Effective May 21st, 2009
This policy updates the definition of a "Processor" as outlined in Section 1.6 of the VMWARE MASTER END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT to mean a single, physical chip that houses no more than the number of processor cores as defined by the description of the Software licensed, and set forth in the license portal or applicable documentation for the Software. Your use of the Software is limited to Processor with up to six (6) cores, except for the following Software editions in which your use of the Software is limited to Processor with up to twelve (12) cores: VMware vSphere Advanced and VMware vSphere Enterprise Plus.
This policy update will also be reflected in the next applicable version of the VMWARE MASTER END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT. Unless otherwise modified herein, the remaining terms of the VMWARE MASTER END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT shall remain in full force and effect and in the event of a conflict, the terms in this notice shall control.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a multi-core processor?
Intel and AMD have announced new x86 processors that combine multiple independent central processing units ("cores") on a single silicon chip. These processors, generally referred to as multi-core processors, offer increased performance compared to conventional processor designs. Multi-core processors also reduce heat dissipation, a benefit referred to as "higher performance per watt."
- What benefits should VMware customers expect to see from multi-core processors?
Published performance benchmarks for multi-core systems show significant gains over single-core systems. Each processor core provides a dedicated CPU for one or more virtual machines, increasing the scalability of the VMware virtual infrastructure and offering even more fine-grained resource isolation. Server consolidation in virtual machines particularly benefits from the naturally partitioned processing capacity provided by additional cores. Intel has recently advertised that quad-core systems improve performance by approximately 50% over similar dual-core processors.
- Which VMware products does this affect?
This policy affects products licensed on a per-processor basis. For example vSphere Standard, vSphere Advanced, etc.
- How does this policy affect my licensing costs on servers with less than 6 cores per processor?
When upgrading your hardware to multi-core technology, you do not need to pay additional licensing fees for a processor with up to 6-cores per processor. For example, if you purchase a two-socket server with each socket populated with a 6-core processor, you need to purchase only two processor licenses of VMware vSphere or related products for that server.
- How does this policy affect my licensing costs on servers with 8-cores per processor?
When upgrading your hardware to a server with 8-cores per processor you may upgrade your license or purchase a new license for VMware vSphere Advanced or Enterprise Plus that allows you to deploy the applicable software on up to 12-cores per processor.
- What multi-core server models are supported?
Only servers listed in the Systems Compatibility Guide for VMware vSphere are supported. As VMware certifies additional servers with multi-core processors, they will be added to the Systems Compatibility Guide.
- When did this licensing change become effective?
This licensing policy became effective on May 21st, 2009. Support for specific multi-core processors is effective when servers containing these processors have been certified and added to the relevant Systems Compatibility Guides.
- Does this policy apply to all future multi-core systems? In other words, what happens when greater than 12-core chips are available?
This policy applies only to VMware software editions that define processors as having 6 cores per processor or as having 12 cores per processor. VMware will revisit its licensing policies as x86 processors with a greater number of cores become available.
- If I want to understand more about multi-core technology, where should I go?
Learn more about dual-core technology at http://www.intel.com/technology/advanced_comm/multicore.htm or http://multicore.amd.com/.
