This document provides an overview of licensing options for Microsoft Office 365. It discusses the different Office 365 product offerings and suites available. It also outlines the various licensing models for Office 365, including Open Business License Program, Microsoft Products and Services Agreement (MPSA), Enterprise Agreement (EA), and Microsoft Online Subscription Program (MOSP). The document provides details on transitioning existing licenses to Office 365 and purchasing options for components individually or as part of a suite. It addresses other considerations like hybrid cloud/on-premises environments and hardware requirements.
Not all Microsoft Office 365 migration partners are equal. We've collected best practices and key considerations when evaluating a great migration partner.
Introduction to Microsoft Product Licensing. Discusses how Microsoft software is licensed, and shows pitfalls around Microsoft licensing. Recommendations and conclusions per topic are covered. Discusses Windows licensing, Office Pro Plus licensing, Server/CAL and Core/CAL licensing, CAL suites, SQL Server licensing and more.
SoftwareONE Microsoft Licensing Update and the Future of the Microsoft DesktopSoftwareONEPresents
So Windows 10 has landed! But what does it mean for your desktop strategy? And what’s the latest on Bring Your Own License (BYOL)? This revised presentation is taken from a webinar broadcast on Thursday 5th November 2015 detailing recent announcements from Microsoft, upcoming changes and discussing how they may affect your organisation's desktop strategy.
Slides from European SharePoint Conference 2013 in Copenhagen. In this session, we will focus on various hybrid scenarios, which possibilities you have on your way to the cloud and how you can manage your hybrid world. What common questions should be answered for hybrid solutions?
Not all Microsoft Office 365 migration partners are equal. We've collected best practices and key considerations when evaluating a great migration partner.
Introduction to Microsoft Product Licensing. Discusses how Microsoft software is licensed, and shows pitfalls around Microsoft licensing. Recommendations and conclusions per topic are covered. Discusses Windows licensing, Office Pro Plus licensing, Server/CAL and Core/CAL licensing, CAL suites, SQL Server licensing and more.
SoftwareONE Microsoft Licensing Update and the Future of the Microsoft DesktopSoftwareONEPresents
So Windows 10 has landed! But what does it mean for your desktop strategy? And what’s the latest on Bring Your Own License (BYOL)? This revised presentation is taken from a webinar broadcast on Thursday 5th November 2015 detailing recent announcements from Microsoft, upcoming changes and discussing how they may affect your organisation's desktop strategy.
Slides from European SharePoint Conference 2013 in Copenhagen. In this session, we will focus on various hybrid scenarios, which possibilities you have on your way to the cloud and how you can manage your hybrid world. What common questions should be answered for hybrid solutions?
Slide deck containing basics for Microsoft Cloud Licensing. Discusses CAL equivalent licensing, Dynamics 365 licensing, Microsoft Azure licensing, M365 Licensing and more.
*UPDATED* These are slides that were present at SharePoint Saturday Vancouver. They have been updated as of 14 April 2018.
Description: You got Office 365 and you need to use it. You need to let others in your organization use it because you were designated the admin but you can't spell Office 365... yet. Where do you start? In this session, you will learn about the basics of administering Office 365 through the Admin Centers and where to start.
1. Be introduced to Office 365
2. Learn how to setup and manage users
3. Learn how to add your organization's domain
4. Learn about the Office 365 Admin Center and the other 3 major admin centers: Exchange, Skype for Business, and SharePoint (old and new).
5. Best practices, tips, and tricks along the way
Learn the benefits and limitations of SharePoint Online and Onprem. Learn whether to deploy SharePoint on-premise, use the latest cloud-based iteration, or a hybrid combination environment. Also included is a description of K2's Appit platform.
Atidan is pleased to announce the new Office 365 E5 Plan
1. Modern Collaboration
Connecting with coworkers, customers and partners is critical for anyone’s business. Too often, collaboration is blocked by technology silos, competing platforms, distance and security concerns or a solution that might be too hard to use. Our new Modern Collaboration investments center on giving customers a truly real time communications platform, where the cloud enables all forms of meetings, calls and interactive collaboration to work (and be managed) together. Companies increase their reach with customers in a secured platform. These are all investments delivered from Skype for Business in Office 365
2. Personalized Insight
For data to have impact given the sheer volume of information we face today, it must be personalized by intelligent software and tools that understand the context of why people do things, not simply what they do. Our new investments in this area center on bringing that personalized intelligence to bear through two Business Intelligence offerings, one that accrues from any data source and one which surfaces unique insights into how a team or organization is actually functioning.
3. People Centric Compliance
Finally, for an organization to enable these high-value collaboration and insights scenarios, it needs great controls that make it simple for users to protect their data and for administrators to scale permissions as needed. The capabilities we are announcing here present significant advantage in the market, enabling our users to easily keep data encrypted and defend against even unknown security threats while giving administrators best in class control over data access.
Slide deck containing information around Microsoft Volume Licensing Contracts like the Enterprise Agreement and Cloud Solution Provider Program. Details the options you have to contract with MIcrosoft and shows in-depth possibilities for a good Microsoft Enterprise Agreement Contract. How to purchase and what to look out for
What and how do I choose SharePoint 2013 On-premise vs. Cloud (Office 365)WinWire Technologies Inc
Microsoft has released SharePoint 2013 On-Premise and its counterpart SharePoint 2013 Online for Office 365. With both versions available now, the decision for any organization’s IT team to choose between On Premise and Online becomes a difficult preposition. This webinar will try to help in identifying the key parameters which can be used in choosing the right version based on an organizations need – On Premise, Online or Hybrid.
