Windows Server 2012 Basic Knowledge

Datacenter and Standard Editions

Q1. What is new in Windows Server 2012?

A: Windows Server 2012 brings our company’s experience building and operating public clouds to the server platform for private clouds. The new licensing and packaging makes it easier to manage workloads in highly virtualized public and private cloud environments. Windows Server 2012 will move to a consistent licensing model and will have common features enabling the reduction of editions. These include

 Two editions, Standard and Datacenter.

 Single licenses that cover up to two physical processors.

 Editions differentiated by virtualization rights only (two for Standard; unlimited for Datacenter)

Q2. What is the difference between Windows Server 2012 Standard edition and Windows Server 2012 Datacenter edition?

A: Both Standard and Datacenter editions provide the same set of features; the only thing that differentiates the editions is the number of Virtual Machines (VMs). A Standard edition license will entitle you to run up to two VMs on up to two processors (subject to the VM use rights outlined in the Product Use Rights document). A Datacenter edition license will entitle you to run an unlimited number of VMs on up to two processors.

Q3. Will Windows Server 2012 Standard edition have all of the same features as Windows Server 2012 Datacenter edition?

A: Yes. All features that are available in the Datacenter edition are also available in the Standard edition, including high availability features like failover clustering. The only difference between the two editions will be virtualization rights.

Q4. What are some of the features now available in Windows Server 2012 Standard that were previously only available in Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise and Datacenter editions?

A: There are a variety of new features in Windows Server 2012 Standard edition. Here are just a few examples of what was previously only available in the premium editions:

 Windows Server Failover Clustering

 BranchCache Hosted Cache Server

 Active Directory Federated Services

 Additional Active Directory Certificate Services capabilities

 Distributed File Services (support for more than 1 DFS root)  DFS-R Cross-File Replication

Q5. If I have a Windows Server 2012 Standard edition license, how can I increase my virtualization rights?

A: With the Windows Server 2012 Standard edition licensing model, you can grow your virtualization environment by either stepping up your license to Datacenter edition if you have Software Assurance, or by simply buying additional Standard edition licenses and assigning them to the same physical server. For example, if you have a 2-processor server and want to run a total of 4 VMs, you can purchase two Standard edition licenses and assign them to the same server. Additional examples are shown in the table below.

Q6. Why is Windows Server 2012 licensing moving to a processor model?

A: By making this change, Windows Server 2012, System Center 2012 and the Core Infrastructure Server (CIS) will all have consistent licensing model creating alignment across Microsoft infrastructure products. Having a single-licensing model will make it easier for you to buy the right product for your needs and to compare the cost of alternatives (such as individual products, the CIS SKU outside of ECI, ECI and so on). Additionally, the new licensing model provides a single, familiar, and easy-to-track metric for all infrastructure products further reducing management overhead.

Q7. How do I calculate the number of licenses I need for a server?

A: The number of licenses you will need depends on the number of physical processors on the server and the number of server instances that you will be running. (This only applies for Standard edition because Datacenter edition allows for unlimited VMs.) The larger of these two numbers determines the number of total licenses required.

Determining the number of physical processor licenses

Each license covers up to two physical processors, so to determine the number of licenses needed to fully license a physical server, simply count the number of physical processors in the server, divide that number by two and that tells you the number of licenses that will be needed.

Here are some examples:

 You have a 2-processor server. 2 physical processors / 2 (number of processors covered by a license) equals 1. You will need one license to cover a 2-processor server.

 You have a 4-processor server. 4 physical processors / 2 (number of processors covered by a license) equals 2. You will need two licenses to cover a 4-processor server.

 You have an 8-processor server. 8 physical processors / 2 (number of processors covered by a license) equals 4. You will need four licenses to cover an 8-processor server.

Determining the number of virtual instances running

If you want to run additional VMs but do not require the highly virtualized environment that Datacenter provides (which is unlimited VMs), then you can simply purchase additional Standard edition licenses and assign them to a single physical server to increase your VM entitlements on that server. Each Standard edition license provides you with the rights to run up to two VMs, so to determine the number of Windows Server Standard edition licenses you need, count the total number of total VMs that you will run on the server; divide that number by two, and round up to the nearest whole number.

For example, if you assign 2 Standard edition licenses to a single server, you will be able to run a total of 4 VMs on that server. If you add additional Standard edition licenses to that server the number of allowed VMs on that particular server will increase by two for a total of six VMs on that server.

Once the number of licenses needed to cover a physical processor and/or additional VMs is determined, the higher of those two numbers represents the total number of licenses required.

For example, if you are running 4 virtual machines on a 2-processor server, you will require 1 license to cover the 2 processors; but you will need an additional license to run 4 virtual machines, which means you will need a total of 2 licenses.

