Forum Discussion
Clarification on Server 2022 Standard vs Datacenter licensing
Buying a DataCenter license to run only four VMs would be cost prohibitive. Simpler and more cost effective to license all the cores (16) twice for four virtual machines.
Some general info
- Each host needs to be licensed.
- A minimum of 8 core licenses is required for each physical processor and a minimum of 16 core licenses is required for each server.
- Core licenses are sold in packs of two.
- Standard Edition provides rights for up to 2 Operating System Environments or Windows Servers containers with Hyper-V isolation when all physical cores in the server are licensed. For each additional 1 or 2 VMs, all the physical cores in the server must be licensed again.
- DataCenter Edition provides rights for unlimited Operating System Environments or Windows Servers containers with Hyper-V isolation when all physical cores in the server are licensed.
danm190 just checking if there's any progress or updates? please don't forget to mark helpful replies.
Dave Patrick Hello Dave,
So yes, I can see that the Datacenter version would not be cost effective.
So say I buy three Windows 2022 Standard (16 core) versions. I can run SIX Windows VM's and I can use the three Windows 2022 Standard product keys for install on all six Windows Server VM's?
Do I have it correct?
Yes, that is correct assuming the host has no more than 16 cores.
- Nope... just 16 cores... I understand I would need more licenses if I added a second CPU.
Thanks for the clarification!You're quite welcome.