How do I upgrade my non-SA client from SBS 2003 to SBS 2008 or EBS 2008?

Now that we have conquered the knowledge needed for the final days of SBS 2003 R2 and Software Assurance to get the ‘made-whole’ entitlements and SBS 2008. You might be asking…“How do I upgrade my non-SA client from SBS 2003 to SBS 2008”? Or, “How do I upgrade my client from SBS 2003 to EBS 2008”?

Beginning November 12th you can place upgrade orders for SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 as well as migrations via the Solutions Pathway store https://partner.microsoft.com/solutionspathway

All you need to do is enter in your clients’ product keys, and choose from among the automatically generated migration paths. Customers and partners receive savings of 20 or 30 percent. SBSCs will be eligible for additional savings too!

Here is a picture of the Savings Chart available on the Solutions Pathway site.

Additional information regarding Solutions Pathway can be found https://partner.microsoft.com/40081961

SBS 2003 Transition Pak

SBS 2003 Transition Pack

Now that I have my Blogging engine started, when someone asks a technical Question, I will be posting the Q & A.

Q: Have you or do you know of anyone who has used the SBS Transition Kit before? I'm just curious how long it takes and what steps you have to do.

A: I have not, but I have two good links for you (both are from Susan Bradley the SBS Diva):

• http://msmvps.com/blogs/bradley/archive/2006/01/11/80849.aspx
  
• http://blogs.technet.com/sbs/archive/2006/01/12/417350.aspx
  

Running SBS 2008 Premium with SQL 2005

The appended article is from Eric Ligman’s Blog and it basically tells us that if our clients need SQL 2005 instead of SQL 2008 they need to purchase SBS 2008 Premium within the next ten months. Once your clients have SBS 2008 Premium that has SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition for Small Business with their SBS 2008 Premium can choose to run SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition instead of SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition with their SBS 2008 Premium Edition without having to downgrade their SBS 2008 suite.

Regards,

Tim Carney
tim@sfbaylink.com


What version of SQL can I use if I buy SBS 2008 Premium?

Last weekend at SMB Nation, one of the most asked questions was, “If my clients buy SBS 2008 Premium, what version of SQL can they use?” This followed my earlier post, “Is Small Business Server (SBS) 2008 Premium going to ship with SQL 2005 or SQL 2008?” This question was even discussed in great depth during Jeff Middleton’s party where Susan Bradley, Kevin Beares, Dean Paron, and I had a nice long conversation about the various possibilities, all leading to the final outcome where I promised to find out the definitive answer to the question and post it here for everyone. As such, here you go:

Components of SBS cannot be downgraded independently. If you choose to downgrade one component, you must downgrade the entire suite.

Because Microsoft recognizes that line-of-business applications may experience compatibility issues moving from one version to the next, for approximately one year from the SBS 2008 Release to Manufacturing (RTM) date, we will ship SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition (both 32 and 64-bit platforms) in addition to the SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition for Small Business with SBS 2008 for the customer’s use in order to address these potential issues.

Customers who receive SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition for Small Business with their SBS 2008 Premium can choose to run SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition instead of SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition with their SBS 2008 Server Premium Edition without having to downgrade their SBS 2008 suite.

Once we stop shipping both versions of SQL Server with SBS 2008 Premium, customers are restricted from downgrading just the SQL Server component.

Customers who received SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition with their SBS 2008 Premium can continue to use it after the shipping period ends, but they may not use both SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition and SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition for Small Business simultaneously. If they choose to continue using SQL Server 2005 after the shipping period ends, they can later choose to install SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition for Small Business instead of SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition.

Customers who do not receive both versions of SQL Server (2005 and 2008) Standard Edition with their SBS 2008 Premium Server license (included for approximately one year from the SBS 2008 Release to Manufacturing (RTM) date) do not receive the rights listed above to run SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition with their SBS 2008 Premium Edition. If they choose to run SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition, they will need to downgrade their entire SBS Premium Edition to SBS 2003 R2 Premium in order to do so.

We will be updating the SBS Downgrade FAQs page shortly with these updated clarifications to help ensure everyone fully understands what version of SQL Server they can and cannot run with their SBS 2008 Premium Server license.

Thank you to everyone for your patience while we worked to get you these clarifications on this issue.