These slides formed part of a webinar introducing the new Office 365 E5 Plan, hosted by SoftwareONE and Microsoft and broadcast on Thursday 14th January.
The webinar focussed on the new major components of the E5 Plan - Skype for Business, Power BI and enhancements to security as well as an overview of the commercial options and upgrade paths for existing Office 365 customers.
A overview presentation on Microsoft 365 with a particular focus on the Business offering. It covers what the product is and why it is important for resellers and customers. Video available at - https://youtu.be/UekuL1wUR6o
Slide deck containing basics for Microsoft Cloud Licensing. Discusses CAL equivalent licensing, Dynamics 365 licensing, Microsoft Azure licensing, M365 Licensing and more.
*UPDATED* These are slides that were present at SharePoint Saturday Vancouver. They have been updated as of 14 April 2018.
Description: You got Office 365 and you need to use it. You need to let others in your organization use it because you were designated the admin but you can't spell Office 365... yet. Where do you start? In this session, you will learn about the basics of administering Office 365 through the Admin Centers and where to start.
1. Be introduced to Office 365
2. Learn how to setup and manage users
3. Learn how to add your organization's domain
4. Learn about the Office 365 Admin Center and the other 3 major admin centers: Exchange, Skype for Business, and SharePoint (old and new).
5. Best practices, tips, and tricks along the way
Learn the benefits and limitations of SharePoint Online and Onprem. Learn whether to deploy SharePoint on-premise, use the latest cloud-based iteration, or a hybrid combination environment. Also included is a description of K2's Appit platform.
Atidan is pleased to announce the new Office 365 E5 Plan
1. Modern Collaboration
Connecting with coworkers, customers and partners is critical for anyone’s business. Too often, collaboration is blocked by technology silos, competing platforms, distance and security concerns or a solution that might be too hard to use. Our new Modern Collaboration investments center on giving customers a truly real time communications platform, where the cloud enables all forms of meetings, calls and interactive collaboration to work (and be managed) together. Companies increase their reach with customers in a secured platform. These are all investments delivered from Skype for Business in Office 365
2. Personalized Insight
For data to have impact given the sheer volume of information we face today, it must be personalized by intelligent software and tools that understand the context of why people do things, not simply what they do. Our new investments in this area center on bringing that personalized intelligence to bear through two Business Intelligence offerings, one that accrues from any data source and one which surfaces unique insights into how a team or organization is actually functioning.
3. People Centric Compliance
Finally, for an organization to enable these high-value collaboration and insights scenarios, it needs great controls that make it simple for users to protect their data and for administrators to scale permissions as needed. The capabilities we are announcing here present significant advantage in the market, enabling our users to easily keep data encrypted and defend against even unknown security threats while giving administrators best in class control over data access.
Slide deck containing information around Microsoft Volume Licensing Contracts like the Enterprise Agreement and Cloud Solution Provider Program. Details the options you have to contract with MIcrosoft and shows in-depth possibilities for a good Microsoft Enterprise Agreement Contract. How to purchase and what to look out for
What and how do I choose SharePoint 2013 On-premise vs. Cloud (Office 365)WinWire Technologies Inc
Microsoft has released SharePoint 2013 On-Premise and its counterpart SharePoint 2013 Online for Office 365. With both versions available now, the decision for any organization’s IT team to choose between On Premise and Online becomes a difficult preposition. This webinar will try to help in identifying the key parameters which can be used in choosing the right version based on an organizations need – On Premise, Online or Hybrid.
These slides formed part of a webinar introducing the new Office 365 E5 Plan, hosted by SoftwareONE and Microsoft and broadcast on Thursday 14th January.
The webinar focussed on the new major components of the E5 Plan - Skype for Business, Power BI and enhancements to security as well as an overview of the commercial options and upgrade paths for existing Office 365 customers.
A overview presentation on Microsoft 365 with a particular focus on the Business offering. It covers what the product is and why it is important for resellers and customers. Video available at - https://youtu.be/UekuL1wUR6o
Analyzing what Office 365 can and can’t do for you. Understanding it’s pros and cons to judge if Office 365 is actually made for you and your organization. Top 5 reasons why it will not work for you.
Slides of the motivational Sales Pitch during the TechData Touch Tour in Belgium.
Objective : motivate sales people and give them insights in the opportunities attached to Windows 8, touch devices, cloud vs on premise solutions and Microsoft Office
This is my Holiday Shopping guide for Cloud Newbies. This is guide with Pricing plans for Office 365, Office 2016 plans, Power BI and Microsoft PowerApps
This manual will help you to implement Office 365 to your organisation and will guide you through the process of validating your domain, creating single and bulk users, creating email distribution groups and much much more.
TechSoup Microsoft Program Offerings December 20201TechSoup
Learn about what Microsoft products, solutions, and services are available to nonprofits. We will go over details on product options and some of the services and courses to help you get the most out of your solutions.
