Microsoft to change Windows Server 2016 licensing rules, will use per-core metric

Microsoft last week announced it will switch the licensing for next year's Windows Server 2016 to a per-processor-core basis, a move analysts said is at least partly a grab for more revenue.

"Ultimately, the move to cores is a revenue issue, because it certainly does nothing for customers," said Paul DeGroot, the principal of Pica Communications, a consulting firm that specializes in deciphering Microsoft's licensing practices. "Customers have to go through a complex process to count cores to make sure they get all the cores they are entitled to. If they don't do this properly, they'll face a large bill down the road."

Wes Miller, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft who conducts the research firm's "boot camps" on Microsoft's complex licensing rules, agreed -- to a point. While he believes Microsoft's stated reasons for changing licensing for Windows Server 2016 are valid, there's more to the new policies than what Redmond said publicly.

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