Exchange Server SE Licensing, Part II
Since posting my previous article about licensing and product keys in Exchange Server SE, I’ve received a ton of follow-up questions. Many of them were public, and I answered them publicly. Many were sent privately and answered privately, but I wanted to publicly share that information because I think it may generally be helpful. Discrepancies on Microsoft’s web site There were questions were about Microsoft’s https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/exchange/microsoft-exchange-server-licensing-licensing-overview, which talks about Server licenses and Client Access Licenses (CALs), but doesn’t mention anything about a subscription, or Software Assurance (SA), or cloud subscription licenses. If you look at the https://web.archive.org/web/20250309171415/https:/www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/exchange/microsoft-exchange-server-licensing-licensing-overview of that page (before Exchange Server SE was released) you’ll notice that the SE version is simply a copy and paste of Exchange Server 2019 version. I’ve said and written many times that licensing for Exchange Server SE is the same as it was for Exchange Server 2019, and that is a true statement. There were also questions about Microsoft’s https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/exchange/microsoft-exchange-licensing-faq-email-for-business, which still talks about Exchange Server 2019 licensing, and also fails to mention subscriptions or SA. So, how does my article reconcile with the information on Microsoft’s licensing pages? The answer is that, while Microsoft’s licensing pages are accurate, they are also incomplete because they don’t mention anything about a subscription, SA, or cloud licenses. The good news is that I’m told by Microsoft that they will be updating those pages with complete information (and perhaps consolidating them). I don’t have a timeline to share, but updates to those pages are coming. But I’m not sure those pages actually matter, given that the source of licensing truth is https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/terms/, which has three main areas: Product Terms that describe the license terms and Use Rights of Products and Services for VL programs; Other Documents related legal materials referenced in the Product Terms; and Licensing Resources, which are links to additional information. You can (and should) also review Microsoft’s https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/terms/product/ForallSoftware/all#clause-705-h3-1 (ULTs), which apply to all software products licensed through Microsoft Volume Licensing. Note that these may not be your only rights and the only terms to which you are bound. For example, SA grants additional rights and comes with additional terms. And your VL agreement may include additional rights and terms. One of the “code changes” in Exchange Server SE RTM was the updating of a rich text file that ships with Exchange Server. This file contains the Microsoft Software License Terms (MSLT), to which you must agree in order to install Exchange Server. The MSLT is displayed, however, only when using the GUI version of Setup. But you don’t need to run Setup to view the MSLT; the file—License.rtf—is localized in several languages in the Setup files under \Setup\ServerRoles\Common\Eula\<language>. Using the Trial Edition Beyond 180 days There were several questions about using a Trial Edition beyond 180 days after installing it. Microsoft’s ULTs explicitly https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/terms/product/ForallSoftware/all#clause-723-h3-1 that “An assigned product key is required for licensed use of the software.” It also talks about technical measures that Microsoft may use to enforce these terms, but as I mentioned in my previous article, Exchange Server implements product keys, but it does not implement any activation or validation of the software. The MSLT for Exchange Server SE states “If you do not have a product key, then Section 2 (Trial) applies to you.” Some (but not all) of Section 2 is shown below. Paragraph 2 of Section 2 makes it clear that the software rights are time-sensitive and limited to 180 days after installation (2a), that you may receive periodic reminders about this time limit (2b), and that you may not be able to access data when the license term ends (2c). The language in Section 2 is used in the MSLT for multiple products. In the case of Exchange Server SE, an admin will see a message in the Exchange admin center when the Trial period ends (as described in 2b), but the product remains fully functional, and data is fully accessible, contrary to the statements in 2c. More on License Terms Paragraphs 6 and 7 on Section 2 are also worth noting: Paragraph 6 states that Microsoft is not obligated to provide support for Trial Edition deployments. While Microsoft has no obligation to provide support, they will do so, even for Trial Editions. In fact, they likely won’t ask about licensing or product keys unless its germane to the support case (for example, you can’t mount more than 5 databases on a server because it is a Trial or Standard Edition). Paragraph 7 discusses software updates, which in the case of Exchange Server SE, includes CUs, SUs, HUs, and IUs. Exchange Server SE does not check for updates, does not download updates, and does not install updates. It does include the optional Exchange Emergency Mitigation service, but that applies mitigations and does not download updates. Exchange Server SE also includes Feature Flighting which will be used by Microsoft in the future to enable features or changes present in an update, but it won’t download or install those updates automatically. Windows Server has the ability to check for and install updates, and an Exchange admin can opt into these automatic updates which include Exchange Server SUs; however, it’s a best practice to control updates to Exchange Server by installing them manually or using controlled automation. If you do install an SU manually using the GUI, then you’ll see additional License Terms, as shown below, that state the license requirements for installing the SU. Based on the above License Terms, if you don’t have a valid license for Exchange Server SE, then you don’t have the right to install the SU. Again, though, Exchange Server uses the honor system, and there is nothing that blocks the install. Client Access Licenses and Management Licenses One of the three ways to allow users or devices to legally access Exchange Server SE is by using CAL or ML equivalency licenses (the other two ways are L+SA or Exchange Online licenses). CALs are used by a user or a device, and MLs are licenses that are used by management software. “Licensing software with CALs and MLs can be complicated due to the technical nature of server products and networks.” That’s a direct quote from Microsoft’s https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/product-licensing/client-access-license#tab-overview, and it’s very true. Microsoft has user CALs, device CALs, External Connector licenses, Server MLs for managing server operating systems (OSEs), OSE client MLs, user client MLs, and core-based licensing. Exchange Server SE (like SharePoint Server SE and Skype for Business Server SE) use the Server+CAL model (which is what the aforementioned Microsoft’s licensing pages are trying to convey). Microsoft also offers what are called CAL Suites, which is a single license that covers multiple products (e.g., one CAL that covers Exchange Server, SharePoint Server, Skype for Business Server, Windows Server, etc.). There is a Core CAL Suite and an Enterprise CAL Suite, and the Enterprise CAL Suite also includes licenses for online services such as Exchange Online Archiving for Exchange Server and Exchange Online Protection. If you have deployed on-premises and you do want to move to the cloud, Microsoft also offers CAL Suite Bridges, which is a subscription-based licensing path that moves you from L+SA to cloud subscription licenses. This is where things can get tricky when comparing licensing costs between on-premises and the cloud. Remember, cloud licensing is deployment-agnostic, so you can purchase cloud licenses and deploy solely on-premises. Ultimately, the most economical approach will depend on what you are buying and how much.Exchange Server SE Licensing and Product Keys
It seems that there’s a lot of confusion about licensing and product keys for Exchange Server SE; not just here on the Microsoft Tech Community, but also on Reddit, on LinkedIn, and in the general Exchange community. So, I thought I would write an article to try to clear up that confusion. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/exchange-server-se-licensing-product-keys-scott-schnoll-qjhic/ If you're confused about licensing or product keys, this may help.