How to Get Nonprofit Office 365 Cloud SubscriptionsTechSoup
Have you heard about Microsoft Office 365 and are ready to use Microsoft cloud solutions, but unsure of how to get started? We’ll walk you through what subscriptions are available to nonprofits, how you can learn more about making the right choices for your organization, and your options for how to request the licenses you need. This webinar is best suited for those who are ready to explore moving to Office 365 or that already have a Microsoft nonprofit cloud account set up. In this webinar, we will discuss:
- What Office 365 licenses are available to nonprofits
- How to get qualified for purchasing licenses
- Requesting your licenses
- Ways TechSoup can help you through this process
Three key reasons to move your clients to Microsoft Office 365Riddhi Sood
Hiperdist, a leading value-added distributor in the MEA region, in partnership with Microsoft, a leader in the cloud solutions. Here, we take you through the top three reasons why clients should move to office 365.
IT leaders from across North America were invited to share their viewpoint and perspective on delivering Agile IT. The study reflects the responses and trends related to their ability to deliver on business demands and readiness of existing technology to support those needs. We aggregated the results into following major themes: Strategy vs Reality, Agility & Technology Readiness, and Culture, Structure & People.
Discover the benefits of the Cloud Solutions Provider (CSP) program and how it enables flexibility and value-added solutions for your O365 licenses.
Know how modern licensing programs are helping companies enable end users, increase IT agility, meet compliance requirements, increase time-to-value, and make IT buying fast and easy.
In our latest webinar presentation, we discuss the Cloud Solutions Provider (CSP) program and how it enables flexibility and value-added solutions for your Azure licensing needs.
The Softchoice Innovation Report 2018: Four New Roles For CIOS In The Modern ...Softchoice Corporation
In 2017, Softchoice’s Innovation Executive Forum (IEF) traveled across North America, taking the pulse of today’s front-line leaders of digital transformation. From St. John’s to Los Angeles, we visited 14 major cities, and met with over 120 top-level technology executives to discuss their priorities, challenges, and experiences pushing forward change. Online, we hosted quarterly conference calls with members and special guests, and published numerous whitepapers featuring insights from organizations big and small.
New on-demand Webinar
We used to just worry about the unlikely natural disaster and the odd communications breakdown when planning for backup and recovery. But these days, an entirely new breed of threats have emerged that promise to knock out your business applications and data the first chance they get. From cyber crime, to cyberterrorism and mobile and cloud computing complexities, handling these new threats with the same old tools simply isn’t possible. This was the topic that drove a recent Softchoice webinar, centered on how your business can more effectively, simply and securely provide a robust DR and BC strategy leveraging a suite of Azure based technologies from Microsoft.
Watch the latest on-demand webinar.
Cette étude de Softchoice porte sur les tendances en matière de rendement et de collaboration au travail. Elle s’est notamment intéressée à l’automatisation des outils de bureautique, à l’accès au télétravail et aux efforts consentis pour bien outiller les travailleurs. Softchoice a interrogé 1000 employés de bureau nord-américains qui travaillent essentiellement avec un ordinateur ou un appareil mobile.
In this Softchoice research study, we explore trends in employee productivity and collaboration, including the use of office automation tools, remote work flexibility, and how well organizations equip their people with the technology they need to be productive. Softchoice surveyed 1,000 full-time North American office workers who use a computer or mobile device for the majority of their work day.
Legacy PBX technologies are fast becoming obsolete. And, downtime is expensive. PBX industry is changing and many are considering a collaboration solution that leverages your existing on-premise infrastructure and marries it with a cloud platform.
About the Event:
Find out in our webinar, led by our Microsoft experts, what your options are for developing a truly integrated collaboration environment.
This session is designed for IT leaders with aging on-premise PBX systems, or those who want to understand what the Microsoft Cloud PBX solution offers. Most importantly, our presenters will provide insights into how to drive up collaboration by improving end user productivity through a cohesive Office 365 experience.
There is often confusion about what cloud vendors like Microsoft make secure and what falls to you in ensuring your data is safe. An effective strategy requires a deeper understanding of vendor security, your own responsibilities and how to incorporate the two to protect your business.
In our session you will learn about:
- Key trends driving change in IT and cloud security
- Examples of how your peers are addressing their organization's cloud security responsibilities
- Best practices for designing your cloud security plan
Our Microsoft Cloud Adoption Champion, Ruth Morton, will provide you with the strategies you need to ensure your Office 365 deployment is not only a technical success, but improves business processes, stakeholder satisfaction, and your bottom line.
You'll leave armed with a completed self-assessment designed to give you insights into your potential gaps and risks, and how to overcome them.
What You'll Learn:
• Business drivers, pitfalls and success criteria gathered from hundreds of successful projects
• Creating alignment with your lines of business to ensure a requirements-driven project
• Methods for developing a successful adoption plan and why this is so important
• How to set yourself up to execute with confidence.
For many organizations, a move to Azure creates issues with managing costs and resource ownership. Why? Cloud-based technologies rely on a different cost model - one based on usage consumption, rather than purchasing hardware and software.
Watch our team of Azure experts and learn how to effectively plan and manage the costs associated with your Azure investment. In this webinar, you'll learn how to:
- Build an Azure cost model based on best practices
- Use chargebacks to assign and track IT usage to specific business units
- Avoid unexpected consumption expenses by seeing what - and who - is consuming data
Our team will also demo the Softchoice Azure Dashboard, a proprietary tool providing our clients with the visibility they need to align resource spend, and control their azure costs.