Thank you and have a wonderful day,
Eric Ligman
Non-Managed Partner CPE Lead
Microsoft Worldwide Partner Group
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

SBS 2003 R2 & Software Assurance

Here are the definitive answers* to everyone’s questions regarding SBS 2003 R2 & Software Assurance post the September 30^th cutoff for buying the L+SA SKU and getting the ‘made whole’ entitlements.

Part I – Eric Ligman’s posting from his Blog http://blogs.msdn.com/mssmallbiz

Part II – Additional Information, Examples & Analysis

Regards,

Tim Carney

tim@sfbaylink.com

*Except as always “This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights”. ;)

Part I

How do I still get SBS 2003 R2 + Software Assurance since it was removed from the Volume License pricelists? Final Solution.

A topic of many conversations since the beginning of October, as well as over the SMB Nation weekend where I told those of you in attendance that we are working on a potential solution and would get back to you as soon as we had one, is the fact that SBS 2003 SKUs were removed from the Volume Licensing pricelists on October 1^st and were replaced by the SBS 2008 SKUs. What this means is:

1. In the month of October, there is no way to purchase SBS 2003 with Software Assurance through any Volume Licensing program.
2. Even though SBS 2003 is still available through Retail Box (FPP) and OEM and Software Assurance can be added to an FPP or OEM server license within 90 days of purchasing it, Software Assurance can only be added to the CURRENT VERSION of software within 90 days of purchase. With SBS 2008 being released October 1^st, SBS 2003 is no longer the current version, meaning you can no longer purchase Software Assurance to add to a Retail Box or OEM SBS 2003 license purchased on or after October 1, 2008.
3. Which ultimately means there is no way to purchase an SBS 2003 License with Software Assurance in the month of October, which was a point of confusion for many Partners who were under the impression that they had until October 31^st in order to get their SBS 2003 L+SA orders in.

This is what we have been working on day in and day out for the past few weeks to find a solution for to help our Partners out who are in this situation. And believe me, the number of solutions we have run through the tests to see if we could use them has been unbelievable. Finally, we have come up with the solution for Partners that wish to get their clients SBS 2003 licenses with Software Assurance that will work and can be executed in a timely manner, and here it is:

Microsoft will make a limited-time exception to the Software Assurance policy, which states that Software Assurance can only be attached to the latest software version for SBS 2003 R2. So now it will be possible to attach Software Assurance to SBS 2003 R2 SKUs, despite SBS 2008 being on the VL price list starting October 1^st and this exception has been granted until 12/31/2008. This means that Partners who have sold SBS 2003 R2 between 10/1/08 and 12/31/08 will be able to attach Software Assurance to it within 90 days of the SBS 2003 R2 purchase.

In addition, because we are aware of the fact that the SBS 2003 R2 license does cost more through Retail Box than it did through the Open License programs, we are going to be increasing the SBS 2003 R2 deployment rebate by the net difference between the Retail Box ERP and the Open License (L) ERP so that ultimately, the customers are paying the same for the SBS license that they would have through Open License. What this means is that the deployment rebate amount for SBS 2003 Standard R2 will increase by $50 and the deployment rebate amount for SBS 2003 Premium R2 will increase by $100.

So, if you are looking to get your clients an SBS 2003 R2 Server license with Software Assurance, here is what you should do:

1. Purchase a Retail Box SBS 2003 R2 Server license from your distributor
2. Add Software Assurance to it within 90 days of the purchase (best off to do it on the same order to make sure you get it added)
3. Follow the steps to claim the SBS 2003 R2 deployment rebate for your client

To make it easier for you, below are the Part #s you would use to add Software Assurance to the SBS Standard or Premium licenses. You will notice two options for each:

The first is the Part # you would use if you would like to take advantage of the spread payments benefit of Open Value. This part # would be the one you would sell and bill your clients for in Year 1, Year 2, and Year 3 of the Agreement.

The second is the Part # you would use if you would like to pay for the full three years of Software Assurance benefits up-front instead of spreading out the payments over three years. It is also the one you would use if you plan on processing this order through Microsoft Financing for spread payments.

