IBM has a number of products that have different requirements across editions for PVU (Primary or supplementary) or VPC (different ratios). Those products do not provide entitlement to downgrade and upgrade to a different edition of those products. For example, WebSphere Application Server (WAS) and WebSphere Network Deployment editions have their own license to VPC ratios. When they are part of the same bundle license both need to have their product use right and consumption based on their own individual product ratios. IBM product user right does not allow to use of different editions under the one product edition use rights.
To provide license position for each induvial product edition when they are licensed part of the same bundle license / a Cloud Pak license, there is a need to split these product editions into each individual product to allow setting use right for each individual product edition so that we can provide license position contribution for each product edition individually.
The first change will be with WebSphere Application Server, WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment, will have their own product (WebSphere Application Server Liberty Core is already a separate product).
- A new product: "WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment" will be created in the May 13th ARL release.
- All existing WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment will be linked to this new product (and the applications will have no longer an edition, as the product will be unique for Network Deployment).
- This means the FlexeraID will not be changed, for WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment" 9.0 for instance, the application with FlexeraID arl://MGS-APP-00000227915 will link to the new product (WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment), to version 9.0... and will be linked to no edition
Therefore, you will be able to link the WebSphere Application Server, WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment and WebSphere Application Server Liberty Core to a license/s with a different license to PVC ratios.
Note: The licenses that are linked to WAS ND applications will still be linked to the main version but will lose the Upgrade/downgrade rights you need to fix the licenses linked to the new product.
To fix the Licenses linked to the new product (That you can identify by opening the license tab of the applications (filter: Product = WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment, Licensed = 1), you need to:
- Open the relevant license
- Go to the "Use Rights & Rules" tab and edit the "WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment" Product to add the same "upgrade/downgrade" version use rights as the "WebSphere Application" product.
- Please also check Primary/Supplementary (that will be primary by default on the new Product) and check the VPC ratio and each product will have its own license to VPC ratio.
We are sorry for the inconvenience of having to fix the licenses but splitting the applications into two products is the only way that allows managing these specific license terms that are different between two editions of a product.
When: These changes will be part of the May 13th release.
