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Windows Server 2025 Standard

Core-licensed server operating system for physical or lightly virtualised hosts.

Windows Server Standard is licensed by physical core, with a minimum of sixteen cores per server and eight per processor. A Standard licence covers the host plus two operating system environments; beyond that, additional core licences must be stacked, and past roughly four guests the Datacenter edition usually becomes cheaper.

Client Access Licences are a separate purchase and are frequently the part organisations get wrong: every user or device that connects to the server needs one, and Remote Desktop Services access needs an additional RDS CAL on top.

Frequently asked questions

How many Client Access Licences do we need?
One per user or per device that accesses the server, whichever is fewer for your pattern of use. Organisations where staff use several devices each usually license per user; shift environments with shared machines usually license per device.
When does Datacenter become cheaper than Standard?
Standard covers two virtual machines per licensed host, and additional pairs require stacking full core licences again. Past roughly four to six virtual machines on the same host, Datacenter - which permits unlimited operating system environments - typically costs less.

Related products

Other licensing in Server OS and from Microsoft.

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