Along with the release of vSphere 4.1 VMware has announced a new per-VM licensing model that will take effect starting September 1, 2010:
VMware vCenter, AppSpeed, VMware vCenter Chargeback, and VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager will be sold in VM packs on a per VM basis starting on September 1, 2010. VMware vCenter Application Discovery Manager and VMware vCenter Configuration Manager are already licensed on both a per VM and physical server model. Per VM licensing for VMware vCenter CapacityIQ will take effect in the fourth quarter of 2010.
The minimum number of virtual machine licenses in a licensing pack is 25.
vCenter will continue to be priced per-Server.
Under the old model, you had to buy these products on a per-processor basis. That’s the way licensing on physical servers has traditionally worked, but it’s not always the best way to do things in the virtual world.
This change by VMware recognises the problems that per-processor licensing can cause for customers.
In theory, per-VM licensing gives customers more flexibility. But in practice, it can be complicated. You know how many processors you have on a system, and that’s a fixed number. But the number of VMs on one host — let alone throughout your entire infrastructure — is regularly in flux. How do you plan your purchasing around that? And how do you make sure you don’t violate your licensing terms?
You estimate your needs for the next year and buy licenses to meet those needs. Over the course of those 12 months, vCenter Server calculates the average number of concurrently powered-on VMs running the software. And if you end up needing more licenses to cover what you used, you just reconcile with VMware at the end of the year.