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Licensing Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008
Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 is a stand-alone product that will be available via the Microsoft Download Center free of charge.
Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 does not require CALs for the product itself.
CALs will be required for all Windows Server virtualized operating systems which are hosted on Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008.
Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 will be available in the following languages:
English (EN-US)
German (DE-DE)
Japanese (JA-JP)
French (FR-FR)
Spanish (ES-ES)
Chinese Hong-Kong (ZH-HK)
Chinese Simplified (ZH-CN)
Korean (KO-KR)
Portuguese (Brazil) (PT-BR)
Chinese Traditional (ZH-TW)
Italian (IT-IT)
Russian (RU-RU)
Get Hyper-V 2008 Server here!
Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008 is a great choice for customers who want a basic and simplified virtualization solution for consolidating servers as well as for development and test environments. Hyper-V Server 2008 only offers the most basic of virtualization features, making it ideal for:
Test and Development
Basic Server Consolidation
Branch Office Consolidation
Hosted Desktop Virtualization (VDI)
Customers who require richer and more robust virtualization features, such as Quick Migration, multi-site clustering, large memory support (greater than 32 GB of RAM), and more than four processors on the host server, should use Windows Server 2008. Windows Server 2008 provides business continuity, disaster recovery, greater scalability for consolidating large workloads, and flexible and cost-effective virtualization rights (one free virtual instance for Standard Edition, four free virtual instances for Enterprise Editions, and unlimited virtual instances for Datacenter Edition with the purchase of a license of Windows Server 2008).
The following table outlines which Hyper-V–enabled product would suit your needs:
Virtualization Needs
Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 Standard
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise
Windows Server 2008 Datacenter
Server Consolidation
Mixed OS Virtualization (Linux and Windows)
Local Graphical User Interface
High Availability—Clustering
Quick Migration
Large Memory Support (Host OS) > 32 GB RAM
Support for > 4 Processors (Host OS)
Ability to Add Additional Server Roles
Guest Virtualization Rights Included in Host Server License
None—Each Windows Guest VM Requires a License
1 Physical + 1 VM*
1 Physical + 4 VMs*
1 Physical + Unlimited VMs
* Each additional Windows guest VM requires a license.
If you need to acquire and host new server licenses, Windows Server 2008 Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter provide the best value.