Software license metrics
Summarize
Summary of Software License Metrics
Software license metrics in ServiceNow are defined within software entitlements and are essential for software license reconciliation. These metrics vary by publisher and metric group, enabling customers to manage licensing according to specific software vendor models. ServiceNow supports standard and custom license metrics, which can be enhanced using the Resource Value table to correlate consumption data with license requirements.
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Publisher packs for Adobe, Citrix, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, and VMware provide specialized license metric sets tailored to each vendor’s licensing models. SaaS License Management extends capabilities with Subscription and Consumption metric groups. Customers can view detailed metric descriptions directly within software entitlements for clarity.
Key Features
- Custom and Standard Metrics: Customers can use out-of-the-box license metrics or create custom ones. The Resource Value table supports detailed consumption-based calculations.
- Publisher Packs: Installed packs enable metrics specific to vendors such as Adobe, Citrix, IBM (including Red Hat), Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, and VMware, aligning with their licensing rules and reconciliation processes.
- Metric Groups and Examples:
- Adobe: Metrics include Per Device, Per User, and User Subscription, with detailed handling of subscription states during reconciliation.
- Citrix: Metrics cover Concurrent User, Per Device, Per Processor, Per User, and Per User/Device, requiring discovery setup for accurate data collection.
- Common Metrics: Include Per Core, Per Named User/Device, User CAL, Device CAL, and Resource Consumption for CAL reconciliation.
- Concurrent Licenses: Used with specific plugins and integrations to manage floating, token, and network licenses based on peak concurrent usage.
- Consumption Metrics: Available through SaaS License Management, licensing organizations based on consumption units for SaaS products.
- IBM: Extensive metrics including Authorized User, Employee User, Processor Value Units (PVU), Resource Value Units (RVU), and Virtual Processor Core (VPC) for detailed IBM license compliance.
- Microsoft: Metrics like Device CAL, Per Core (consolidated from previous variants), Per Processor, and User Subscription support comprehensive license tracking.
- Oracle: Metrics include Named User Plus, Per Processor, and Employee licensing for internal and external users, with configurable reconciliation aggregation.
- Red Hat: Metrics focus on Per Socket-pair and Per Core licensing for physical and virtual environments.
- SAP: Named User, Engine Measurement, Digital Access, and Full Usage Equivalent (FUE) metrics support SAP licensing models, including indirect usage tracking.
- Subscription Metrics: User Subscription metrics track active user subscriptions under SaaS License Management.
- VMware: Metrics such as Per Application Instance, Per Device, Per Named User, Per OSI, Per Processor, and Per Core accommodate VMware’s diverse product licensing.
- Unlimited Licenses: Enable entitlements with unlimited allocations and rights, allowing unlimited installations without true-up costs.
Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers
- Accurately align license entitlements with vendor licensing models, reducing compliance risks and audit exposure.
- Use detailed reconciliation insights to optimize license consumption and minimize unnecessary expenditures.
- Customize license metrics and leverage consumption data for precise licensing of complex environments, including SaaS, virtual, and concurrent usage scenarios.
- Integrate publisher-specific packs to manage vendor-specific licensing nuances effectively.
- Leverage unlimited license options to simplify licensing for widely deployed software without incurring additional true-up costs.
License metrics are set in software entitlements and used for reconciliation in various metric groups and software model combinations.
Each metric group has a set of license metrics that are specific to the publisher.
You can view the Metric Attributes related list in software models to set the attribute value. For more information, see Software model fields.
You can also add custom license metrics. For more information, see Add a custom license metric. You can use the Resource Value [samp_sw_resource_value] table to enhance the custom license metric capability by doing a 1:1 calculation between the Unit consumption column in the Resource Value [samp_sw_resource_value] table and the Licenses required column in the License Metric Results [samp_license_metric_result] table.
Adobe, Citrix, IBM (includes both IBM and Red Hat), Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, and VMware publisher packs are available as add-ons. They provide the capability to manage software licensed under the publisher licensing models.
Installing SaaS License Management adds the Subscription and Consumption metric groups.
You can view descriptions of your license metrics by selecting the reference icon next to the License metric field in your software entitlements.
| Metric group | License metric |
|---|---|
| Adobe
Note: Adobe license metrics are visible only if the Adobe publisher pack is installed. |
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| Citrix
Note: Citrix license metrics are visible only if the Citrix publisher pack is installed. A discovery process is required for Citrix data to be collected. Admin users must create a Discovery schedule to run on the Citrix Delivery Controller for communication with the Citrix License Server. See for information on the Citrix discovery pattern and tables. |
|
| Common |
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| Concurrent Licenses Note: Concurrent Licenses license metrics are visible only if the Software Asset Management Professional for Engineering Applications (sn_samp_eng_app) plugin is activated along with OpenLM and Open iT integration. |
These licenses are based on the number of simultaneous users or devices accessing the software.
|
| Consumption Note: Consumption license metrics are visible only if the SaaS License Management is installed. |
SaaS Consumption: Licenses an organization based on the unit of measure for the software units that can be consumed. |
| CrowdStrike |
Note:
These license metrics are available with Yokohama Patch 1, Software Asset Management - SaaS License Management (sn_sam_saas_int) 15.0.8, and Software Asset Management (sn_itam_samp) 2.1.0 version onwards. If you are on any version for Yokohama below Patch 1, refer KB1801232. |
| IBM
Note: IBM license metrics are visible only if the IBM publisher pack is installed. |
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| Microsoft
Note: Microsoft license metrics are visible only if the Microsoft publisher pack is installed. |
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| Oracle
Note: Oracle license metrics are visible only if the Oracle publisher pack is installed. |
Note: You can select the level of aggregation for the reconciliation calculation of VMware -based Oracle instances using the com.snc.samp.oracle.reconlevel property. See Software Asset Management properties. |
| Red Hat Note: Red Hat license metrics are visible only if the IBM publisher pack is installed. |
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| SAP
Note: SAP license metrics are visible only if the SAP publisher pack is installed. |
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| Subscription Note: Subscription license metrics are visible only if the SaaS License Management is installed. |
User Subscription: Licenses for the number of users. |
| VMware
Note: VMware license metrics are visible only if the VMware publisher pack is installed. |
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