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EA to MCA and CSP: Costs and Risks May 8, 2026 Midsize customers are being forced out of Enterprise Agreements and steered toward Microsoft Customer Agreements...more Transitioning Microsoft 365 from an EA to an MCA Updated: April 24, 2026 Enterprise Agreement customers transitioning to Microsoft Customer Agreements will have to reassess how they license...more Transitioning Microsoft 365 from an EA to an MCA Updated: April 24, 2026 Enterprise Agreement customers transitioning to Microsoft Customer Agreements will have to reassess how they license...more Microsoft 365 Government: What’s in the Box? Updated: April 12, 2026 Microsoft 365 Government offers U.S. governmental organizations more regulatory compliance capabilities than Microsoft 365 commercial...more Azure: Know Reservations Updated: April 10, 2026 Azure reservations allow customers to reduce Azure costs in exchange for a one- or three-year...more EA to MCA: Spot Legal Traps Updated: March 18, 2026 Finding the Most Common Pain Points Comparing the EA contract stack (fig. 1) and the...more Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) Brings Discounts, Negotiation Leverage Updated: October 23, 2025 Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment is an agreement to spend a specified amount on Azure, typically...more Trust but Verify Your Data in Microsoft’s AI Services July 10, 2025 The Microsoft Generative AI Services clause explains Microsoft’s terms for customers using its AI services,...more Understanding Pricing: Consumption Versus Capacity April 10, 2025 For customers accustomed to on-premises licensing, aspects of Microsoft’s cloud pricing models can feel unfamiliar....more New License Rule for Contractor Access Updated: August 27, 2024 Contractors and other nonemployees who access an organization’s Microsoft systems face new licensing rules in...more Executive Focus: Negotiating Microsoft Licensing Agreements Updated: April 15, 2024 Licensing and negotiations favor Microsoft, but adopting the right approach allows customers to negotiate from...more Executive Focus: Understanding Microsoft Licensing Updated: January 22, 2024 Microsoft licensing challenges can increase business risk, impacting budgets, cash flow, and daily business activities....more Time to Walk Away from Some Microsoft Products Updated: June 2, 2023 Microsoft is dropping development, cutting support, and raising prices for many on-premises products. These dead-end...more Windows Client OS VDI Licensing Relaxed Updated: May 31, 2023 Windows 10 and 11 will cost less to license in some virtual desktop infrastructures. The...more Windows Server Licensing Head-to-Head for Azure Stack HCI Updated: May 31, 2023   Enterprise Agreement customers have four major options to license the Azure Stack HCI OS...more Software Assurance Support and Training Benefits Cut Updated: May 31, 2023 Some accrued Software Assurance benefits will be modified or eliminated starting in 2020. Planning and...more

Available Azure Reservations Updated: April 10, 2026

  Licensing Reference License Mobility Across Server Farms A SA (Software Assurance) benefit that permits licenses assigned to servers to be reassigned with...more   Licensing Reference Per Core License Model A license model used for SQL Server and BizTalk Server; use of the product is...more   Licensing Reference Per Core License Model Flowchart Flowchart + caption explains how to calculate the number of core licenses required for SQL...more   Licensing Reference License Mobility through Software Assurance A SA (Software Assurance) benefit associated with SQL Server and most other on-premises server applications...more   Licensing Reference Service Provider An organization that provides its customers access to offerings built (at least in part) on...more   Licensing Reference License Mobility through SA A SA (Software Assurance) benefit associated with SQL Server and most other on-premises server applications...more   Licensing Reference Authorized Mobility Partner A third-party service provider authorized by Microsoft to host certain server-based products on hardware under...more   Licensing Reference License Mobility Verification Form Records the type and quantity of SA-covered licenses being reassigned under License Mobility through SA...more   Licensing Reference Authorized Outsourcer A term describing all service providers, with the exception of the few labeled by Microsoft...more   Licensing Reference External User Qualification Requirements Chart + caption explain the criteria a contractor or agent working on behalf of a...more   Licensing Reference CAL Provides the right for a device or user to access all running instances of a...more   Licensing Reference Off-site Generally understood to mean anywhere other than the physical buildings an organization owns or leases...more   Licensing Reference Roaming Rights This SA (Software Assurance) benefit, associated with Office Professional Plus and other desktop applications licensed...more   Licensing Reference Tier Term sometimes used to distinguish between various levels of Azure branded services, with differences including...more   Licensing Reference License model Determines how a customer is charged for use of an on-premises Microsoft product by defining...more   Licensing Reference License Provides the legal right to install, run, access, or otherwise interact with a product.

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