Étude Softchoice. Favoriser l’innovation : les actes en disent plus long que ...Softchoice Corporation
Softchoice, chef de file nord-américain en solutions et services impartis informatiques, a sondé 250 responsables des TI et 1 000 employés d’autres services travaillant à temps plein aux États-Unis et au Canada pour déterminer combien d’entreprises adoptent effectivement les processus, la culture et la technologie et le leadership adéquats pour favoriser l’innovation.
Watch our recent webinar on the real life gotchas and missteps related to Hybrid IT transformation that we've seen as we've helped hundreds of customers like you implement the Hybrid IT journey.
You will come out with some salient advice on what you need to consider for 2017 to avoid derailing your business goals across the Public Cloud, Data Center and Network as you seek out more agility in IT.
Watch Aaron Brooks, Practice Director, Hybrid IT and the other members of the Softchoice practice leadership in this interactive webinar. Here’s a sample of the discussion:
• Why Hybrid IT isn’t just about where you’ll put your workloads
• Common barriers to integrating public cloud into IT operations
• How the modern data center will need to mirror the public cloud
• Why overlooking the impact of network traffic might be your Achilles heel
Softchoice, a leading North American provider of IT solutions and managed services, surveyed 1,000 full- time line-of-business (LOB) employees and 250 IT decision-makers across the U.S. and Canada to uncover how many workplaces actually walk the walk when it comes to having the right processes, leadership, culture and technology to drive innovation.
Today, security is so much more than just a firewall. As we saw in our recent webinar, co-hosted with Microsoft to discuss their new Enterprise Mobility + Security Suite (EMS), breaches are resulting from weak end-user passwords or error, as well as a lax attitude toward SaaS and third party "Shadow IT." Add to that infrastructure complexity brought on by cloud and hybrid environments and everything you knew about security is changing.
Effective Management of Azure through Operations Management Suite (OMS) WebinarSoftchoice Corporation
If you are looking to simplify IT management in your organization, then enterprise Operations Management Suite (OMS) is for you.
With OMS you will gain control over your Azure hybrid cloud with this cost-effective, all-in-one cloud IT management solution.
It delivers you:
Operational insights into your on premise and cloud applications and infrastructure
Solid Backup and Disaster recovery solution that is automated and easy to test
Compliant infrastructure with the latest industry security standards, update levels, and configuration best practices
In the webinar you will learn about:
Log Analytics and what it can accomplish
Backup and Automated Site Recovery
Identifying, assessing and mitigating security risks
What' coming next with the Solutions Gallery
Softchoice - Microsoft Office 365 - Discussing legal concerns and informatio...Softchoice Corporation
While security and legal fears have gone down, they still account for 5% of enterprises not planning a migration to Office 365, according to Gartner.
This is a real shame, because as you know, O365 can drive considerable business productivity, employee engagement and can enable digital workforce greatness.
Moreover, O365 has 70 million commercial active users per month and according to Gartner, controls over 80% of the email share.
Well, have no fear (literally). Our experts have put together an insightful hour to explore, discuss and appease any fears you may have around compliance, security and data control in the Microsoft cloud.
Hosted jointly by Microsoft and Softchoice Office 365 pros, you will learn about:
- Keeping privacy and control of your data on Office 365
- Overcoming legal and compliance concerns
- The advantages of cloud security versus on-premise, and much more
Application development and deployment in the traditional datacenter has been a challenge for many organizations primarily due to resource constraints. This has historically led to unfortunate compromises between functionality and security for business applications.
With public cloud providers, we have seen the limitations to technical capabilities fall away; the attainable to the Fortune 500 has become available to organizations of any size.
This yields some exciting new options for the development, deployment and operation of secure applications. Here you will find the presentation deck and recording of webinar.
En 2014, les entreprises en étaient encore au stade du passage à l’infonuagique. À l’époque, Softchoice a commandé une étude qui a révélé que les utilisateurs nord-américains étaient imprudents. On découvrait notamment que les travailleurs nord-américains utilisant des applications infonuagiques se comportaient de façon nettement plus imprudente et faisaient courir davantage de risques aux réseaux et aux données de leurs employeurs que ceux qui n'en utilisaient pas.
Deux ans plus tard, la plupart des entreprises ne se contentent plus de « flirter » avec l’infonuagique, mais l’ont adoptée sans réserve. Toutefois, malgré cette transition, peu de choses ont changé! Tant par leur négligence à l’égard de la protection de leurs mots de passe que par leurs comportements indésirables à l’égard des TI, les travailleurs nord-américains sont (encore) imprudents lorsqu’ils utilisent l’infonuagique.
Avoiding the unexpected costs of cloud computing. Without proper planning and governance, spending on cloud services can easily get out of control, putting your organization at risk of not realizing the benefits of moving to the cloud in the first place. This presentation helps you understand the frameworks and tools available to effectively manage and optimize cloud costs.
You’ll Learn how to: (1) develop and manage optimal cloud budgets (2) assign accountabilities and track usage (3) continuously improve cost performance.
