License management service

Transcription

1 License management service Service definition License Management Service is a service provided by HP Software Licensing & Management Solutions, which allows enterprise customers to effectively monitor and manage their software assets while enabling them to be compliant. HP Software Licensing and Management Solutions (SLMS) is a division of Hewlett Packard Services. Service goals The License Management Service (LMS) empowers key decision makers with the knowledge to make informed decisions. The aim of the service is to close the loop on Software License Management by combining physical, financial and contractual data to enable the delivery of more cost-effective and improved IT business solutions. Cost control and reduction will result where licenses are properly managed, controlled and redeployed by using LMS. Reduced risks associated with software license compliance are a result of the added control. The License Management Service enables Best Practice in the use of software licenses. Contractual License compliance RFP preparation & review Negotiations Contract maintenance Supplier management Physical Inventory management Version tracking License tracking Usage monitoring Refresh & retirement Financial Procurement Budget Cost control Charge-out

2 Effective asset management is the key to unlocking the savings at the desktop and, therefore, worth the cost. Gartner Service benefits HP License Management Service allows organizations to: Understand what is installed, including full hardware and software inventory Understand what the enterprise is licensed for, with provisioning of software purchase history Match software licenses to physical installations Have the information easily available to remove inefficiencies Re-assign unused licenses, reducing license fee costs Easily access monthly updated reports Benefit from savings after a comparatively short implementation cycle Reduce wasted effort where a snapshot audit was previously done Continue software recognition and license consolidation Control who is installing and removing software Monitor and enforce business processes HP works closely with the software vendors to ensure that HP is aware of any proposed changes in licensing policies. Links have been developed with the major software vendors to establish relationships between HP and our software suppliers. These relationships are imperative and ensure that HP systems support new policies as soon as they are released. HP s team includes experts who deal with day-to-day issues relating to software licensing policy, and these experts work closely with industry analysts such as Gartner and also with the software vendors to ensure that information is current. While enforcing strict terms and conditions on their customers, the software vendors may not provide you the same level of support if you are found to abuse their software usage rights. Customers are faced with the challenge of ensuring their users not only understand these usage rights, but are also kept up to date with changes made by the software vendors. Complexities include: Price lists containing a large amount of license part items Differing terminology in describing license types, sometimes incomprehensible part descriptions and regularly changing part numbers Complex contract terms and End User License Agreements (EULA) that change with different software release versions Contracts that are renewed regularly Upgrade Advantage and software maintenance involving complex schedule tracking HP has relationships with the major organizations involved in the software industry, such as: BSA The Business Software Alliance is the driving force in the fight against software piracy. HP is a policy member of BSA. FAST HP is an industry member of the Federation of Software Theft. SIIA HP is an active member of the Software & Information Industry Association.

3 Service architecture HP provides the tools and expertise to manage hardware and software assets by initially gathering two key items of information. License Management is only possible with the standardization of: 1) Hardware & software inventory Hardware and software inventory is gathered from the customer environment using HP-recommended tools. HP also works with customers who have already deployed their own inventory tools. The recognition and reporting of the inventory is standardized as part of LMS. Key deliverables Summary reporting Reporting is the key deliverable of the License Management Service. Reporting is provided via WebView, a secure web-based application. Information includes physical software installations and license summaries for each customer location. The level of detail provided matches exactly the requirements of the software vendor product description, version and language. Efficiencies provided by LMS will be evident from the day HP manages your licenses and inventory. From the LMS Summary Report it is possible to drill down to the supporting detail, allowing you to find a specific software installation on a specific machine. Key decision makers in each location are able to track when and where software is installed. This information is required to find where software applications can be removed from users and where there is no longer a need for a license, to free unused licenses for reuse. Managing licenses HP manages, under instruction from a customerdesignated Software Manager, the transfer of license assets from location to location in accordance with the terms of the software vendors contractual agreement. A historical record is kept of every license asset split or re-assignment. All license assets can be tracked back to the source agreement, thus complying with the software vendors terms. This is a critical part of correctly managing software license assets, a complexity often misunderstood by organizations. Spare software licenses can be kept and maintained for later deployment. HP provides the expertise in recommending possible upgrade paths, enabling redeployment of existing software licenses. 2) Software licenses HP assists you in setting standards for gathering historical license purchase information. It is important to set up internal workflow processes to ensure that future license purchases are captured on an ongoing basis. The way license information is described in purchasing systems and the software vendors price lists differs from the way it is described by the inventory collection tools. LMS works smarter in this respect, in order to standardize these descriptions and import license records from different customer environments via gateways. HP will assist your organization to ensure this is done in accordance with the standards required by software vendors and their representative organization, the BSA. Once license purchase information is obtained, it is managed on HP s License Management system, LM-Center. Licenses managed on LM-Center are never lost or wasted, and spare licenses can be pooled and reutilized. HP s License Management Service Center provides advice prior to redeployment where upgrades are required to reutilize out-ofdate licenses.

