Forum Discussion
M365 Licensing for small retail store
I have a client who is a small retail store, using generic email addresses based on department, as opposed to individual users. Looking for the best way to license for Office Desktop Apps.
Scenario:
Front counter - 2 x PC's and both need access to generic email address sales@
Back office - 1 x PC needs access to generic email address admin@
For us to have Office on these machines, using M365 is the correct way:
Option 1:
Front Counter:
- Create Business Standard License and email address sales@
- Install Office on both machines, as Business Standard gives up to 5 copies of Office
Back Office:
- Create Business Standard License and email address admin@
- Install Office on both machines, as Business Standard gives up to 5 copies of Office
Option 2:
- Create 3 x Business Standard licenses, one for each PC - although the associated email addresses will never be used and be hidden
- Create a shared mailbox sales@ and admin@
- Assign permissions for shares mail boxes as needed - the shared mailbox would need to be the default Send From email addresses
I am getting conflicting advice - Option 1 is not legal as the mailboxes are not actual people, and Option 2 seems clunky
Business does not want to purchase once off copies of Office due to wanting to pay monthly...
Welcome people's thoughts.
1 Reply
Under Microsoft 365 licensing requirements, each Business Standard license must be allocated to a specific, named user. Assigning licenses directly to shared or generic mailboxes is not permitted. The compliant approach is therefore Option 2: provision individual user accounts (one per PC/user) with the appropriate licenses, and configure shared mailboxes (e.g., sales@, admin@) for departmental use. This model maintains licensing compliance while enabling multiple staff members to access and send messages from the shared addresses.
About shared mailboxes - Microsoft 365 admin | Microsoft Learn
Understand subscriptions and licenses in Microsoft 365 for business | Microsoft Learn