Downgrades Are Key to Microsoft License Compliance

Under certain circumstances, customers who acquire a license for a particular product version and edition for on-premises use may deploy an earlier version or different edition in its place. These licensing rules, called downgrade rights, vary by sales channel where the license was purchased and by the particular product line, including which specific version and edition was licensed. Organizations that understand downgrade rights as well as other rules associated with product versions and editions can minimize risk by avoiding common license compliance issues and save money by averting unnecessary license purchases.

This report covers downgrade rules for traditional on-premises software; Microsoft-hosted online services such as Office 365 and related client-side subscription software, such as Office 365 ProPlus subscriptions to the Office suite, are governed by a different and generally more restrictive set of downgrade rules. (Originally published Dec. 31, 2012, this report has been updated to reflect rules for the most recent Microsoft on-premises products.)