Management Workloads Redefined

The definition of basic workloads for some System Center management products has expanded to include security workloads. This change is noteworthy because it can significantly lower licensing costs.

Servers managed by Configuration Manager, Data Protection Manager, and Operations Manager require one of two types of management licenses (MLs). A Standard ML licenses basic workloads such as file and print services, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), and Distributed Naming Service (DNS). An Enterprise ML, a superset of a Standard ML but almost three times as expensive, licenses the management of any workload, including server applications such as SAP Enterprise Resource Planning or SQL Server. As of Oct. 1, 2010, Microsoft expanded the definition of basic OS workloads for Configuration Manager, Data Protection Manager, and Operations Manager covered by the Standard MLs to include some applications that previously required the more expensive Enterprise ML.

The change allows current and earlier versions of the three products to manage security workloads, including firewall, proxy, intrusion detection and prevention, antivirus management, application security gateway, content filtering (which includes URL filtering and antispam), network forensics, security information management, and vulnerability assessment in order to safeguard the network and host.