In the rapidly evolving landscape of technologies, XML continues to play a vital role in structuring, storing, and transporting data across diverse systems. The recent advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) present new methodologies for enhancing XML development workflows, introducing efficiency, automation, and intelligent capabilities. This presentation will outline the scope and perspective of utilizing AI in XML development. The potential benefits and the possible pitfalls will be highlighted, providing a balanced view of the subject.
We will explore the capabilities of AI in understanding XML markup languages and autonomously creating structured XML content. Additionally, we will examine the capacity of AI to enrich plain text with appropriate XML markup. Practical examples and methodological guidelines will be provided to elucidate how AI can be effectively prompted to interpret and generate accurate XML markup.
Further emphasis will be placed on the role of AI in developing XSLT, or schemas such as XSD and Schematron. We will address the techniques and strategies adopted to create prompts for generating code, explaining code, or refactoring the code, and the results achieved.
The discussion will extend to how AI can be used to transform XML content. In particular, the focus will be on the use of AI XPath extension functions in XSLT, Schematron, Schematron Quick Fixes, or for XML content refactoring.
The presentation aims to deliver a comprehensive overview of AI usage in XML development, providing attendees with the necessary knowledge to make informed decisions. Whether you’re at the early stages of adopting AI or considering integrating it in advanced XML development, this presentation will cover all levels of expertise.
By highlighting the potential advantages and challenges of integrating AI with XML development tools and languages, the presentation seeks to inspire thoughtful conversation around the future of XML development. We’ll not only delve into the technical aspects of AI-powered XML development but also discuss practical implications and possible future directions.
Unlocking Productivity: Leveraging the Potential of Copilot in Microsoft 365, a presentation by Christoforos Vlachos, Senior Solutions Manager – Modern Workplace, Uni Systems
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Threats to mobile devices are more prevalent and increasing in scope and complexity. Users of mobile devices desire to take full advantage of the features
available on those devices, but many of the features provide convenience and capability but sacrifice security. This best practices guide outlines steps the users can take to better protect personal devices and information.
Goodbye Windows 11: Make Way for Nitrux Linux 3.5.0!SOFTTECHHUB
As the digital landscape continually evolves, operating systems play a critical role in shaping user experiences and productivity. The launch of Nitrux Linux 3.5.0 marks a significant milestone, offering a robust alternative to traditional systems such as Windows 11. This article delves into the essence of Nitrux Linux 3.5.0, exploring its unique features, advantages, and how it stands as a compelling choice for both casual users and tech enthusiasts.
Epistemic Interaction - tuning interfaces to provide information for AI supportAlan Dix
Paper presented at SYNERGY workshop at AVI 2024, Genoa, Italy. 3rd June 2024
https://alandix.com/academic/papers/synergy2024-epistemic/
As machine learning integrates deeper into human-computer interactions, the concept of epistemic interaction emerges, aiming to refine these interactions to enhance system adaptability. This approach encourages minor, intentional adjustments in user behaviour to enrich the data available for system learning. This paper introduces epistemic interaction within the context of human-system communication, illustrating how deliberate interaction design can improve system understanding and adaptation. Through concrete examples, we demonstrate the potential of epistemic interaction to significantly advance human-computer interaction by leveraging intuitive human communication strategies to inform system design and functionality, offering a novel pathway for enriching user-system engagements.
Climate Impact of Software Testing at Nordic Testing DaysKari Kakkonen
My slides at Nordic Testing Days 6.6.2024
Climate impact / sustainability of software testing discussed on the talk. ICT and testing must carry their part of global responsibility to help with the climat warming. We can minimize the carbon footprint but we can also have a carbon handprint, a positive impact on the climate. Quality characteristics can be added with sustainability, and then measured continuously. Test environments can be used less, and in smaller scale and on demand. Test techniques can be used in optimizing or minimizing number of tests. Test automation can be used to speed up testing.
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
Communications Mining Series - Zero to Hero - Session 1DianaGray10
This session provides introduction to UiPath Communication Mining, importance and platform overview. You will acquire a good understand of the phases in Communication Mining as we go over the platform with you. Topics covered:
• Communication Mining Overview
• Why is it important?
• How can it help today’s business and the benefits
• Phases in Communication Mining
• Demo on Platform overview
• Q/A
Maruthi Prithivirajan, Head of ASEAN & IN Solution Architecture, Neo4j
Get an inside look at the latest Neo4j innovations that enable relationship-driven intelligence at scale. Learn more about the newest cloud integrations and product enhancements that make Neo4j an essential choice for developers building apps with interconnected data and generative AI.
GraphSummit Singapore | The Future of Agility: Supercharging Digital Transfor...Neo4j
Leonard Jayamohan, Partner & Generative AI Lead, Deloitte
This keynote will reveal how Deloitte leverages Neo4j’s graph power for groundbreaking digital twin solutions, achieving a staggering 100x performance boost. Discover the essential role knowledge graphs play in successful generative AI implementations. Plus, get an exclusive look at an innovative Neo4j + Generative AI solution Deloitte is developing in-house.
Why You Should Replace Windows 11 with Nitrux Linux 3.5.0 for enhanced perfor...SOFTTECHHUB
The choice of an operating system plays a pivotal role in shaping our computing experience. For decades, Microsoft's Windows has dominated the market, offering a familiar and widely adopted platform for personal and professional use. However, as technological advancements continue to push the boundaries of innovation, alternative operating systems have emerged, challenging the status quo and offering users a fresh perspective on computing.