SBS Standard:

• Software Assurance 1^st year payment (spread payments): Part #: T72-00893
• Software Assurance with 3 years paid up-front: Part #: T72-00897

SBS Premium:

• Software Assurance 1^st year payment (spread payments): Part #: T75-00935
• Software Assurance with 3 years paid up-front: Part #: T75-00937

Thank you to everyone for their patience as we have been working through this and trying to determine what solution(s) we could put in place here in October to address the concerns raised by our Partners about not being able to provide a way to get their clients SBS 2003 R2 server licenses with Software Assurance here in October. The solution above will provide you a way to do just that. Granted, it is not the exact same as buying the L+SA SKU through the Open License programs; however, with those SKUs being removed on October 1^st, the L+SA SKU was no longer an option as a solution.

And before anyone says, “You should have just added it back to the October pricelist,” believe me, if it were just that simple, we would have. There was no way to get the SKUs added back onto the pricelist for October (and we tried evaluating many different ways to possibly make this happen), which meant we had to find an alternative solution. The solution above is the absolute best one available given the circumstances. Plus, the solution above not only gives you an answer for October, it provides an additional window of opportunity for you all the way through December 31, 2008.

Thank you and have a wonderful day,
Eric Ligman
Non-Managed Partner CPE Lead
Microsoft Worldwide Partner Group
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

Part II

Note: I have included part numbers for the Premium SKUs only; if you are interested in the Standard SKUs then you will need to do your own research. Additionally, I am only including Open Value licensing options as it just seems the way to go (unless you can sell your clients Open Value Company-Wide). If you want to know why then check https://partner.microsoft.com/download/global/40029941

Here are the Open Value SKUs for Windows Small Business Server Premium Software Assurance. These SKUs cover both SBS 2003 R2 Premium and SBS 2008 Premium.

• T75-00935 SBS Premium SA Year 1 of 3 with Spread Payments ERP $417.00
• T75-00937 SBS Premium SA with 3-Year Up-Front Payment ERP $1,250.00

Here are the 2003 SKUs that qualify for Software Assurance (according to the licensing desk at D&H). But remember Retail T75-01255 is the best as: the OEM SKU is locked to the machine on which you install the product; and, the Upgrade SKUs are tied to the original SKU (which if is OEM you are stuck on that machine) and you must keep the original license in addition to the upgrade license in-order to be legit.

• T75-01255 SBS 2003 R2 Premium Retail Box ERP $1299.00
• T75-01256 SBS 2003 R2 Premium Version Upgrade from SBS versions 4.0, 4.5, 2000 or 2003 Premium ERP $709.00
• T75-01260 SBS 2003 R2 Premium Upgrade from SBS 2003 R2 Standard ERP $709.00
• T75-02110 SBS 2003 R2 Premium OEM - 1 Server, 5 CAL - OEM ERP $1,149.00

Here are the SKUs for 2008.

• T75-02411 SBS 2008 Premium Edition DVD w/5 Client Retail Box ERP $1,899.00
• T75-00927 SBS 2008 Premium w/5 Client L/SA Open Value No-Level Year 1 of 3 with Spread Payments ERP $972.00
• T75-00925 SBS 2008 Premium Edition w/5 Client L/SA Open Value No-Level 3-Year with Up-Front Payment ERP $2,916.00

Let’s say (for the sake of discussion) your client is normally not interested in Software Assurance. If they only need SBS 2008 Premium Edition then all they need is T75-02411 with an ERP of $1899. If they want the ‘made whole’ entitlements then the best way is T75-01255 + T75-00937 with a combined ERP of $2549. So, the ‘made whole’ entitlements is costing them in ERP $650; but, don’t forget they will also get future upgrades for 3 years.

If your clients are inclined towards Software Assurance then T75-01255 + T75-00937 with a combined ERP of $2549 really makes sense as you compare it to T75-00925 with an ERP of $2916, even after the Big Easy Rebate of $400 on T75-00925, as your clients get the ‘made whole’ entitlements for essentially zero dollars.

Here are the ‘made whole’ entitlements:

• one license of Office SharePoint Designer 2007
• five licenses of Outlook 2007
• one license of ISA 2006
• a separate copy of Windows Server 2003 R2 as ISA 2006 does not run on Windows Server 2008
• one license of Forefront Threat Management Gateway 2010 when it is released as an upgrade to ISA 2006

One final note, remember all of this discussion is predicated on the availability of the SBS 2003 R2 Premium in a Retail Box (T75-01255), once the distributors run out of the SBS 2003 R2 Premium in a Retail Box, we have lost the ability to provide this option to our clients. So, act quickly and decisively!