Q8. Can I use one Standard license to cover a 1-processor server?

A: Yes. The Standard edition license will allow you to license up to two physical processors on a single server; however it does not require that the server has two physical processors.

Q9. Can I split my Windows Server 2012 license across multiple servers?

A: No. Each license can only be assigned to a single physical server

Q10. Can I assign a Windows Server 2012 license to a virtual machine?

A: No. A license is assigned to the physical server. Each license will cover up to two physical processors.

Q11. Can I mix Datacenter and Standard licenses on the same server?

A: No. All of the processors on a given server must be licensed with the same version and edition. You can run different editions or older versions of Windows Server software as guests within VMs, but you are not allowed to assign multiple licenses of different versions or editions to the same physical server to license the processors on the server.

Q12. Can I attach another license of a different version or edition of Windows Server to increase my virtualization rights?

A: Yes, you can assign additional Windows Server licenses to a server to increase your virtualization rights. However the newly assigned licenses will need to adhere to their associated licensing rules. For example, if you have a Windows Server Enterprise edition license on a four processor server and want to attach Windows Server 2012 Standard edition licenses to increase your virtualization rights, you will need to ensure that all processors on that server are licensed with Windows Server 2012 Standard edition license as well, which will require a total of two Windows Server 2012 Standard licenses (as each license covers up to two processors).

Q13. If I want to use the bits from an earlier version or edition, what are my options?

A: If you have Windows Server 2012 Datacenter edition you will have the right to downgrade your bits to any prior version or lower edition. If you have Windows Server 2012 Standard edition, you will have the right to downgrade your bits to any prior version of Enterprise, Standard or Essentials editions. The ability to run downgrade bits does not change the licensing or support terms in which you can use the product; the purchased product (Windows Server 2012) rights apply. This means that the license will continue to cover two physical processors and the virtualization rights do not change. In addition, the Client Access License (CAL) corresponding to the purchased version will apply, as an exception, if you are running a previous version of one of the eligible downgrades you can use the corresponding CAL version if one exists. Here are a few examples:

Q14. Is Enterprise edition going away as part of Windows Server 2012 and why?

A: Yes. Enterprise edition will be retired as part of the Windows Server 2012 release. Windows Server 2012 Standard edition will include all the premium features previously included in Enterprise edition in the past and the price to purchase the rights to 4 instances of Windows Server 2012 will actually be less expensive than the price of Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise edition today. Due to these changes, we have been able to simplify the product lineup while reducing the price per instance of Windows Server for these customers.

Q15. Is Web Server going away as part of Windows Server 2012 and why?

A: Yes. The Web Server product was designed primarily for end customers and service providers that wanted to host web sites. However, consistent feedback from these customers and partners has been that they prefer to use an edition of Windows Server that does not restrict usage to running web workloads. Despite the removal of Web Server edition, web workloads running on a Windows Server 2012 edition will continue to receive the “CAL waiver” that is in effect for these workloads today. Windows Server 9 Updated as of April 12, 2013 CALs will not be required to access the licensed server if it is only being used to run web workloads. 

Essentials and Foundation Editions

Q1. What is Windows Server 2012 Essentials?

A: Windows Server 2012 Essentials is the latest version of Windows Small Business Server Essentials. It is a cloud enabled first server with an intuitive user interface. It can run on physical servers with up to two processors and has been designed for small businesses with up to 25 users.

Q2. What are some of the features that are now available in Windows Server 2012 Essentials?

A: Windows Server 2012 Essentials incorporates best-of-breed 64-bit product technologies to deliver a server environment well-suited for the vast majority of small businesses. The product technologies include:

 Windows Server 2012 operating system

 Data protection

 “Anywhere” access

 Health monitoring

 Workload flexibility

 Extensibility

 Add-ons for many small business solutions, including a connector to Office 365

Customers can use Windows Server 2012 Essentials as a platform to run critical line-of-business applications and other on-premises workloads. It can also provide an integrated management experience when running cloud-based applications and services, such as email, collaboration, online backup, and more.

Q3. What are the different editions available with Windows Server 2012 Essentials?

A: There is only one edition—Windows Server 2012 Essentials. It is a flexible offering that provides a platform for running on-premises or cloud-based workloads.

Q4. Will there be a next version of Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard?

A: No. Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard, which includes Exchange Server and Windows server component products, will be the final such Windows Server offering. This change is in response to small business market trends and behavior. The small business computing trends are moving in the direction of cloud computing for applications and services such as email, online back-up and line-of business tools. 

Reference: Windows Server 2012 Licensing Guide