One such alternative that has garnered significant attention and acclaim is Nitrux Linux 3.5.0, a sleek, powerful, and user-friendly Linux distribution that promises to redefine the way we interact with our devices. With its focus on performance, security, and customization, Nitrux Linux presents a compelling case for those seeking to break free from the constraints of proprietary software and embrace the freedom and flexibility of open-source computing.
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
2. Connect with us today 1.800.268.7638 | www.softchoice.com | @softchoice 2
If you are planning to move to Office 365, you likely have
questions about choosing the right product offering and licensing
model for your organization.
The key to a successful Office 365 migration is first understanding
the offerings available through the O365 product family that
are best suited to the needs of your end-users. Office 365
offers a number of purchasing options – each with different
levels of functionality – so knowing the requirements of your
users is important, given the impact on licensing models and
costs. This guide will walk you through each of these steps, and
includes information on all the major licensing programs and key
considerations for each.
The Essential Guide to Licensing Microsoft Office 365™ in the Cloud | Introduction
3. Connect with us today 1.800.268.7638 | www.softchoice.com | @softchoice 3
q GETTING STARTED: WHAT ARE THE PRODUCT OFFERINGS AVAILABLE?
One of the most important decisions is whether users require an Office 365 Suite, or if acquiring individual
components will meet your needs. Suites make sense when you need at least three online services – such as
Office Pro Plus, Exchange and SharePoint. The more online services you require, the more cost-effective it is
to purchase a suite. Components make sense when you need an individual product, such as Exchange hosted
online. The following chart illustrates the Office 365 Enterprise Suites available and will help you determine
when buying a suite or buying individual components makes sense for your organization and user profiles.
Whatever purchasing program you use, Microsoft offers flexibility in terms of how you bundle and deploy
Office 365. For example, you can mix licensing bundles to give one user group an E1 license and another an
E3 license suite. This is helpful if you have different user profiles and don’t want to standardize everyone on
the same products.
EXCHANGE ONLINE (PLAN 1) • EMAIL, CALENDAR, CONTACTS, DISCOVERY (AV/AS)
• VOICEMAIL AND ARCHIVING
• INSTANT MESSAGING AND PRESENCE, AV
• VIRTUAL MEETINGS
• VOICE (US AND UK ONLY)
• CLIENT PRODUCTIVITY APPLICATIONS AND WEB APPS
• WEB PRODUCTIVITY APPLICATIONS AND SHAREPOINT ONLINE PLAN 1
• WEB PRODUCTIVITY APPLICATIONS AND SHAREPOINT ONLINE PLAN 2
• ADVANCED PORTAL FOR COLLABORATION, AV
• FORMS, DATA VISUALIZATION, ACCESS/EXCEL/VISIO SERVICES
EXCHANGE ONLINE (PLAN 2)
SHAREPOINT ONLINE (PLAN 1)
SHAREPOINT ONLINE (PLAN 2)
LYNC ONLINE (PLAN 1)
LYNC ONLINE (PLAN 2)
LYNC ONLINE (PLAN 3)
OFFICE PROFESSIONAL PLUS
OFFICE WEB APPS (PLAN 1)
OFFICE WEB APPS (PLAN 2)
WORKLOAD STANDALONE SKUs KEY FEATURES
COMPONENTS SUITES
VOICE
OFFICE PROFESSIONAL PLUS
FORMS, ACCESS/EXCEL/VISIO
VOICEMAIL AND ARCHIVE
OFFICE WEB APPS
CONFERENCING
IM AND PRESENCE
COLLABORATION PORTAL
EMAIL, CALENDAR, AV/AS
OFFICE 365 E1
INCLUDES:
EXCHANGE PLAN 1
SHAREPOINT PLAN 1
LYNC PLAN 2
INCLUDES:
EXCHANGE PLAN 2
SHAREPOINT PLAN 2
LYNC PLAN 2
OFFICE PROPLUS
OFFICE WEB APPS
INCLUDES:
EXCHANGE PLAN 2
SHAREPOINT PLAN 2
LYNC PLAN 2
*LYNC PLAN 3
OFFICE PROPLUS
OFFICE WEB APPS
LYNC PLUS
OFFICE 365 E3
OFFICE 365 E4
* US AND UK ONLY
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w HOW TO LICENSE OFFICE 365
Once you’ve determined what offering make sense for your company, Microsoft offers four licensing models
for Office 365.
Open Business License Program
The Open Business License Program is best for small to mid-sized businesses since you only need a minimum
of five licenses to enroll in an Open Business Agreement. The program offers discounts compared to
Microsoft direct pricing and you can use Open Business Licenses for up to 150 seats. With an Open Business
License, you must purchase an annual subscription to Office 365. If you are making more than one Office
365 license purchase in a given year, it is best to initiate a new Open Business agreement term for each
purchase. Keep in mind by doing so you will need to manage multiple agreements and end dates.
