Microsoft Licensing
Microsoft licensing is deliberately confusing, and most businesses are either paying for seats nobody uses or missing a plan that would save them money. GravIT works out what each person actually needs, supplies it, and stays accountable for it, including the discounted pricing not-for-profits and schools are entitled to. You don't need to learn the product names; that's our job.
Microsoft does not have one licensing model. It has several.
Once you step outside the familiar per-person subscription, the unit of measure changes depending on what you are buying, and that, rather than the price list, is what catches businesses out. Four counting methods do most of the damage.
- Counted per person
The licence follows the human being, across whatever devices they use. This is the model everybody knows, and the one people assume applies to everything else.
Simple, and the reason the other three come as a surprise. - Counted per device
The licence belongs to the machine, and anyone who sits at it is covered. Shared workstations, a terminal on a factory floor, a machine three shifts take turns on.
Frequently cheaper where many people share few machines, and routinely forgotten, because most businesses do not know it is an option. - Counted per core, plus everyone who connects
Server licensing works on two axes at once: the server itself is licensed by its processor cores, and then every user or device that connects to it needs its own access licence on top.
The one with real audit exposure. Businesses under-license this without ever intending to, usually by adding staff over several years and never revisiting what the server was licensed for. - Counted once, for the organisation
Some things are bought at the level of the business rather than the head, and a few are consumption-based, where the bill follows usage rather than a seat count.
Hard to forecast, easy to leave running. Worth a set of eyes on the invoice rather than an assumption.
Mixing those up is how a business ends up simultaneously over-licensed on the desktops and under-licensed on the server, paying too much and carrying a compliance risk at the same time. Neither shows up until somebody looks, or until somebody asks.
Looking for the per-person plans instead? That is Microsoft 365, which is a different conversation with a different answer.
What we do
- Whatever you actually need. The Microsoft catalogue runs well past the three plans most businesses know about, into business intelligence, workflow, project and design tools, and the enterprise plans. We work out which of it you need and which you can skip.
- Not-for-profit pricing. Eligible organisations get heavily discounted or donated licensing. We check your eligibility and set it up properly.
- Education pricing. Schools and training organisations have their own price book. Same story.
- One bill, local support. Licences come through us with a Geelong team behind them, instead of a credit card and a support portal.
The licence review
Send us what you are paying for and we will read it against what you actually run. The recurring findings are a server licensed for the headcount you had three years ago, a specialist tool bought for a whole team when two people open it, and licences still being paid for on hardware that was retired. It is the least glamorous thing we do and it regularly pays for itself in the first year. Where the answer is that you are correctly licensed and paying a fair price, that is what we will tell you.
What's included
- Licence review and right-sizing
- Supply and billing through GravIT
- Not-for-profit eligibility and setup
- Education pricing
- Changes handled as staff come and go
Frequently asked questions
Why buy licences through GravIT instead of direct from Microsoft?
Same licences, but you get someone local who knows your setup, one invoice for everything, and a person to ring when something needs changing, whether that is adding a starter, retiring a leaver, or working out why a feature is missing.
Can you tell us if we're over-licensed?
Yes, and it's usually the fastest saving available. Departed staff still licensed, mailboxes that should be shared rather than paid for, and people on a higher plan than their job needs are the three we find most.
Is our charity eligible for discounted licensing?
Quite possibly. Registered not-for-profits can access donated or heavily discounted Microsoft plans. We check eligibility, register you, and set the tenancy up so the grant is actually usable.
Do schools get different pricing?
Yes. Education has its own price book, and it is substantially cheaper. We handle the eligibility and the setup the same way.
We only need the basics. Is that fine?
Completely. Most businesses need three plans and nothing else, and we will tell you so. The point of this service is not selling you more. See Microsoft 365 for the everyday plans.
Stop paying for seats nobody uses
Send us the licence list. We'll tell you what it should look like.