What are the different types of software licenses ?

Every business uses software for managing business processes, communicating with employees, vendors, and customers, and for various other purposes. In most cases, software products need activating licenses and agreeing to all the present terms and conditions before downloading, installing and accessing the software. 

In addition, most Software Licenses come with an expiry date. This creates the need for license management software to manage the licenses of the software.

Companies and developers use software licensing to define all of the end user’s rights clearly. Furthermore, these agreements protect the intellectual property of the developers. Also, it protects the application as well the source code of the software. 

It happens from activities such as redistribution, modification and reuse. Various types of software licenses available have different terms and conditions, restrictions, support agreements and costs. 

Every user must understand the fundamentals of software licenses to ensure a complete understanding of compliance and responsibilities along with legal terms and limitations. 

Among the best ways for companies to avoid the costs of software that is not being used and some legal fines is by having a powerful license management software capability.

What is referred to as Software License Management?

Software license management, also known as SLM, is part of the entire software asset management capability. This involves the entire process of documenting, reducing, and controlling the total Information Technology costs. 

Precisely software license management is a plan that helps businesses to monitor and maintain their license management software.

Different types of Software Licenses

Effectively all software available in the market has some license with it. Whether the software program is a segment of the complex data center infrastructure or directly installed on a digital device or a desktop, it has a license. 

Therefore, the initial step individuals require to take up in license management is understanding the contractual terms linked to the licenses the organizations are using.

The types of licenses vary by platform and are standardized to a certain extent. Nevertheless, they differ in a company’s and the vendor’s negotiated contracts. The different types are:

Per-user: This type is restricted to any one specific individual who can access it on several devices such as laptops or desktops. It requires the individual to log in to confirm their identity.

Per device or CPU: This type is intended only for a single machine. This can either be a data center device or an end-user.

Per Subscription: This type is managed by taking up a subscription for the device or the user. And primarily, it comes with an expiry date.

General Public License: This type covers the software that comes without any charges, and thus it can be copied, shared, modified and used for free. In short, it is freeware.

Per network: This type covers all the devices and systems available on any specific network.

Database: Although often connected to machines, licensing database type requires special consideration due to the high cost and critical licensing builds that varies by vendor. It might include several cores or servers running compared to installed databases.

To Conclude

Whether a start-up or a multinational company, strong and secured asset management is essential for the business and the budget. 

By following proper license management software, an individual can very soon adapt to the market requirements and thus maximize the business revenues. Finally, an essential factor is that it helps in maintaining compliance and ensuring protection for individual assets and business reputation.