Joined on 08-26-2005
TechSoup Member
hi,
we are using some year-end spend down money to buy a
new network server (Dell PowerEdge 830) for our
small (less than 50 users) non-profit org. I noticed
on TechStock they are selling Server 2003 for $40,
our org is registered with TechSoup but I have never
bought anything yet. I would like to purchase Server
2003, 50 CALs and 5 DALs. Also we are hoping to setup
a VPN with a branch office (10 users) do I need a different type of access license for VPN users?
Stacy Shomaker
AWF IT Tech
Hi Stacy,
Much depends on how your VPN users authenticate, and what network services they receive once they have authenticated - If a VPN user receives a full range of network services (domain authentication leading to file access, printing, etc) you would expect to need a client access license (CAL) for each VPN user, however if a VPN user is only directed to an organisational Intranet page (for example) you may not need a CAL for this user.
What services do you intend to provide to your VPN users?
Joined on 08-26-2005
TechSoup Member
the branch office users would need full access
In that case I would budget for an additional 10 Cals for your VPN users... You may need to purchase these elsewhere if your order exceeds the maximum allowable here at TS.
Don
Joined on 08-26-2005
TechSoup Member
i didn't know there was a limit, how many CAL's am
I limited to?
Stacy,
You can only purchase up to 50 licenses/CALs through Techsoup Stock in a 2 year period.
However, since CALs come in both User and Device flavor, technically you can buy 50 each and end up with 100. However, I'm not familiar enough with the differences as well as pros and cons regarding User CAL vs. Device CAL, and whether they can be mixed and matched to accomodate the number of users you want. Does anyone have any insights/advice on this?
You can always check with a
Microsoft Open Charity Reseller to find out the discounted cost for a User CAL license. I believe it comes to no more than $20 per CAL if memory serves.
Clement
Hi Stacy, Clement,
It is perfectly acceptable to mix user and device CAL's and this is often done in a hybrid license environment - but Clement are you sure TS is able to provide 50 of each device CAL's and client CAL's within a 2-year period? - I thought it was 50 in total...
Don
Donc/Stacy,
Yes, I can verify that customers can purchase 50 User CALs and 50 Device CALs in a 2 year period, since the two are considered separate products in the donation programs. This should also apply to any other type of CALs available in the Microsoft catalog online (e.g. Terminal Services CAL, or Exchange Server CALs)
Clement
Joined on 08-26-2005
TechSoup Member
so, would my branch office users, who will be connecting via VPN (and anyone else connecting thur
VPN, like home-users) need Terminal Service CAL's
instead of plain user CAL's?
Joined on 07-26-2004
TechSoup Member
Stacey,
Sounds like to me, you'll need full licenses. If the purpose isn't to provide a virtual PC for them to use then you'll be really VPNing...using shared drives, exchange remotely, etc (Term. Server hosts virtual pcs ...using server resources for each virtual machine or terminal client logged in).
CALS - device...every user that has multiple devices needs a cal for each device but each device can have many users (up to the device license limit)
- user ...every user needs a cal, no matter how many devices they have (up to total number of users licensed).
Does that help?
Aaron
Sounds like all you need are Device CAL's for your internal machines and User CAL's for your outside users. This way your outside users can roam between different machines with just the 1 CAL.
TS CAL's should not be needed as you will not be using Terminal Services for your VPN connection.
Also as an FYI, additional CAL's can be purchase separate from Techsoup with no limit for $8 each so you may want to use your limited Techsoup purchases on other more pricey products.
Jeramie
Joined on 08-26-2005
TechSoup Member
cool, thanks for the help everyone