Microsoft Products and Services Agreement (MPSA)
An MPSA can benefit organizations with a minimum of 150 seats. All of the same online services for Office 365
are available through the MPSA (either as standalone products, or as Enterprise Suites) but at greater discounts
than the Open Business License Program. No entry minimum is required to begin purchasing through the
MPSA. However, to maintain purchasing and discount eligibility you must commit to meeting minimum point
threshold within each product pool you purchase. This needs to be done by the compliance anniversary date. The
compliance anniversary date is the one year anniversary of the month you first sign your MPSA.
Enterprise Agreement (EA)
Enterprise Agreements require a three-year commitment and are ideal for organizations with at least 250
users. It’s worth considering an EA if you are looking to standardize on one or more of Microsoft’s core enterprise
products (Office, Windows OS, CAL Suite). EA considerations are covered in more detail later in this guide.
Microsoft Online Subscription Program (MOSP)
Outside of the Open Business, MPSA and Enterprise Agreements, you can also purchase Office 365 directly through
a Microsoft Online Subscription Program (MOSP). This is a direct Microsoft purchase. While this offering reflects
retail pricing (i.e. no discounts) it does afford the flexibility of a month-to-month usage commitment.
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The Essential Guide to Licensing Microsoft Office 365™ in the Cloud | How to license O365
Open license Open value
Open value
subscription
Select Plus EA EA Subscription
Number of
desktop PCs
Minimum5
Minimum5
Any: price levels start
at 500 points per pool
250 or more
Licensing
offerings
License, License and
Software Assurance,
and Software Assurance
for renewals or
eligible OEM1
and FPP2
purchases
License and Software
Assurance and Software
Assurance renewals
License, License and
Software Assurance,
and Software
Assurance for renewals
or eligible OEM1
and
FPP2
purchases
License and Software
Assurance and Software
Assurance renewals
Agreement
term
Two years, not
renewable
Three years, renewable. One-
year option for Open Value
Subscription
Agreement never
expires
Three years, renewable
Payment
options
Up-front payment Annual payments or up-front Annual payments
Software
assurance*
Option to add Included Option to add Included
1
OEM
2
FPP
3
Online Services refer to applications hosted at Microsoft Data Centers with client bits that may or may not be installed locally. They are priced monthly and
billed annually for the term of the agreement.
4
Not available in some countries/regions. Contact your reseller to check current availability.
* Note: Software Assurance is automatically included with all Microsoft Office 365 or Online Services offerings because these products are sold as subscriptions.
Comparing Volume Licensing Programs
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e OFFICE 365 ENTERPRISE AGREEMENTS: KEY CONSIDERATIONS
I’m not currently enrolled in an EA. What are my licensing options?
To enroll in an EA, Microsoft recommends you have 250 or more users. However, you will see cost savings
with as few as 190 users. If you are close to meeting these minimums or plan to add licenses over the term
of the agreement, it makes sense to consider an EA.
To enroll in an EA, you must standardize on at least one of the following enterprise products:
• Office 365
• Windows OS
• Core Client Access License (CAL): Includes Lync, Exchange, SharePoint, Windows, System Center
Configuration Manager and System Center EndPoint Protection
OR
• Enterprise CAL: Includes Core CAL and enterprise editions of the Core CAL suite as well as Windows Rights
Management Services and System Center Client Management Suite
Can I run Office on premise and in the cloud?
If you are licensed for an Office 365 E3 or E4 Suite as well as for on premise server products such as Lync and
Exchange, you are entitled to have a hybrid environment for both on premise and cloud utilizations across these
products. If utilizing Office Pro Plus for 365 you are entitled to a local install of Office Pro Plus 365 on up to five
devices. The E1, E3 and E4 Suites include Office Web Apps for any online usage.
What is a Bridge CAL?
The Bridge CAL Suite provides on premise access to CALs not included in the Office 365 Suites. The CAL Suite
includes Lync, Exchange, SharePoint, Windows Server, System Center Configuration Manager and System
Center EndPoint Protection. Since the Office 365 Suites (E1, E3, E4) permit access to SharePoint, Lync and
Exchange, the bridge CAL covers the remaining technologies so you do not pay twice for these licenses.
If you have an existing Open Business or MOSP agreement for Office 365, you will need to start fresh when
you purchase an EA. So if possible, it is best to enter an EA towards the end of your existing agreement’s
term, so you do not pay for overlapping Microsoft services.
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I’m currently enrolled in an EA. What are my licensing options?
Microsoft offers the following options for transitioning to Office 365.
Permitted Transitions
Possible transitions for Enterprise product elections:
The Essential Guide for Licensing Microsoft Office 365™ in the Cloud | O365 Licensing Agreements
Zero Dollar Transition SKUs
You can transition to Office 365 without extra costs if you already have Office Pro Plus. At your next yearly
anniversary date, simply add the zero dollar transition SKU and the appropriate number of Office 365 subscriptions.
The number of on premise Office and CAL Suites will be reduced by the number of E1, E3, E4 and Bridge CALs
you’ve added.
Keep in mind, you must ensure that all of your Office 365 transitions are eligible. For example, if you have Office Pro
Plus, you are not eligible to migrate to an E1 subscription. This is because you’ve already committed to Office Pro Plus,
and the E1 subscription does not include Office Pro Plus. The following chart shows permitted transition options.
