There’s an updated (June 2022) Microsoft 365 E3 – Unattended Licensing Brief. This document helps you to understand how the Microsoft 365 E3 – Unattended licence allows a bot to run repetitive tasks in a Windows client/Office app without user intervention, with a useful FAQ section at the end.
This updated version has minor changes updating it for Windows 11, and you can find it here: https://bit.ly/3QcSijt.
Microsoft announced back in August 2021 that Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Plan 1 would be available in a couple of different ways (see our blog: https://bit.ly/3LsJmF5).
Here’s the update: in November 2021 it was made available as a separate SKU for use on up to 5 devices for $3 per user per month – this is the announcement with a useful chart comparing it to Plan 2: https://bit.ly/3u4quG7. And the second part of the plan came together in January 2022 with Defender for Endpoint Plan 1 now being automatically included in Microsoft 365 E3 licences, and you can find that announcement here: https://bit.ly/33VsPbN.
Microsoft announce that Windows Virtual Desktop is now Azure Virtual Desktop. There are a whole host of new features in preview, as well as a new licensing option. Historically, users licensed with Microsoft 365 E3/E5/F3/Business Premium or Windows 10 E3/E5 or Windows 10 VDA E3/E5 licenses have rights to the service for virtual desktops and apps. Now, there’s a per user option for external users which is a monthly per user price of $5.50 for apps, or $10 for apps + desktops, with a no-cost promotional period from 14 July, 2021 to 31 December, 2021.
Find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/3v4aa56.
There’s an updated (November 2020) Microsoft 365 E3 – Unattended Licensing Brief.
This document helps you to understand how the Microsoft 365 E3 – Unattended licence allows a bot to run repetitive tasks in a Windows client/Office app without user intervention. The document has a useful FAQ section at the end and this new version adds a few additional questions clarifying the requirement for the licence in situations where there is already a Windows licence and for scenarios where third party providers are implementing unattended scenarios.
Find this updated document here: https://bit.ly/37mfx7n.
Microsoft announce a new flavour of Microsoft 365 E3 – one that you can assign to a Bot to run repetitive tasks without user intervention.
The May 2020 Online Services Terms gives the low-down on the licensing: the Bot may use the suite in a physical or virtual machine including Windows Virtual Desktop, licence reassignment follows the same rules as if the Bot were a (real) user, and it’s an (illegal) multiplexing scenario if the Bot carries out activities on behalf of an unlicensed user or device.
Find the announcement here: https://bit.ly/3d9zqhW, and get the current Online Services Terms here: http://bit.ly/MSproductterms.
Microsoft announce that they will not now remove the special Office Professional Plus installation rights that customers are currently entitled to with Microsoft 365 E3 and E5 From SA licences. The current rights are detailed on page 54 of the May 2019 Product Terms, and this announcement confirms that the rights are here to stay rather than being removed after 1st August 2019: http://bit.ly/2W7q4PN.
Microsoft’s December 2018 Licensing News article has three topics of interest covering Microsoft 365 licensing updates. Firstly, EA and MPSA customers can now take advantage of a single SKU for Microsoft 365 which means that they see a single item in their Admin Centers and License Summaries, rather than seeing Office 365, Windows and EMS as separate components.
Secondly, there’s details of Microsoft’s new Home Use Program offer. Historically, HUP has been a Software Assurance benefit where users of devices licensed with Office + SA could purchase Office for their home PCs at a heavily discounted price. That benefit still exists for Office 2019 but the article reveals that this will come to an end on 30 June, 2019.
The new HUP offer allows individuals to purchase Office 365 Home or Office 365 Personal annual subscriptions at a 30% discount. This is available to customers who have Office with Software Assurance but is also available to customers who qualify with a certain number of Office 365/Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 licences: 2,000 for commercial organisations, and 13,000 for education or charity institutions.
Now, this isn’t available worldwide yet and although you can see it’s live in most countries (see the UK site here, for example http://bit.ly/2B6guQG), the article states that China and Japan will have this benefit on 1 April, 2019, and if you check out the US site (http://bit.ly/2sOPW1Q) there’s a message telling you that the US launch will be in early 2019.
And finally, there’s an update on the dual use rights available when a customer has a Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 From SA licence. Currently there are special rights detailed in the Product Terms which allow customers to install “traditional” Office Professional Plus as well as Office 365 ProPlus. The article states that these rights will be removed from 1 August, 2019 so customers renewing agreements after that date will no longer be entitled to the special installation rights.
Find the December 2018 Licensing News article here: http://bit.ly/2R3bV2u.