4 common methods are a standard upgrade license, Microsoft Upgrade Advantage, and other software maintenance offerings. Whichever route is taken, the new license rights must be matched with the original license purchased. HP has tackled this key issue by ensuring that LM-Center is capable of maintaining and matching these records, and that HP provides the skills to create and maintain them. LMS reports what you are licensed for, not just what licenses you own. License purchase history Gathering historic purchase information can seem a daunting prospect for any organization that has not maintained its records centrally. Even for enterprises who have maintained this critical data, understanding how it can then be used effectively requires a high level of expertise. HP offers this expertise as part of the standard LMS offering. HP recognizes the need to track license purchases throughout the organization which may cover: Boxed product purchased either by the individual end user or through a local low-value order. Local agreements with local small suppliers. This may again be a boxed product or a small license package, such as Microsoft Open License or other small licensing programs offered by software publishers. Volume license agreement with a VAR, LAR or directly with the Independent Software Vendor (ISV). Enterprise Coverage Agreements. HP maintains the highest level of records already, such as Microsoft Enterprise Licenses, but others may exist. Common examples include Winzip and Adobe Acrobat. Capturing future license purchases HP will assist your organization in improving internal business process, enabling future license purchase to be reported to HP for inclusion into LMS. HP can also provide an end-to-end license management solution, thereby extending the scope of services to include software license acquisition services. License consolidation Typically, software is upgraded over a period of time, thereby bringing license complexities inherent in software vendors upgrade methods. Some Software recognition LMS uses leading application-recognition technology, which utilizes algorithms to analyze file relationships and provide accurate recognition and version information. Applications are recognized using a smart combination of internal file signatures and file size to ensure nothing is missed. Sophisticated suite license management reconciles products into their respective suite format, such as Microsoft Office, Office Pro and Lotus SmartSuite. Regular updates to the application recognition library ensure accuracy of the data. Customer in-house developed software and specialist applications can be added to the recognition dictionary, so that they are recognized and identified as required. Closing the loop on software licensing The availability of both software inventory and software license information facilitates an analysis of license compliance as part of the standard service offering from HP. While license compliance will always remain the responsibility of your organization, LMS ensures that you are empowered to make informed decisions on the state of software usage at any time. LMS expertise is provided remotely from the License Management Service Center for the duration of the contract. 1. Hardware and software inventory is done using automated scanning software licensed by HP. A number of software choices are available, and HP chooses the scanning software best suited to the customer s network environments. Inventory is typically done on a monthly basis. 2. Inventory consolidation collects the scan files within the customer firewall on an available PC or server. 3. License purchase records are collected electronically from the customer purchasing points. Where licenses are purchased through HP, the process is automatic. 4. License Management Center consolidates inventory and license records in one location. This information is transferred through the customer s and HP s firewalls. 5. Software recognition is performed using HP s software knowledge center of expertise. HP ensures that product descriptions are in a standard format. Any in-house applications can also be recognized.

