How to Activate Software Assurance Benefits
Microsoft Software Assurance is a maintenance program that you can select at the time of a software purchase. It can be used immediately and through the term of your licensing agreement. Software Assurance provides a broad range of benefits, including exclusive technology, training, support, deployment services, and rights to future upgrades. These benefits are available for you to use throughout the software management life cycle, so you can access them when you need them. Software Assurance benefits contribute to the return on your technology investment, providing better budget predictability, minimized downtime, improved productivity, and lower operating expenses associated with employee development, deployment, and support costs. Software Assurance may also offer other advantages depending on how you activate and use the benefits.
Activate and Use Software Assurance
Follow these steps to quickly understand what benefits are available, how to communicate the value of these benefits to your human resources team, IT department, and knowledge workers—and then activate and use your Software Assurance benefits. The tools and resources in the section that follows can also help you choose the benefits that are best for your organization.
Step 1: Learn
Learn about the benefits of Software Assurance by contacting your local reseller or account manager or by visiting the Software Assurance Web site.
Step 2: Communicate
Take advantage of the resources in the section that follows and on the Software Assurance Web site to communicate how these benefits can be used across your organization.
Step 3: Activate and Use
Get the most value out of your Software Assurance benefits. Activate and manage all of your organization's benefits on the Microsoft Volume License Services (MVLS) Web site. The resources in the following section can help you promote awareness and use.
Visit the Software Assurance Web site
Access the Microsoft Volume License Services Web site
Benefit Activation Resources
Benefit Activation Training
This online training module provides step-by-step guidance on Software Assurance benefit activation.
Customer Guide
(Portable Document Format file, 682 KB)
Understand the value of the benefits that are available through Software Assurance. This comprehensive guide for Benefits Administrators provides a description of each benefit, requirements for use, instructions on activation, and other information. It includes a chart that outlines eligibility requirements by benefit and licensing agreement.
Microsoft E-Learning Courses
(PDF file, 563 KB)
Microsoft E-Learning courses are designed for maximum skills transfer in minimal time. They provide a visually engaging, guided learning experience with unique, highly interactive features, including user-selected learning styles, assessments, rich simulations, hand-on labs for practice, and audio and multimedia capabilities. With Microsoft E-Learning, your staff receives accurate, relevant, and engaging instruction on Microsoft technologies directly from the source.
Software Assurance features select Microsoft E-Learning courses. These courses are an excellent way for staff to learn to deploy and use new technology. Microsoft E-Learning also eliminates time and location boundaries so that your staff can study where and when it's convenient.
Desktop Deployment Planning Services
(PDF file, 532 KB)
The single largest cost that your company faces in managing hundreds of desktops is the human resources it requires to deploy, support, manage, and maintain an efficient infrastructure with a modern desktop environment. Computer configurations require that your IT professionals have the skills, knowledge, and confidence to remain agile when working with mobile devices, desktop computers, or portable computers. Manual administration takes time, money, and staff, so minimizing the challenge is always a top priority. A successful deployment can lead to higher usage and productivity. It can also result in a lower cost infrastructure and improved return on your software investment.
Microsoft Desktop Deployment Planning Services offers 1 to 15 days of deployment planning services, based on the amount of Software Assurance that is purchased on Microsoft Office software. This service introduces the most advanced techniques, processes, and tools to your company. The services you receive are based on your unique needs to help you achieve the most cost-effective desktop environment.
Windows Vista Enterprise
(PDF file, 591 KB)
Windows Vista Enterprise is available exclusively to Software Assurance customers. This premium desktop operating system is optimized for midsize and large organizations. It delivers solutions for a variety of challenges, from protecting sensitive data and improving legacy application compatibility to simplifying IT deployment and management.
Note Not all Software Assurance benefits are available for all Volume Licensing programs.