Licensing is a complex subject and to be honest it’s not one that I talk about much because it’s a complex discipline in and of it’s own and there’s too much fun stuff to talk about in the client and cloud world. This document, Licensing Windows 7 for Use with Virtual Machine Technologies tells you all you need to know about licensing with Software Assurance and Windows 7 on Virtual Machines. Such nuggets as if you have Volume Licensing, an SA and the Windows 7 Professional Upgrade License (Volume Licensing Upgrade License) or Windows 7 Enterprise then you can run 4 virtual copies of Windows 7 on a server or desktop, just like this:
What’s more there’s a great FAQ in the document, some of which is worth calling out:
If I install and run four additional copies of the operating system, do I have to use Windows 7 Enterprise as the host operating system?
No. You may use prior versions of Windows, including Windows Vista Business and Windows XP Pro. In addition to third-party product to host the four virtual machine environments, Volume Licensing customers have some flexibility in how they can deploy Windows 7 in their organizations. As a benefit of Software Assurance coverage for Windows desktops, customers may leverage virtualization use rights. This use right allows running the software in up to four local virtual machines. While a customer’s right to use Windows 7 Enterprise may survive the expiration of their Software Assurance coverage, the Virtualization Use Right does not.
Can I store my virtual machine in a .vhd file on removable storage media and open the .vhd file on another PC?
Yes, as long as both PCs are licensed for Windows VECD and are not already running more than three copies of the software.
Can other users remotely access virtual machines that I’m not using on my PC while I’m using my PC?
No. The use of the software is limited to one user at any given time.
How do I license my employee and contractor owned PCs so that they have access to my centralized desktop PC environment?
Employee- and contractor-owned devices can be licensed with Windows VECD, which enables them to remotely access your centralized desktop PC environment. Additionally, for devices with a pre-assigned Windows 7 Professional license, they may run the permitted instances locally in a virtual machine on the Windows VECD licensed device.
Go grab the document here (email it to your Licensing dude if you aren’t a licensing dude) and learn about Desktop Virtualisation
A very nice chap just wrote to Rachel asking for help with a problem* I think a few other people must have experienced so often so I thought I’d share how to fix it. I just hope I’ve got it right from the problem description. When clicking a link in an application, like your email program, you get an error that says “Application not found” and Internet Explorer doesn’t kick in to handle the link. Basically Internet Explorer isn’t known to the PC as the default browser and nor is anything else so you get the error. It’s simple to fix:
In Windows 7
Click Start and type default programs into the search, then select Set your default programs.
Then from the list select your broswer and click Set this program as default
Next select Set program access and computer defaults, select your browser under Choose a default web browser and click OK
That should sort things out.
If you’re on XP, it’s just a little different:
Then you should be fixed.
*people often writer to Rachel with problems, some of them are unprintable but she appreciated them all
A few weeks ago @deepfat and I ventured to the underground lair that is Churchills war rooms and listened to the story ouselves direct from a partner, Inframon. Well the videos are now online and I especially like this one about our private cloud vision. Take a look, enjoy, it’s just like you were there…without the bomb proofing and lack of phone signal…unless you live in a bomb proof bunker in which case best of luck to ya!
If you want to check out the rest, then they’re just here:
War on Cost event: Attack the Costs and Complexity of managing mobile devices in your enterprise War on Cost event: Microsoft Private Cloud Story War on Cost event: Microsoft Keynote - Desktop and Security Convergence War on Cost event: Keynote from Gordon McKenna, CEO at Inframon
War on Cost event: Microsoft keynote - Datacenter to the Cloud War on Cost event: Heterogenous Management with Operations Manager 2007 War on Cost event: Operations Manager R2 and V.Next War on Cost event: Service Manager - the Better Together Story War on Cost event: System Center Configuration Manager v.Next Highlights War on Cost event: Datacenter IT Process Automation (Opalis)
Rooting around in the details of things that we’ve published recently and I found this interesting guide for how Forefront Endpoint Protection 2010 (FEP) was deployed to thousands of clients within Microsoft. The deployment has delivered a reduced SLA for policy enforcement from more than 1 day to just 4 hours and provides an holistic view of over 100,000 clients. Not only that but because FEP builds on System Center 2007 there was little need to deploy extra infrastructure and bandwidth usage is tiny at about 50kb to 100 kb per client.
After being on the receiving end of this rollout I can say it was really slick and seamless. I won’t repeat the entire case study but it’ll be of interest to anyone looking at implementing FEP or even at deploying any kind of security software.
Get the case study here
[EDIT I’ve fixed the hyperlink!]
An interesting paper crossed by virtual desk today; Privacy in the Cloud: A Microsoft Perspective. It does exactly what it says on the tin and spells out our approach to privacy with regard to cloud applications. It’s one of the most detailed papers I’ve seen that we’ve produced yet and it’s a must read for anyone interested in the issues of putting your data into the cloud (any kind of cloud) and how we will help to protect and secure it. The paper covers everything from Private cloud, Public Cloud, Hybrids, SaaS, Paas, IaaS and how we look at privacy with respect to them as well as consideration of International boundaries.
It’s interesting to read about just how much of a focus there is inside this place on privacy, there are standards that we adhere to like The Microsoft Privacy Standard for Development (MPSD) which helps ensure that privacy and data protection are systematically incorporated—from the ground up—into Microsoft products and services. There are 40+ people dedicated to privacy and over 400 who ensure that our policies and procedures are applied to those products and services.
Some of the standout stuff for me:
Microsoft Privacy Principles Accountability in handling personal information within Microsoft and with vendors and partners Notice to individuals about how we collect, use, retain, and disclose their personal information Collection of personal information from individuals only for the purposes identified in the privacy notice we have provided Choice and consent for individuals regarding how we collect, use, and disclose their personal information Use and retention of personal information in accordance with the privacy notice and consent that individuals have provided Disclosure or onward transfer of personal information to vendors and partners only for purposes that are identified in the privacy notice, and in a security-enhanced manner Quality assurance steps to ensure that personal information in our records is accurate and relevant to the purposes for which it was collected Access for individuals who want to inquire about and, when appropriate, review and update their personal information in our possession Enhanced security of personal information to help protect against unauthorized access and use Monitoring and enforcement of compliance with our privacy policies, both internally and with our vendors and partners, along with established processes to address inquiries, complaints, and disputes
I’d suggest comparing Microsoft to others, see if you can find their information on the subject of privacy and security and their business processes….
You can download the paper here but it might leave you wanting to dip your toe into Azure or BPOS