I'm considering a refurbished HPE server for a client who has a non-mission critical application. I've usually bought HPE ROK or OEM licenses in the past, but I'm unsure if these are applicable for a refurbished server. CSP licensing is available but it's about 35% more expensive, which takes away from the savings of purchasing refurb. If the server is custom built from refurbished parts, does that make it a new system, which would then allow for an OEM license? What do people usually do for licensing in similar situations?
4 Answers
We usually buy refurbished Dell servers and opt for separate licensing since they often don’t come with an OS. It's a straightforward approach but might not be the most cost-effective.
I find OEM to be more economical since Volume Licenses and CSP aren't tied to the device itself like an OEM license is. For those considering MPSA, compare it with Open Value if you're looking into L/SA options.
We've dealt with refurbished servers before and typically use Volume Licensing for Windows Server. We already had a license, so we just applied it, but it's a solid option for new purchases too.
If the server came with an OEM license, you might be able to reuse it since it's tied to the hardware, but you would need to stick to the same version. If it doesn’t have one, you can purchase an OEM license as long as you plan to resell it with the hardware. Just be careful about switching software versions if an OEM key is already in use.
Thanks for confirming! I was considering installing Server 2025 and will need CALS anyway, so I'm fine with going for the OEM option.