Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct Edition

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Microsoft SQL Server

Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct

Edition
By Mike Chapple
Databases Expert

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Microsofts 2012 release of

the SQL Server 2012
enterprise database
management platform
marks a major evolution in
this popular product. The
new release includes major
feature enhancements to
SQL Servers business
intelligence, auditing and
disaster recovery
functionality, among other

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With the release of SQL Server 2012, Microsoft is taking steps to simplify the
platforms licensing options by retiring the Datacenter Edition, Workgroup Edition
and Small Business Edition previously available for SQL Server 2008 and 2008 R2 .
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http://databases.about.com/od/sqlserver/a/sql_server_2012_licensing.htm

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9/25/2014

Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct Edition

Page 2 of 4

Standard Edition. This means that you

have two choices: purchase per core licenses at $1,793 or purchase a server
license at $898 and client access licenses at $209 per client.
The new SQL Server 2012 Business Intelligence Edition is designed
specifically to support business intelligence applications. It is available only
under a server/CAL licensing model with server licenses costing $8,592 and
client access licenses costing $209 per client.

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SQL Server 2012 Enterprise Edition is designed for mission critical data
center operations and large data warehouses. This edition is being transitioned to
a per-core only licensing model. No new server/CAL licenses for this edition will
be sold after June 2012. The only licensing option available is $6,874 per core
with a maximum of 20 cores.
Developers needing the full features of SQL Server 2012 Enterprise Edition for use
in a non-production environment may find SQL Server 2012 Developer
Edition the right tool for the job. This product has the exact same functionality
as Enterprise Edition and only differs in the license. (Oh, and by the way, its
much cheaper at only $50 per license!) Microsoft also offers a direct upgrade path
to convert Developer servers to production licensing
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SQL Server Licensing: Per Core or Per Server?

If youre planning to use the standard edition of Microsoft SQL Server 2012 in your
environment, you have a major choice to make: should you opt for the per server
licensing or the per core licensing? Either way, this is likely to cause a significant
increase in your licensing fees. Heres the rundown.
The per core licensing option switches from the earlier model of charging per
processor. Many organizations took advantage of this by purchasing multicore
processors and a single license. The license price of $1,793 per core (with a four
core minimum) is designed to be the same cost incurred for a four-core processor
under SQL Server 2008 R2 ($7.171). If youre running four or fewer cores, youll
see no increase under this model. On the other hand, if youre running more than
four cores per processor, youll see a price increase.
The server/CAL licensing option requires a $898 licensing fee per SQL Server.
This is the same as SQL Server 2008 R2. However, youll also need to purchase
client access licenses (CALs) for each client accessing the database. This is where
Microsoft socks you with a major increase. The fee has now increased 27% to
$209 per CAL.
As you can probably tell, you'll need to sit down with a spreadsheet and run some
numbers before making your final SQL Server 2012 licensing decisions. The options
you choose may have a significant impact on your overall database license costs and
should be considered carefully.
That sums up the licensing options available for SQL Server 2012. AsUP
youve
NEXT
discovered, Microsoft offers a wide variety of licenses and choosing the correct one
How to Create Tables in
for your environment can save you thousands of dollars.
Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server

http://databases.about.com/od/sqlserver/a/sql_server_2012_licensing.htm

9/25/2014

Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct Edition

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Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct Edition

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Microsoft SQL Server 2012: Choosing the Correct Edition

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