License Harvesting

Maximize Existing Licenses, Avoid Over-licensing

Keep Software in Check with License Harvesting

Software represents one of the largest IT budget items for most organizations, so managing the number of applications and licenses in use on the network is critical. It’s common to find that an organization has software licenses installed that are not being used to their full potential (or at all), while there are users requesting licenses for the same application.

An organization can end up with surplus licenses in a number of ways, including:

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Over-purchasing due to poorly controlled request/approval/provisioning and procurement processes

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Licenses assigned to users who have left the organization

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Software installed on machines and devices that have been retired or put into storage mode

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Virtual environments that are no longer in use but have not been properly shut down

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IT activities and projects that required a license during a particular time period but for which the license is no longer needed.

With license harvesting, unused and underutilized software licenses can be automatically reclaimed. These licenses can be reassigned and made available to other users who have requested them, eliminating unnecessary purchases. This alone can have a tremendous impact on software costs and required maintenance, optimizing your total software portfolio budget. Licenses may also be retired if appropriate.

Eracent simplifies and automates the license harvesting processes, helping your organization realize the greatest possible benefit.

Software Utilization monitoring identifies licenses that are candidates for harvesting. This function keeps management informed of what software is really being used by individuals, departments and entire business units.
Flexible Workflow facilitates automatic harvesting of licenses, with options to enable users to initiate software removal or to have the system enforce rule- and threshold-based harvesting. Manual software removals can be greatly reduced or completely eliminated.
The Software Reclamation Savings dashboard details the status of your software reclamation process by Publisher. You can define what level of usage is considered enough – application by application – to warrant keeping a full license. The dashboard provides visibility by showing the following information:

Product Name and Version
Number of Reclaimed Licenses
Number of Licenses Still to be Reclaimed
Cost Savings to Date
Unrealized Savings (opportunities to save more)

Software license harvesting is one of the SAM processes that can result in the biggest cost savings. It should be an integral piece of any Software Asset Management Program.