PRODUCTS BEING TRANSITIONED VALID TRANSITION OPTIONS
CORE CAL SUITE
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E1)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E2)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E3)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E4)*
• WINDOWS INTUNE*
ENTERPRISE CAL SUITE
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E3)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E4)*
• WINDOWS INTUNE*
OFFICE PROFESSIONAL PLUS
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E2)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E3)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E4)*
• OFFICE 365 PROPLUS
OFFICE PROFESSIONAL PLUS AND CORE CAL SUITE
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E2)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E3)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E4)*
OFFICE PROFESSIONAL PLUS AND ENTERPRISE CAL SUITE
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E3)*
• OFFICE 365 (ENTERPRISE E4)*
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The following chart outlines permitted add-ons depending on your current EA.
Office 365 Add-ons
Microsoft allows you to add Office 365 to your existing agreement. This add-on is a per-user/per-month additional
line item that will be billed for the amount of months remaining in your agreement. In order to take advantage
of this you must have a CAL Suite and Office on your existing agreement. Note that you cannot exceed the license
counts for your existing Office, Core/ECAL license counts. Upon renewal, you have the option to continue with how
you are currently licensed (with the add-ons), transition fully to the cloud or move to back to on premise.
The Essential Guide to Licensing Microsoft Office 365™ in the Cloud | O365 Licensing Agreements
OFFICE 365
ADD-ONS
E4 Add-on $3.50
E3 Add-on $2.00
E4 Add-on $7.00
E3 Add-on $5.50
E4 w/o ProPlus $7.00
E3 w/o ProPlus $5.50
E4 w/o ProPlus $7.00
E3 w/o ProPlus $5.50
E1 $4.00
EA LICENSE
POSITION
ECAL
+
OFFICE
CORE CAL
+
OFFICE
CORE CAL
+
OFFICE 365
PROPLUS CORE CAL
ONLY
O365 PROPLUS
SUBSCRIPTION
Exchange plan 1 $2.00
Lync plan 1 $1.00
SharePoint Plan 1 $1.50
Exchange plan 1 $2.00
Lync plan 1 $1.00
SharePoint Plan 1 $1.50
Can I purchase individual components such as Lync, Exchange or SharePoint Online?
You can purchase components on an ad-hoc basis because they don’t require standardization across the
agreement. These can be purchased as additional products on your EA under the Microsoft Products and
Services Agreement. The Microsoft Online Subscription Program is another viable option, however, it does
not offer volume discounts.
I’m Renewing an Enterprise Agreement. What Are My Office 365 Licensing Options?
Renewing an agreement is your opportunity to start fresh and think ahead about the next three years. Even if
an immediate move to Office 365 isn’t a part of your plan, including Office 365 under your new agreement is
worth considering. Doing so will allow you to move to Office 365 at the time best suited to your organization
while amortizing the cost of the licenses and Software Assurance over the three-year agreement term. Whatever
you decide, it is important to talk through your options to ensure your organization is set up with the correct user
profiles (ie. Choosing between or mixing the E1, E3 and E4 Suites) in order to accommodate the addition of new
users in the future.
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r OFFICE 365 POTPOURRI
How do I License Office 365 for the iPad?
Apple allows free downloads of Word, Excel and PowerPoint from the iTunes store. The apps offer the same
functionality as their desktop-based cousins. While you may use this free version to view files, you need an
Office 365 E3 or E4 subscription to use them to edit and create work.
To license Office 365 for the iPad, you need an E3 or E4 subscription that includes Office Pro Plus. You
may also purchase a stand-alone agreement for Office Pro Plus for Office 365. Users who have Office 365
subscriptions may run Office on up to 15 unique devices. The breakdown is up to five desktop or laptop
devices, up to five tablet devices and up to five mobile phone devices. To access these installations,
download Office 365 from the iTunes store and enable full features through Office 365 login credentials.
If I don’t like the cloud, can I go back?
If you have purchased on-premises licenses and have Software Assurance (SA), you may go back to an
on-premises model with Software Assurance at any time without having to rebuy the license.
Is it true Office 365 only streams from the cloud?
Office 365 is a local install and doesn’t ‘stream’ from the cloud. You are entitled to install on up to 15 devices.
Do I have to move to the latest version of Office when Microsoft releases an update?
You have 18 months to adopt Office Pro Plus for 365 after Microsoft releases the updates. You can run side-by-side
installs of your perpetually owned and cloud versions of Office Pro Plus.
Is there a home use program for Office 365?
Yes. You are entitled to run Office Pro Plus on up to 15 devices per user. This includes desktops, laptops, tablets
and mobile phones. (See Licensing Office 365 for the iPad above for a complete breakdown) This allows users to
access Office whether they are in the office, at home or on the road.
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t GETTING IT RIGHT
Whether you are looking at a new agreement, approaching the end of your term or
want to move to the cloud mid-agreement, it’s worth contacting an expert. Softchoice
offers free consultations that:
ü Lower your total cost of ownership and improve workplace productivity by
standardizing Office 365 across your organization
ü Assess the size of user base to determine the best licensing program
ü Determine the optimal mix of cloud vs. on premise installations
ü Determine if you qualify for a transition or Core CAL Bridge
ü Receive the best possible discounts on moving to Office 365
Ease your transition to Office 365.
Contact your Softchoice account manager or call 1-800-268-7638.
Related guides in this series
» Operation Migration
» How to choose a migration partner