How to get the most out of your Oracle licensing management

Oracle’s software licensing has become complex over recent years due to the new products and business acquisitions made by Oracle. For this reason, when managing your Oracle licenses, it is important for you to make things as simple as possible and to understand how Oracle licensing applies to the way in which you use their software.

The aim of this article is to help you get the most out of your Oracle licensing management. 

Oracle licensing management based on your work environment

Depending on the type of environment you are using Oracle software in, there are different ways Oracle licensing will work.

Development

You are allowed to use Oracle products within a development environment, as long as you agree to the terms of the OTN Development License.

This is a limited license that gives the user the right to develop using Oracle, but NOT deploy applications.

You may not use the licensed products under the OTN Development License in connection with any form of activity outside of development.

To use the software outside of the development environment, you must purchase the correct licenses to make full use of the software.

Test

Any Oracle applications used within a test environment must be licensed under the Oracle License and Services Agreement.

Production

This relates to end users for your organisation. All applications used within a production environment must be licensed under the Oracle License and Services Agreement, or another appropriate Oracle license agreement.

Oracle Support Services

Aside from making sure you have the right type of Oracle License for the work environment you are in, another way to make the most of Oracle licensing management is to use their support services.

If a user purchases a perpetual license (not a subscription license) then the licensee can pay an annual fee for support, which gives you the right to contact Oracle directly for support.

This means that if you have any problem with the software or licensing, you can resolve the problem quickly with their assistance.

With a perpetual license you should be able to use the latest version of Oracle software, as well as all previous versions that are still supported by Oracle. However it is worth checking the terms and conditions of the agreement, as there are agreements where this is not the case and you may find yourself faced with costly restrictions.

Once the subscription or perpetual license period ends, so does your access to Oracle’s support.

The main support service they offer is through the Oracle License Management Services.

The aim of Oracle LMS is to help support customers with the proper and effective management of their software licenses.

This includes:

• Helping you to understand Oracle ownership rights and limitations.
  • Being a source of education on Oracle licensing and best practices.
  • To help you monitor Oracle license usage.
  • To help you plan and budget accordingly for your Oracle licenses.
  • To reduce your long-term Oracle license spend.

These services make Oracle License Management Services incredibly useful.

If you want to learn more about Oracle Licensing you can read more about it here.