Licence Dashboard FAQs

Licence Dashboard - the leading supplier of software licence management tools - Frequently Asked Questions

  • Why do I need Licence Dashboard when I have already invested heavily in a Software Asset Management System?

    Choosing the appropriate Software Asset Management tools is fundamental to the success of the programme. However, the tools requirements should not be considered in isolation, but in conjunction with the overall requirement for management tools within IT and procurement. This will ensure that all SAM processes are fully integrated with all the IT and financial management tools and all aspects of SAM will have been implemented and adopted effectively.

    The basis of any good Software Asset Management programme is to keep accurate and up-to-date software licence information, together with processes for controlling and maintaining its accuracy. Having comprehensive software licence management tools, such as Licence Dashboard, to store this information is essential. Not only does this allow you to archive effectively but it also allows you to publish this information when required and clearly balance the equation between what you have installed and what you are entitled to install.

    Potentially, therefore, software licence management tools are one of the most important aspects of an Software Asset Management implementation and can eliminate overspend and reduce instances of buying too many licences, the wrong licences or not buying enough.

  • Can Licence Dashboard manage the full life cycle of software and the associated licences?

    With Licence Dashboard organisations can effectively and automatically control the entire lifecycle of their software assets from purchase, to upgrade and beyond.

    With its easy-to-use interface, authorised users can take full control of software and licence inventories, combining all licence entitlement and software inventory information into a single reporting tool.

  • What functionality is available in Licence Dashboard that is not available in my Software Asset Management tool?

    Licence Dashboard has been designed purposely to extend the Software Asset Management functionality and provide additional software licence management capability. For example, the Licence Dashboard, using a single interface, can report the organisation’s compliance status, highlighting what the organisation is entitled to install, how many times it has been installed or used, how many licences are still available and which software is non-compliant

    In addition, it can aggregate the organisation’s installation rights by business unit/purchase centre, thus enabling organisations with multiple entities to publish their compliance status individually or globally, whilst recording and tracking all licence types, such as concurrency, value units, processor, MIPs, client access licences, named users and site licences and many more. This includes managing usage information for Terminal Services, Citrix, Oracle, Midrange and Mainframe systems.

  • How can I save money by implementing the Licence Dashboard?

    Gartner, the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company, estimates that organisations that begin an IT and Software Asset Management (IT&SAM) programme experience up to a 30% reduction in cost per asset in the first year and continued savings of 5 to 10% annually over the next five years.

    With software taking up an ever increasing share of your IT budget, it has become even more important to manage, control and protect your software assets. Having a greater understanding of your licence position and being able to track what software you have deployed can definitely help you avoid unnecessary expenditure. Implementing a Licence Dashboard can, therefore, reduce costs without necessarily reducing your IT assets.

  • I have limited knowledge and experience about licensing, how can Licence Dashboard help?

    Licence Dashboard’s built in licence knowledge helps organisations control the complex behaviour of the licence evidence and automatically aggregates your licence entitlement, ensuring that all licence constraints and dependencies have been correctly adhered to. In addition, comprehensive audit trails are available illustrating the references between base licences, upgrades and maintenance renewals.

  • Our organisation is spend more and more time managing licences, how will the Licence Dashboard reduce administrative time and cost?

    Licence Dashboard’s comprehensive functionality removes the complexity of licensing and really allows an organisation to manage fully the software and licence entitlement lifecycle – thereby reducing operational risk and excessive spend within the organisation.

    In addition, utilising the in-built business logic, Licence Dashboard helps reduce operational costs by streamlining and controlling the lifecycle processes, thereby increasing valuable IT resource availability and productivity.

  • Can I evaluate the Licence Dashboard?

    Yes. The evaluation copy of Licence Dashboard will allow you to experience the rich functionality and unique management information that the software provides in the area of licence management. You can request a copy now.

  • Can the licence Dashboard manage complex agreements such as a Microsoft Enterprise Agreement and can it assist with my annual True Ups?

    Yes, Licence Dashboard has a unique and comprehensive Contract Inventory that allows organisations to effectively manage their fixed term agreements, including distributing entitlement to multiple legal entities and reporting the net effect required for True Ups.

  • Licensing is confusing and requires the continued assistance of a licence expert, how can Licence Dashboard help?

    From a single view within Licence Dashboard, an administrator can report exactly what the organisation is allowed to install, determine how many licences have been allocated, verify how many licences are still available and be alerted to any maintenance renewals which are due. This unique report enables organisations to manage day-to-day licensing chores without the user having to be a Licence Specialist. It also provides greater clarity – putting you in a better negotiating position and promoting more informed purchasing decisions.

  • I have purchased a asset inventory tool and I am now wading through thousands of software products trying to determine which is licensable, how can Licence Dashboard help with this mammoth task?

    As most organisations have already experienced, asset inventory tools are generally designed and implemented to assist in managing an organisation’s technical attributes and not licence compliance per se. Most of these asset inventory tools are excellent at scanning the network for hardware and software information – manipulating this software information into a format that enables you to identify your licensable products, however, can become a nightmare.

    Licence Dashboard’s Data Cleanse module extends the software recognition process and then further distils the scanned software, highlighting the associated licence liability of all installed products. This type of transparency and control will not only prevent over deployment of software, but can also help reduce the overhead required to track and monitor its usage and liability.

  • Why can I not just use a spreadsheet to track my licences entitlement and compliance status?

    Without a comprehensive licence management tool, the function of managing licences essentially becomes a manual process, one which is prone to error, complacency and eventually leads to regression. Most organisations, end up using a number of spreadsheets to manage and track their entitlement; these documents become difficult to summarise and make it almost impossible to demonstrate effective audit trails which outline the allocation of upgrade paths and maintenance agreements.

  • Can you provide a summary of what the business benefits of implementing the Licence Dashboard are?

    Licence Dashboard’s comprehensive functionality removes the complexity of licensing and really allows an organisation to manage fully the software and licence entitlement lifecycle – thereby reducing operational risk and excessive spend within the organisation. However, in addition, Licence Dashboard can also provide the following business benefits:

    • Provide continued clarity that puts you in a better negotiating position
    • Promotes more informed purchasing decisions
    • Minimises unnecessary overspend on software
    • Improves strategic infrastructure planning
    • Prevents over deployment of software thus reducing operational costs
    • Reduced hardware costs
    • Improves software purchasing arrangements
    • Promotes better quality decision making
    • Increases valuable IT resource availability and productivity



 

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