I'm planning to upgrade my server from Windows Server 2016 to 2025. I've calculated my licensing needs based on my setup: I have 2 CPUs with 12 cores each and 2 additional VMs (totaling 4), which means I need 24 two-core license packs. However, I'm curious about what happens if I want to upgrade one of those VMs to 2025. If I upgrade the host, does that cover the VM upgrade as well? If not, what specific licenses will I need for the VMs? I also have a few servers where only one or two VMs require upgrading, so I'd love some advice on that.
3 Answers
You're on the right track! Licensing the host generally gives you rights to run 2 Standard VMs as long as the host is exclusively for Hyper-V. For any VMs beyond that, you can either license the host for more VMs or license each VM individually. Just make sure each VM has a minimum of 8 vCores if you choose that route, which is great for smaller setups.
As far as I know, if your host is just acting as a hypervisor, you can run up to 2 VMs without any extra licenses. For every additional VM, you're looking at needing more core licenses. But if you plan to run more than 5 or 6 VMs, considering Datacenter licensing is probably a good move since it allows for unlimited VMs.
Yeah, last time I checked, the limit for VMs on the Standard plan was around 10 per host.
To sum it up, if your physical server is only used as a hypervisor, you can run 2 VMs pretty easily. Just keep in mind that you'll need a server license for the host. If you're planning on more VMs, going for Datacenter makes sense since it removes any VM limits. You could run one VM along with one other service or two VMs if the hardware allows.
Also, remember that with Datacenter licensing, you get live migration capabilities, which can really come in handy! Standard edition has a limitation on moving VMs around.