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I was wondering if anyone has any clarification for shared web hosts on whether a mail server using SmarterMail is considered Outsourcing or Non-Outsourcing under Microsoft's very confusing outsourcing/non-outsourcing SPLA licensing?

From what Microsoft are saying is that mail servers come under outsourcing which means if you use Windows server standard then the box with SmarterMail on will cost £50 per month rather than £12 for non-outsourcing box which are hosting websites, DNS, etc. and no mail server.

Hopefully SmarterTools can findout from Microsoft as this huge price differences may force allot of people to use Linux Mail Servers instead rather than paying high fees to Microsoft to be able to host a SmarterMail Mail Server.

Thanks for your response.

I've been talking about this on a number of other forums and it seems nearly everyone is being told from the Microsoft licensing that mail servers are outsourced.

However everything else to do with shared hosting they are saying is non-outsourced, like website, DNS, Database, etc.

The problem is that even Microsoft own Licensing Specialists don't understand the SPLA outsourced/non-outsourced licensing.

Microsoft need to sortout their SPLA licensing and stop these sudden changes otherwise people are simply going to stop using Microsoft for hosting and start using Linux instead.

Linux:
Free with simple to understand licensing with no changes

Micosft SPLA
Expensive with very confusing licensing and constant price and licensing changes with no notice

I've already been warned to expect a doubling in the price of the DataCenter version of Windows Server in January, but official word on this will not be till around 15th January. So if you are using DataCenter, like we do for virtual servers, expect a huge price rise in your licensing.

It would be good if SmarterTools could get some clarification on how their software is seen by Microsoft under SPLA as this could servilely impact their sales as most people will be running SmarterMail on a server that is licensed under SPLA and if everyone is having to pay Microsoft £50 ($100) a month for the privileged SmarterMail will be an expensive option.

 Here is the official wording from Microsoft.

How do I know if I am and Outsourcer or Non-Outsourcer?
The definition of Outsourcing is an application or service which a service provider manages on behalf of its customer. For the purposes of this definition, the managed application or service is:

• Used by its customer's employees, contractoers, agents, or vendors, and
• Not the Service Provider's intellectual property

So, for me, it raises my licensing from around $150 a month to over $700 a month. I can no longer afford SmarterMail, SmarterStats, or SmarterTrack. If I want to stay legal, I will muct swich to all Linux hosting otherwise its go out of business. I dont know what Microsoft is thinking but this will put a hurting on all small web hosts.

Hello all -

We think that the issue may not be fully resolved.  We did a bit of reasearch into the new terminology and that lead to a related blog post that you can find here:

http://www.smartertools.com/blog/archive/2009/10/21/understanding-the-new-outsourced-and-non-outsourced-microsoft-spla-licensing-for-windows-server.aspx

The active discussion is vital on this issue.  We look forward to your continued comments.

mikeb@tulsaconnect.com:

I know it says "POP3 mail serving" but I suspect IMAP/WebMail would be permitted as well.

We can only hope!

One option, at least for those of us who have been in SPLA for a while, is to avoid the issue by continuing to use Windows Server 2003 according to the older use rights. But, this option is NOT available to new SPLA members.

"If a Service Provider wants to continue with the pre-July 2009 Windows Server use rights, the Service Provider must:
• Continue offering their software service with that version of Windows Server.
• Continue to report the same stock-keeping units (SKUs) as prior to July 2009."

 Oh good. So Microsoft is encouraging us to not upgrade or add new servers...brilliant!