5 environment and that the provided reporting meets the service objectives. Ongoing service Once the service is implemented and the workflow processes are functioning, day-to-day service is maintained from HP s License Management Center. HP produces standard monthly reporting for the duration of the contract. HP provides, maintains and supports all software utilized in the provision of the LMS service. This includes ongoing upgrades to maintain the service to the highest standards. 6. License consolidation is done by HP using a license library database and expertise provided by licensing experts. It is important to know what you are licensed for, not just what licenses you own. 7. Information is provided by LMS WebView, a secure web-based application. LMS WebView includes ad-hoc search capability, both summary and detail reports, exports and the ability to update license purchases and agreements. 8. Key decision makers in customer organizations are able to utilize LMS WebView to make timely decisions relative to software license management, as well as hardware asset management. Service delivery methodology The License Management Service project is divided into three main tasks to include Discovery Workshop, implementation and ongoing service. Discovery Workshop The Discovery Workshop is facilitated by HP. HP requires customer-specific information, which serves as input into the service agreement and project methodology, and will create a Statement of Work to define technical methodology, key deliverables, roles & responsibilities and project rollout schedule. Implementation An HP Project Manager will work with your organization throughout the implementation of LMS. This work is included in the overall service offering, as detailed within the scope of the agreed Statement of Work. The implementation includes an initial pilot and evaluation phase before the full rollout commences. The pilot will ensure the tools have no impact on your HP s LMS provides you with the information your organization needs to become license compliant. If you find you are not compliant, the service aims to provide information on where non-compliance has occurred. Legal compliance still remains the customer s responsibility. HP will provide the reports to advise of software license deficiencies, based on the information gained from the inventory collected and license information provided. Service charge The standard License Management Service is contracted over three years and charged yearly in advance. The charge is based on the number of licensed PC s, laptops and servers ( seats ) managed. Price breaks are available where considerable volumes of seats are managed. Billing in local currency is available where required. The service charge incorporates all the skills and tools required to implement and maintain the service. This includes project management, technical skills and the licensing costs (unless otherwise agreed) of the inventory scanning and backend asset management tools required to deliver the service.

6 License management service Optional services LMS metering optimize software usage: LMS metering provides detailed information about how your software assets are being used. With LMS you can monitor application usage, find software usage patterns, and control application launches all of which can help you make better decisions about your IT investments. Determine actual software usage patterns. Compare to software contracts, ensuring you pay only for the software you really need. Provide information to allow customers to find and remove software applications that are not being used, saving licensing and maintenance costs. Monitor application launches and aid compliance with concurrent license agreements. Lease, warranty & maintenance management: This option dynamically manages the contractual aspects of leasing and rental of IT assets, including standard contracts, amendments, amortization schedules, list of assets, payment schedules and special conditions. Several contractual documents can be produced automatically, including incoming and outgoing inspection reports, and replacement or cancellation requests. Returning, updating and renewing equipment are critical aspects of rental and leasing contracts. Any error or delay can lead to significant financial penalties. Around 30% of leased assets are returned to the leaser with more processing capability than originally leased! LMS allows companies to check that the configurations returned are identical to those acquired, without the multiple upgrades that may have been added (such as memory, disks or boards). You can even define a Workflow or Wizard to lead you through the process of equipment return and replacement. LMS also warns users when contracts are about to expire, avoiding potential penalties for failure to return leased assets on time and in original condition. LMS assists the financial aspects of the leasing process by including a wide range of methods for calculating terms, thereby providing solutions to the complex and quickly-evolving situation specific to each company. As a decision support tool, lease management lets you simulate various financing methods and select the most pertinent option. Management of warranty and maintenance contracts allows you to optimize service quality and expenditure. Better warranty management means knowing which IT assets are covered under warranty and maximizing the contract value. Linking contracts with asset tracking data ensures the efficiency from leasing, software and service provider contracts, helps you avoid paying maintenance on assets that are no longer in use and potentially eliminates legal costs. Cost management: Cost management is a financial analysis and control module that offers control of expense information. It allows you to accurately track all the costs related to each asset, including expenses related to both capital and operations e.g. consumables, work orders, training expenses and to directly measure the total cost of ownership for each asset. Cost tracking is performed in an environment that supports multiple currencies and is therefore ready to meet the requirements of multi-national corporations and organizations that need to support the Euro. Costs related to assets are automatically charged to the appropriate cost center, according to customer defined settings. Additionally, the cost of an asset can be shared by multiple cost centers, providing accurate cost analysis for shared assets. Microsoft, Microsoft Office and Office Pro are trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice and is provided as is without warranty of any kind. www. hp.com/software/slms EN