The evolution to Cloud is changing, or I would even go as far to say that it has changed the way vendors deliver software and services. The model has shifted the cost of software from the balance sheet to profit and loss. 

In part one we focused on the initial steps required when responding to a software audit demand. In part two we explain how you can effectively manage a vendor review and what you should do at the conclusion of a vendor audit.

Software Audits have been a challenge for organizations for years – whether from software publishers themselves, through their auditing partners such as Deloitte and KPMG, or the number of industry watchdogs around the world such as the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) or the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA).

As we are sure you are aware Microsoft has moved Windows Server licensing from per-processor to per-core. We first spoke about this change in a blog back in January of this year. This will be a big change for Windows Server customers with a very high risk that the migration process from processor to core will result in either over-spending or under-licensing challenges.

Cloud services provide infrastructure and software more or less at the click of a button, with scalability to match your ever-changing business needs. In short, what organizations get is flexibility. But there’s a price to be paid. At the outset, the seamless, worry-free flexibility that cloud service vendors and their easy-to-use web portals offer might seem like good value. 

Licensing Microsoft applications in environments like Citrix is one of the biggest ‘gotchas’ that Microsoft customers and Software Asset Managers face. We often see that organizations misinterpret the licensing rules resulting in overspend or non-compliance, two positions you do not want to be in.

In 2013 Adobe released a statement indicating that they will no longer be selling perpetual software. Instead, it was to release something called Creative Cloud and move the license model from device to subscription user with regular updates and storage from the Cloud. 

How do you relate to your mobile phone? Greg Baylis, Snow’s Mobility Expert and I were discussing this just the other day and acknowledged that users have a completely different mindset towards their phones than they do to their computers.

If you’re a CIO or an Infrastructure & Operations (I&O) professional, you don’t need me to tell you how complex and dynamic your network is. And even though you probably don’t know where they are, you’ll be aware that you have blind spots on the network. Can you answer with confidence that you know?

Thanks in no small part to the confusion between Software Asset Management and compliance, SAM programs are often seen by some less-enlightened stakeholders as a necessary evil. A program that increases operational costs without driving tangible business benefits.  A grudge spend, if you like.