We’re experiencing a technological revolution. Our almost exclusive dependency on the traditional desktop-installed application is becoming less and less common. Like nearly all organizations, it’s highly likely your users are now working with solutions that span on-premises, SaaS or a hybrid of the two.
And without visibility and actionable insights into all three, you’re likely missing out on optimization opportunities. Then there are the rampant costs associated with vendor audits and negotiations.
The new way of working—accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic—now means users want to use applications in the way that suits them. For example, this blog post was written using the SaaS version of Microsoft Word, with edits and comments added via the traditional desktop application.
This new way of working means there’s so much more to IT asset management than just looking at your on-premises instances. And this is why we’re focused on bringing light to your entire hybrid estate.
Microsoft receives the most attention from SAM teams
Microsoft is a huge focus for SAM teams. According to Flexera’s 2022 State of ITAM Report, half of the respondents were audited by Microsoft in the past three years. Additionally, an organization’s relationship with Microsoft typically spans on-premises to SaaS to cloud instances.
That’s why we focused on delivering better insights into your Microsoft licenses with our latest release.
What we released
The first item we released is the new Windows Server optimization report. The report in Flexera One ITAM computes your optimal licensure on ESX servers. The Microsoft mobility rule forbids reuse of a Windows Server Standard license for 90 days on another host. Consequently, all customers license their ESX servers with Windows Server Data Center. Flexera One computes the 90 percent peak number of VMs and allows you to use Windows Server Standard in 60 percent of the cases—a multi-million dollar savings for large organizations in licenses or software assurance.
IT Asset Management
It all starts with knowing what’s in your IT ecosystem. Flexera One discovers even the most elusive assets whether on-prem, SaaS, cloud, containers and more.
Additionally, now you can reclaim Windows desktop applications within Flexera One. This can be done via the Microsoft Configuration Manager and will allow you to effectively distribute your Windows desktop applications.
And lastly, we’ve given you the ability to select Microsoft applications for hybrid license optimization. Currently, it’s easy to see users who are entitled to and have activated their on-premises software. However, it can be a significant cost driver for SAM teams to identify if these applications are being used. SAM teams need visibility into these hybrid licenses in order to identify savings opportunities.
We’re just getting started
This work around Microsoft is part of a broader roadmap strategy in which we’re providing optimization opportunities for your largest key vendors. We’ve recently announced our deeper partnership with IBM along with our work to help you optimize your relationships with Salesforce, Oracle and SAP. Keep on the lookout as we continue to make Flexera One the most comprehensive solution for managing your vendor relationships.
