Managing software licenses has long been an important, if sometimes overlooked, task for IT, whether the department consists of one part-time administrator or a globally dispersed IT team reporting to a C-level executive.
Over time, the stakes in software compliance have risen as license types proliferate and grown more complex, especially as new open source licenses evolve. Software vendors are finding new tools for detecting violations—46% of software companies use network licensing to enforce compliance, up from 28% in 2009. Likewise, cloud computing is changing the licensing game—60% of software vendors expect to change licensing in some way in the next 24 months to adapt to the cloud.
In parallel, an explosion of malicious software targeting enterprise networks underscores the message to IT: Know what software is running on your network.
Traditionally, software compliance conjures up fears that massive purchases of new licenses will be required. However, compliance efforts also can optimize the use of software assets by assigning licenses to the people who need them most, a way of working smarter. Software license compliance also can save organizations money, not only avoiding damages for noncompliance, but also by eliminating or reallocating underused licenses.
Broad changes in enterprise software practices have created a situation in which IT can reframe software licensing into a process driven by best practices, giving IT the chance to bolster the business, not be perceived as a cost center. These trends include:
Virtualization makes it easy to replicate server images containing licensed software, risking non-compliance with licensing terms. IDC estimates that by 2014, 70% of server workloads will run on VMs.
Virtualization on the desktop makes license compliance more challenging. Windows 7 machines have the built-in capability to run XP applications in “Windows XP Mode,” creating licensing issues for XP apps. Likewise, Macintosh computers can run virtual versions of Windows apps, with similar compliance consequences.
The software licensing landscape is changing. Concurrent user pricing or usage-based models are becoming more common—and more complex. Meanwhile, the Business Software Alliance (BSA) and Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) still aggressively push license compliance. The SIIA offers up to a $1 million reward for reports of software piracy within an enterprise and statutory damages can run as high as $150,000 for each program copied.
Pirated or unlicensed software—particularly software downloaded from the Internet—can carry another cost: Malicious code. For instance, 59 percent of the counterfeit software or software key generators downloaded from peer-to-peer sites contained malicious code that could lead to identity theft or other security breaches.
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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Best Practices for Software License Compliance
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Partnering with Dell KACE to Implement Best Practices
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