Windows Server 2012 License Grants Under SA

Customers with Software Assurance (SA) on Windows Server (WS) 2008 R2 licenses will receive grants to comparable WS 2012 licenses, but not always at a one-to-one ratio. To qualify, SA must be active as of Sept. 2012, the expected date of WS 2012 general availability.

Standard. Standard edition customers will receive one WS 2012 Standard license for each WS 2008 R2 Standard license covered by SA. While a single WS 2008 R2 Standard license covers a server, a single WS 2012 Standard license covers a pair of processors in a server. Customers running WS 2008 R2 Standard on computers with more than two processors will be able to claim additional WS 2012 Standard licenses to cover those processors; however, the customer will have to use tools such as the Microsoft Assessment and Planning tools to document the configuration of those computers in a timely manner, and file that report carefully so it will be available to prove that they are entitled to the additional licenses if they are audited in the future.