SharePoint On-Premises – What is Server / CAL (Client Access License) licensing model

Hi All,

Greetings for the day!!! LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL 🙂

Today new small topic – discussing SharePoint On-Prem server licensing model

Background :

My manager asked me regarding CAL for SharePoint. Since I was also not aware so research, understanding and sharing.

Take away from this article

• Understanding SharePoint On-Premises server licensing model
• What is CAL
• Types of CAL
• Example to understand

How SharePoint On-Premises server licensing works

• Microsoft licenses SharePoint Server under the Server/Client Access License (CAL) licensing model.
• The Server/CAL licensing model requires both
  • a server license for each copy of the server – means SharePoint server installed on each Web Front End (WEB) server in my SharePoint farm
  • CALs for the users (or devices) that access that software.

What is CAL

• CAL – Client Access License
• Cost per user licensing for SharePoint On-Prem intranet applications
• Each user represents 1 CAL
• If 1 user is accessing application from two devices, then two CAL will require
• CALs are generally required for internal users to access all SharePoint Server software
• This licensing scheme is only for internal users (intranet applications) – not for external users and Internet sites / public facing sites (anonymous users)

Types of CAL

• Standard CAL
  • The core functionality is linked to Standard CAL
• Enterprise CAL
  • If the extended functionality like Business solutions (Ex – Access or InfoPath services) or Business Intelligence (Ex – Power View, Performance Point services, Visio Services) required
  • SharePoint Enterprise CAL is additive: to access the Enterprise edition features of SharePoint, a person/device must have both the SharePoint Standard CAL and the SharePoint Enterprise CAL

Example

Suppose we have 100 users accessing our SharePoint server and cost of standard CAL is $200 then
Total Cost = SharePoint Server Cost + Cost for 100 CAL (100 * $200)

Scenario

I have SharePoint 2019 farm having 2 WFEs and 1000 users are accessing
Calculating total cost –
2 SharePoint 2019 server cost + Cost for 100 CAL (user-based licensing cost)

Important Point: This cost doesn’t include – Hardware Cost, Operational Cost, Disaster Recovery Cost, or any Setup Cost

Thanks for reading the article !!! Please feel free to discuss in case any issues / suggestions / thoughts / questions !!!

HAVE A GREAT TIME AHEAD !!! LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL 🙂