Starting June 1, 2013 : MSDN Subscribers Can Run Software Licensed Under MSDN on Windows Azure Virtual Machines
Many are wondering about using MSDN licenses within Windows Azure. It has come to my attention that the software is not licensed for use on 3rd party shared servers (“cloud” environments) or in production environments.
Where the Software Can be Installed and Run
The licensed user can install and use the software on any number of devices. The software can be installed and used on your devices at work, at home, at school, and even on devices at a customer’s office or on dedicated hardware hosted by a 3rd party. However, the software is not licensed for use on 3rd party shared servers (“cloud” environments) or in production environments.
Which is from page 12 of Visual Studio 2012 and MSDN Licensing Whitepaper – January-2013, downloadable here.
Furthermore, client OS like Windows 8 and Windows 7 are not to be used in Windows Azure Virtual Machines. As far as I know, Windows Azure supports Server OS versions. The following are the supported Windows Server distributions as of April 2013:
- Windows Server 2012 (en_us) – All editions – x64
- Windows Server 2008 R2 (en_us) – All editions SP1 – x64
Please read the following regarding licensing on Windows Azure
All Microsoft software installed in the Windows Azure Virtual Machine environment must be properly licensed. Windows Azure Virtual Machines include by default a license for use of Windows Server in the Windows Azure environment. Certain Windows Azure Virtual Machine offerings may also include additional Microsoft software on a per-hour or evaluation basis. Licenses for other software must be obtained separately. For information about Microsoft’s License Mobility program see:
http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/software-assurance/license-mobility.aspx
References
- Visual Studio 2012 and MSDN Licensing White Paper
- Create a Virtual Machine Running Windows Server
- Creating and Uploading a Virtual Hard Disk that Contains the Windows Server Operating System
- Microsoft server software support for Windows Azure Virtual Machines
- Windows Azure Cloud Services, Virtual Machines, and Virtual Network SLA
Alexandre Brisebois ☁ 
Hi Alexandre,
I installed MS OFFICE on a windows AZURE virtual machine
The Virtual Machine was created with my MSDN premium subscription
I activated the Office with a key from my MSDN subscription
ALL good. OFfice works fine, etc.
I stopped the VM.
I restarted the VM
I opened office. It made me reactivate. :(
How do you properly activate the OFFICE using the MSDN subscription. THe licensing white paper seems to say this is allowed.
ThanksI installed MS OFFICE on a windows AZURE virtual machine
The Virtual Machine was created with my MSDN premium subscription
I activated the Office with a key from my MSDN subscription
ALL good. OFfice works fine, etc.
I stopped the VM.
I restarted the VM
I opened office. It made me reactivate. :(
How do you properly activate the OFFICE using the MSDN subscription. THe licensing white paper seems to say this is allowed.
Thanks
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Technically this isn’t allowed since this is client software.
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