Difference between FlexNet Manager for Clients and FlexNet Manager for Datacenters

[SAMrookie]

Hi community,

I have simple - maybe stupid - question regarding the difference FlexNet Manager for Clients and FlexNet Manager for Datacenters.

Can I install FlexNet Manger for Clients on Windows servers or should I buy FlexNet Manager for Datacenters for all our servers.

All server licenses and CALs (Windows, SQL) are managed by our global organisation and we only need to take care of all installed software on our german servers.

Thanks in advance.

[ImIronMan · Accepted solution]

@SAMrookie 

yes, it is the same agent that can be installed on desktops or servers.

Regards

Rajesh Ponnala

[kclausen · Accepted solution]

@SAMrookie  - To be crystal clear, if you do not purchase FlexNet Manager for Datacenters, then you will not be able to get a license position for any Microsoft, IBM, or Oracle products that are licensed based on Processors or Cores.

You will be able to get a license position for Desktop products that have a Device or User-based license metric.

[kclausen]

@SAMrookie :

FlexNet Manager for Clients enables you to manage the software licenses running on Desktop/Laptop computers.  These are generally licensed with a Device or a User-Based metric.

FlexNet Manager for Data Centers provides the Product Use Rights libraries for the complicated capacity-based licenses of products such as Microsoft SQL Server, IBM WebSphere and Oracle Databases.

It is the same "agent" for both products, the different is being able to correctly model the software license entitlements for those complicated capacity-based products including the correct License Metric, Product Use Rights, and rules for License Consumption based on the Cores/Processors of the server.

[SAMrookie]

@kclausen 

Thank you for the swift reply.

Can I install FlexNet Manager for Clients on Windows Server or is it not possible?

[ImIronMan · Accepted solution]

@SAMrookie 

yes, it is the same agent that can be installed on desktops or servers.

Regards

Rajesh Ponnala

[SAMrookie]

Hello and good morning,

@ImIronMan
@kclausen

thank you for the answers. 

I have one more question about FlexNet Manager for Clients and FlexNet Manager for Datacenters.

From the technical point of view, I can install FlexNet Manager for Clients on servers.

Do I need special licenses for servers or can I buy FlexNet Manager for Clients for all my servers.

Thanks in advance for your answers.

[kclausen]

FlexNet Manager for Clients and FlexNet Manager for Datacenters is the same product/code base.  It is the features within your License Key that provides you the differences in these two "product".  For example, it is the same FlexNet Manager Inventory Agent that gets installed on a Windows Desktop and a Windows Server.

The difference is in the Product Use Right libraries that would be used to create your license entitlements.  Without FlexNet Manager for Datacenters, you cannot create License Entitlements with the complicate metrics to support complicated server products such as Microsoft SQL Server, IBM WebSphere and Oracle Database.

[SAMrookie]

@kclausen

Thank you very much. 

So we can save a lot of money, if we can license FlexNet Manager for Clients instead FlexNet Manager for Datacenters for our servers. 🙂

[kclausen · Accepted solution]

@SAMrookie  - To be crystal clear, if you do not purchase FlexNet Manager for Datacenters, then you will not be able to get a license position for any Microsoft, IBM, or Oracle products that are licensed based on Processors or Cores.

You will be able to get a license position for Desktop products that have a Device or User-based license metric.

[SAMrookie]

@kclausen
That's very clear, thank you very much. I have no need for the license position for Microsoft ... All these licenses are managed from our global team.

[SAMrookie]

@kclausen @ImIronMan 

I contacted the major account manager and she told me, that it is not possible to install FlexNet Manager for Clients on server and for licensing reasons it may not be used.

Hmm, I'm still confused but on a higher level. 

[kclausen]

@SAMrookie - Apologies, my response was only from a technical perspective and was not taking into account the License Terms of FlexNet for Clients and FlexNet for Data Center.

[ChrisG · Accepted solution]

I'm not sure if there were outstanding questions on this thread, but I think there is some misunderstanding about licensable products vs installable components.

FlexNet Manager for Clients and FlexNet Manager for Data Centers are licensable products from Flexera. You get a license for these, but these names don't refer to components that you physically install on computers.

The components you install include a "FlexNet Manager Suite application server" (this is installed on computers running Windows Server), a "beacon server" (also installed on a Windows Server operating system), and "inventory agent" (optionally installed on computers running a wide range of operating systems).

If you want to import details into FlexNet Manager about hardware and software on computers that are running "server" operating systems (including Windows Server and UNIX-like operating systems), then you need FlexNet Manager for Data Center licenses for the appropriate number of devices. If you want to import details into FlexNet Manager about hardware and software on computers that are running "client" operating systems (including Windows and MacOS), then you need FlexNet Manager for Clients licenses for the appropriate number of devices.

[SAMrookie]

Hi all,

thank you for your support.