Worried About A Microsoft Software Audit?
Last week an email came across my desktop from a well-known software vendor with glaring headlines announcing that Microsoft is sending audit letters to small-to-medium size businesses (SMBs) trying to verify whether they are using unlicensed Microsoft software.
This news is not new. Microsoft has been conducting the latest round of audits since 2014. One July 2014 article states that according to their investigation, 58% of executives surveyed have been audited by Microsoft during the past 12 months. Audit types range from self-audits to the more invasive third-party kind.
Microsoft is obviously looking for businesses that are using unlicensed Microsoft products. For instance, boxed editions of Microsoft Office can only be installed on one computer at a time. Some businesses can get into trouble when, over the years they’ve installed the software on multiple PCs because they weren’t aware of the restriction.
In my opinion, businesses should be using Microsoft Office 365 (MSO 365) instead of purchasing separate or boxed versions of Office anyway. MSO 365 allows for each subscriber to install full versions of the latest Microsoft Office Pro Suite on up to five (5) devices. This alone can save businesses hundreds to thousands of dollars in licensing and software purchasing costs. The monthly subscription is very reasonable and cost-effective.
As an added bonus, using MSO 365 gives a business an immediate boost to the communications component of their Backup/Disaster Recovery Plan. Since email is hosted in the cloud when using MSO 365, it is not dependent on a company’s onsite configuration, so email will still work even if the company’s servers and equipment are damaged.
At XSolutions, we’ve performed many Microsoft Office 365 conversions. We are experts in migrating your existing email data from your old system to MSO 365. We can help you select the right plan for your business, set up user email boxes, and migrate your data so you won’t miss a beat.
Call us at (845) 362-9675 or email us and put the power of the cloud to work for you.
When you call, don’t forget to ask us for our free report, “Why Hosted Exchange Is The Smart Choice”.
XSolutions is a Managed Services Provider (MSP) and provides 24/7/365 remote monitoring, proactive workstation and server maintenance, Help Desk Services, Cloud & Hosted Services, Backup/Disaster Recovery, and Software Development. Call us at (845) 362-9675 and learn how we can help your company.
