On Fri, Jun 15, 2007 at 11:12:57AM -0500, Mark Stapleton wrote:
> From: ADSM: Dist Stor Manager on behalf of Justin Miller
> Not to rain on your parade or anything but in talking to my IBM rep she
> told me that the licensing strategy is indeed changing with the 5.4
> release but not for the better in my opinion.  Now instead of basing it on
> the number of CPU's that you have, it will now be based upon the type of
> CPU you have.  Each CPU type will have a certain number of "value units"
> assigned to it and you have to purchase the value units in something like
> blocks of 10 so that you end up with enough to cover the type of CPU you
> are using.  Sounds fun doesn't it?  Obviously their way of getting you for
> have CPU's with multiple cores.

I think this is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard, and I think it
is fair time for TSM customers to stand up and say no.  IBM has been making
it harder and harder for GOOD customers to justify purchasing this product,
and I am sorry to say that the competition is going to clean up.

> Coming in a bit late on this conversation, but I think it's an important one.
>
> Counting CPUs is a snap for windows: from a DOS prompt, type
>
>    set n
>
> for the number of CPUs. (The type of processor can be easily deduced by the 
> make/model of server.) Use your existing Windows domain admin tools to do 
> this for all machines from one location, and parse appropriately.
>
> For UNIX--hey, any decent UNIX admin knows how to do that. Parse and plug 
> into your spreadsheet.
>
> BTW, Tivoli only went to this audit process because there have become too 
> many users that have violated the "on your honor" basis that Tivoli followed 
> for a long time.

I'm terribly sorry, but IBM placed itself in this position by removing access
to the tools we (as TSM admins), could use to determine license compliance.

They either make us run around and bother all our sys admins and clients to
gather useless information, or pay large $$$ to install rootkits on our
machines.  I don't believe that the customers have been trying to be
dishonest in any way.  When you can't understand how to pay for a product,
because the vendor can't understand how to bill for a product, what exactly
do they expect.  IBM must also remember that we used to have SE's that
helped us with these things, and most of us now have BP's that may not even
be located in the same city/state, and certainly don't understand how IBM is
charging for this product.

> Also, the licensing scheme Justin described actually started with version 5.3.

Yes, I noticed, and you will also notice that doing a 'q lic' on your TSM server
gives NO information what so ever.  bah.

Sorry, but I had to rant, and make it public.  I have been using this product
since the first incarnation (WDSF), and the licensing has gone wildly down
hill ever since.

IBM.. please listen to your customers, we have been giving you plenty of
warning.  You can save yourself and us money and time, if you change your ways.

Bob Booth
University of Illinois - Urbana