We recently completed an engagement with a large Service Provider who had just acquired another large SPLA hosting company. The combined monthly SPLA bill was massive but over time we were able to reduce it by 40%.
How did we do it? Leveraging modern tools and expert analysis, Altaris Cloud began the work of collecting usage data, consolidating, and then optimizing the two environments. Some examples include:
Host level hardware optimization
The consolidation of physical hosts where there was capacity to reduce the number of Windows Server licenses
SQL Server instance metering and deep dives to determine necessary functionality (core allocation, clustering, log shipping)
SQL Server version modernizing that opened the door for cheaper editions
Contract analysis and updating to not only determine but also assign license responsibility
The last point here is important, and I want to elaborate. The service provider was making assumptions that in some cases their customers didn’t own licenses they could leverage in the service provider’s environment and so the service provider reported the software under SPLA. In other cases they assumed the opposite without the proper documentation and contractual language in place putting them and their customer at risk for violating SPLA License Mobility rules.
Our analysis and the monthly reports we deliver to our License Management customers map individual client usage to their software consumption. We discovered in many cases – as just one example - that the end customer was consuming SQL Enterprise but only being billed by the Hoster for SQL Standard. Not only could that have resulted in a very expensive Microsoft audit outcome for the Service Provider, but they were also leaving money on the table.
They were not billing their customers as much as they were entitled to.
The outcome of this engagement not only lowered their SPLA spend by 40% but also increased their billings by 12%. Now they are fully compliant and more profitable.
This is just one example of a thrilled Altaris client. If this scenario sounds familiar to you, contact us and we’d be happy to review your unique situation. We can proudly provide relevant references.
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Your Microsoft Licensing Experts at Altaris Cloud