InfoWorld SMB Blog » Microsoft Rolls Out Windows Server Bundle For Medium Size Companies

July 07, 2005 | Comments: (0)

Microsoft Rolls Out Windows Server Bundle For Medium Size Companies

TAGS: None

Declaring it represents the sweet spot in the market for many of its technologies, Microsoft on Thursday unveiled its first Windows server bundle aimed specifically at mid-market companies and those business partners specializing in selling to them.

Appropriately called the Windows Server System offering, the bundle is made up of three copies of Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition, one copy of Exchange Server 2003 Standard Edition, and one copy of the Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) 2005 Workgroup Edition. The offering includes 50 new combinations of promotional Client Access Licenses (CAL) for Windows Server 2003 and Exchange Server 2003, which can serve to help IT managers with budget planning through more predictable licensing, according to company officials.

The goal of the product is to help mid-size accounts, typically burdened with fewer resources and personnel than their large enterprise counterparts, supply IT professionals with a simplified way to manage their infrastructure, improve security and, as always, reduce costs and complexity.

“Midsized businesses tend to characterize themselves by the industry they are in, not the technologies they need and use,” said Steven Van Roekel, Director of Mid-Market Solutions in the Windows Server Group at Microsoft. This promotion, we think, finally allows them how to view IT as a strategic investment,” he said.

Along with the bundle, Microsoft also announced a Website within TechNet, called the Midsized Business IT Center, which will offer up technical information and other resources for IT professionals and business partners. Most of the technical will help with deploying and managing servers, applications and security technologies.

"Our goal with the Web site is to take the content we have today and transform it in a way that is more applicable to customers. For instance, we will actually tell customers how to think about installing these three servers in terms of the first things they should do. We think it can be a checklist of things they need to consider," Van Roekel said.

So as to distinguish it from the Microsoft Small Business Server, licensing in the new offering starts at a minimum of 75 seats. Company officials determined the 75 figure based on feedback from both mid-size companies and resellers.

"What we hear loud and clear is there is a very distinct line drawn between users using or partners selling Small Business Server to accounts with 75 connections or less. Above 75 you start having to sell things like ala carte servers and other technologies beyond just Small Business Server. Crossing over that line changes the conversation from selling just one technology to selling five or six," Van Roekel said.

Along with the software bundle and Web site Microsoft is also making several other resources and tools available including the Microsoft Security Assessment Tool, which helps mid-size companies better assess security vulnerabilities within their environment, the Microsoft TCO Assessment Tool that offers financial analysis that examines operational spending, and the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 2.0, a tool to help mid-size companies determine their state of security.

The Windows Server System will be offered at 20 per cent off Open License prices, according to company officials, and will be available in the U.S. in August and in Asia starting in September.

Posted by Ed Scannell on July 7, 2005 07:03 AM

RATE THIS ARTICLE: