need to pay more for machines without a license in fact if you were to try and use kms to activate those machines it would fail as the wouldn't have the oem os flag set in the bios.

[tmcd35]

I am still at a loss to know what to do given that we have a new server and almost all clients are windows 7 and office 2010 already. If I was buying under an LA licence, and that has stopped, is EES my only choice?

 

I'm getting confused, let's start again from the beginning

 

You already have Win7 and Office 2010 licences bought under an Academic Select agreement held by your LEA? The LEA agreement has ended and they are not renewing it? You are an LEA maintained school?

 

If all that is correct, forget EES. You are already licensed. So long as you remain an LEA maintained school then the licenses you have already bought will remain in effect. All that has changed is you can not buy additional licences through your LEA. Where EES will come into play is when you want to upgrade to Windows 8 or Windows 9 and Office 2018 (or whatever), then EES would probably be a better deal than buying all new Academic Select licences.

 

Now for your new server. It's not worth signing up to EES just for 1 server license. You can't buy a new license from your LEA. So you have to buy that from someone else. The question is are you upgrading the Server OS, say Server 2003 to Server2008R2, or are you just upgrading the server hardware and leaving the existing OS version (maybe you are already on 2008R2?).

 

If you are upgrading the OS to a later version then you will almost certainly need to buy CAL's for all your existing machines. In this case contact Pug or Phoenix or other license reseller and sign up a new Academic Select license for the school to purchase these on, again not worth looking at EES just for this.

 

If you are sticking with your existing OS then ask your server supplier to include the correct server OS with the hardware and use the downgrade rights if you are staying with 2003 server.