Controlling Access to Office Web Apps and Project Server with ULE

SharePoint Server 2013’s User License Enforcement (ULE) feature can be used to control access to Project Server and Office Web Apps. Besides allowing SharePoint administrators to grant access to named users for either SharePoint’s core features only or SharePoint’s entire feature set, ULE can also be used to designate which users can access these two SharePoint-related technologies. However, while ULE may help some customers address Project Server-related licensing issues, it is unlikely to be of significant help with Office Web App licensing.

Project Server. Project Server, implemented as a SharePoint service application, makes use of SharePoint Enterprise Client Access License (ECAL)-level features. As a result, Project Server must be installed on a SharePoint server, or server farm, with ECAL-level features enabled. However, installing ECAL features on SharePoint 2007 or 2010 servers can trigger a requirement that customers license all users or devices in their organization with ECALs, even though perhaps just a fraction of the user base benefits from the features. With the introduction and use of ULE, customers licensed with User CALs can now potentially limit the number of required SharePoint ECALs when Project Server is deployed.