Responding to the Spam Warning Emails from Family & Friends

So, my mom forwarded me an email message warning of some virus ridden email making the rounds. To try and inform her that she was sending SPAM and to try and inform her about other areas of important computer security, I sent her an email similar to what you find below. Feel free to use this information (or any part thereof) to inform and educate others.Please do not forward the type of message you just forwarded. Here is some advice from a computer professional regarding warning emails and more importantly general computer security.
If a friend sends you an email warning of some scary email (scam/phishing or virus) asking you to pass their email on to everyone you know then send your friend this message and empower them with knowledge, and do not email everyone you know as most people consider this ‘warning’ email SPAM (a Stupid, Pointless and Annoying Message).

1. Always keep your computer's Operating System and Applications up to date. All good programmers know that no code is perfect, so most software companies set aside resources to repair their code as bugs are uncovered. Most viruses attack known security weaknesses. While the bad guys are trying to exploit the weakness the good people at Microsoft and Apple (and most other software companies) are repairing those weaknesses and then issuing patches to fix your software. But, you only get those updates when you update your software, so remember to update.




1. If you want to know how secure or how insecure your operating system and/or applications are then check Secunia Advisories http://secunia.com/advisories.


2. If you are interested in the 10 Most Destructive PC Viruses of All Time, check out http://www.techweb.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=160200005#.


3. The SQL Slammer worm virus attacked SQL servers worldwide on January 26, 2003, the technical community was aware of the vulnerability six months prior to the attack and Microsoft issued a fix three months prior to the attack. If you were a system administrator, would your systems be open to attack or would you have patched them?




2. Have a good firewall/router installed between your internet connection and your computer(s); expect to pay at least $120 at a computer store for a quality simple/home firewall. A firewall will protect your computer from being directly attacked from the outside. And, don’t forget to keep it updated with the latest firmware too.


3. Use genuine software, counterfeit software often contains key-loggers and other malware that help thieves steal your identity. Microsoft has some good information and real stories of counterfeit software http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/downloads/Stories.aspx.


4. If a browser pop-up comes up while browsing the internet warning you your computer has been infected know that someone is trying to socially engineer you into installing malware (software with bad intent) or get enough information to steal your identity.




1. Despite the columnists’ dislike of Microsoft’s Windows Vista, Vista is more secure than all of Microsoft’s previous Operating Systems. One way Vista is more secure is that it provides protection against this attack vector. Consider an upgrade.


2. Here is an in-depth report on Cybercrime, http://www.mcafee.com/us/research/mcafee_security_journal/index.html.




5. Use an email service that scans your email for viruses, SPAM and phishing. Many email providers check email messages for SPAM, Phishing & Viruses before the message even touches your computer.


6. On your computer, use software that scans for SPAM and viruses, most professionals prefer AVG, Nod32 and TrendMicro:




1. http://www.avg.com/home-and-office-security?type=ps3925e


2. http://www.eset.com/smartsecurity


3. http://emea.trendmicro.com/emea/products/personal/internet-security-pro/index.html




7. Be informed, read up on safe email practices like these Tips to Avoid SPAM http://www.mcafee.com/us/threat_center/anti_spam/spam_tips.html.




1. The Top 10 SPAM Subject Lines can be found http://www.mcafee.com/us/threat_center/anti_spam/spam_top10.html




8. Beyond Viruses, the real threats come from social engineering aka phishing.




1. The Top 10 Phishing Scams can be found here http://www.mcafee.com/us/threat_center/anti_phishing/phishing_top10.html.




9. If you suspect that your computer has a virus then you should consider calling a professional, if you just call the neighborhood’s geek instead of a professional your results may not be as desired.




1. Microsoft has a search for professionals available in your area http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/partner/vendorsearch.mspx.


2. Apple has a search for their certified consultants http://consultants.apple.com/consultant/search.html.




10. If you must work on your own computer (PC) then some of the tools to use can be found http://us.trendmicro.com/us/products/personal/free-tools-and-services/index.html.

Alaska Airlines's Public Display

Here is a great example of poor coding but great documentation, way to go Alaska Air! Thanks Susan for making me pull out my camera.