Evaluating Software Assurance

[March 23, 2015 note: A more recent version of this report, updated to reflect licensing changes, can be found at www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/licensing/secured/2015/03/benefits-software-assurance.]

Upcoming Windows, Office, and Exchange releases give companies a new reason to evaluate Software Assurance (SA), Microsoft’s subscription-based software maintenance plan. SA purchased with product licenses gives companies a discounted upgrade path to new versions, such as the upcoming Windows 7, Office 2010, Exchange 2010, and SharePoint Server 2010. SA also delivers technical support, training, and other benefits. However SA is not always the lowest-cost way to purchase upgrades, and companies have to carefully weigh the package of benefits it delivers against the cost of purchasing those same benefits a la carte.

Upgrades and Other Benefits

SA is Microsoft’s maintenance plan, and customers who want SA must add it to volume licenses at the time they are purchased or within a short time after the purchase. It provides the right to upgrade at any time to new product versions released during the term of coverage, typically two or three years (and renewable thereafter). SA is sold exclusively through volume licensing programs and is required by some programs, notably the Enterprise Agreement. (For more information about volume licensing programs, see the sidebar “Volume Licensing Programs“.) The SA annual fee is 29% of the original license price for desktop software and 25% for server-related licenses.