What is software license management and why is it important? As for most companies is boils down to resources and how they are managed. Software license management refers to the processes and tools used to document and track an organizations software portfolio. These tools and procedures also ensure compliances with said products End-User License Agreement (EULA). Typically, a EULA will specify how a software product may be used and the penalties for not following them. Which leads us back to software license management and the reasons it is important.
There are many of reasons why software license compliance is important. Which include:
- If audited you will spend the time to inventory all usage of software and prove compliance. This will mean either overtime or delays in projects.
- If an organization is out of compliance, they have to True-Up their licenses. Which can means purchasing any under licensed software usually at book price. In some instances, fees or penalties are assessed.
- Any bad news can and does affect a company’s reputation. That could mean a loss off an important sale or losing an important job candidate to another competitor.
We can all agree that based on the amount of time, money and resources at stake that software license compliance is important. The good news it is not difficult to achieve. A few key things are needed:
- Policies and procedures: Which define the how, when, and what regarding software license usage and compliance for your organization.
- Inventory discovery tool. A tool to discover all software on all devices in your organization. This tool should be able to automatically scan and report all installed instances of software.
- IT Asset Management. A repository to track the lifecycle of software from deployment to retirement. Which should include dates of warranties or maintenance, number of license, types of license, and reporting capabilities.
With a little planning and the right tools software license management does not have to be difficult, time consuming or expensive. If you were considering managing your software license portfolio, I would invite you to look at our KACE Systems Management Appliance. It features a full range of Unified endpoint management features including software discovery, inventory, and asset management capabilities.
