
Microsoft, of all companies, continues to lead the way with
free and loose licensing terms around server virtualization software and multi-core processors. As of Oct 1, Windows Server Datacenter Edition operating system customers will have the right to run "an unlimted number of virtualized Windows Server instances". This policy applies to licenses covering new servers and previous licenses upgraded with new version rights. All told, it means that you pay to run Windows Server Datacenter Edition on a server with a set number of processors and can then divvy that box up with any combination of Windows Server Standard Edition, Enterprise Edition and/or Datacenter Edition without needing to count the number of virtual machines being created or pay for extra Windows Server licenses.
Member since:
2006-01-14
No MS doesnt have a monopoly on the server market. But using their dominance in desktop OS's and Office sales is illegal. However, server is so overpriced that they could argue that even with the price cuts that they arent undercutting the competition.
As for the change, its the only way they can insure that they get paid no matter what. Want to run half linux and half windows? Still costs the same now as running ALL windows. Costs even more is you run Linux as the base OS, since you will have to pay for each virtual server OS you run. This only saves you money if you are running all Windows OS's on a Windows virtual platform. Pretty tricky huh?