Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Hosting Security and Technology : Confused about MS SQL pricing...

[DaveNET]

Hi,

I look around and see all kinds of prices for MS SQL server. Anywhere from less than $1000 to over $5000 and even more.

If I am running Windows 2003 and want to give clients MS SQL, what version do I need and how much will it cost me?

[monaghan]

Is this for your own server or a leased server ? If it's leased, then you can probably get a leased copy from your provider at a reduced rate as they'll probably qualify for bulk pricing. If it's your own server, then the DC may be able to cut you a deal, if not then you'll need a retail copy, Google for the best deal you can find.

Ideally you want MS-SQL on it's own box rather than shared with a general hosting box. You also need to have a full version of Windows, not the cheaper web hosting edition. You want the box ideally in the same rack or at least on the same LAN segment.

I would guess you'll be OK with SQL Standard Edition (unless you have need of major OLAP capability - unlikely in a web hosting environment). You will however need to buy the "per processor" license if the box is in a shared environment such as providing a database back end for a web site.

If you install MS-SQL on the same box as your shared hosting, then make sure you cap it's memory use as MS-SQL will consume your memory. You'll need to know how your box is performing in order to set this (you can leave the system alone to manage this, but experience suggests you should set a fixed memory size or have a dedicated SQL box for best performance)

[MatthewN]

Hello,
You will need to look in to SPLA. It's $185/Mo I believe. Currently the links to the MS site do not load though... so once MS fix the links you should be able to read up about it and the requirements.

I believe SPLA is the only option if this is in a hosting environment.

[DaveNET]

Hi,

The thing that is confusing was all the various options. There's MS SQL standard edition with 5 CALS ($1380), with 10 CALS, for 1 Processor ($5,000), etc.

Which 'edition' would you get? Let's say I wanted to have it on a single server along with the hosting setup, Windows 2003, etc. This would be for 1 client on a dedicated machine, not for a shared setup.

I guess leasing is another option, but I'm sure the price will be determined by the version as well.

[MatthewN]

I dont believe you can buy a licence like that for the hosting environment. You need to go for the SPLA from what I have been told. This is $185/Mo for Standard from memory.

[monaghan]

Your best bet is to read up at www.microsoft.com/sql they have all the details on SQL server there.

You can't use a "per user CAL" license on any system where you can't tie the use down to a trackable CAL. Any user gaining access via a shared medium such as web client or other nTier system requires a per processor license.

You can choose to purchase this retail or license it per month if your DC offers this.

For a single client, this is going to be a very expensive solution. I'd seriously consider whether they actually need MS-SQL as they can probably do most database work using MySQL which significiantly less to license (or GPL if you are happy without a support contract)

[KDAWebServices]

Alex - You cannot use a retail copy to offer hosting services with, the same as you can't use a retail box of Win2k3 etc. to offer hosting services with. You need SPLA licensing like Stormhosts has mentioned twice.

[monaghan]

That's interesting, there's no mention of this at all in the "Choosing an Edition of SQL Server 2000" document on the MS SQL website. I must admit that most of my MS-SQL experience has been on corporate licenses, however some of these systems are Internet connected with web front ends.

So if I buy a server, buy a full SQL Sever per processor license and a full Windows 2003 license, a copy of Plesk or Helm, install it in a datacenter & accept hosting on the box, I'm in violation of MS's license agreements ?

[sunpost]

Originally posted by monaghan
So if I buy a server, buy a full SQL Sever per processor license and a full Windows 2003 license, a copy of Plesk or Helm, install it in a datacenter & accept hosting on the box, I'm in violation of MS's license agreements ? [/B]

Yes.
http://www.microsoft.com/serviceprov...g/compare.mspx

[monaghan]

Well that's nicely hidden away, I guess there's probably a lot of license violations then. You'd have thought that they'd have put this into the actual product pages as well as the SPLA pages to assist their customer in making the right decision regarding license selection.

I knew there was another reason why I prefer open source

[sunpost]

If you already bought a license, ask them for credit toward your account when signing the SPLA.

Some open source licensing can be tricky too, especially the MS open source projects

[monaghan]

The only licenses I have are developer (MSDN) licenses within my internal network. I only have a very small Windows hosting requirement at present.

I've done a lot of MS-SQL work, but not on my production boxes.