Licensing mode for 2000

Per-server mode requires a number of Client Access Licenses (CALs) equal to the number of servers being accessed X the number of clients connected to a server at a given time.

Per-seat mode requires a number of CALS equal to the number of computers physically connected to a network regardless of the number of servers.

The mode you choose (and thus the amount of money you spend on CALs) is greatly determined by your operating environment. Per-seat is usually the cheapest route if you havemore than 1 server.

Scenario environment: 4 servers, 25 employees, and 40 workstations. You have more workstations than employees due to laptops, general access computers, and special purpose computers. The below scenarios assume that no employee is logged on to more than 1 computer at a time.

Scenario 1: Manufacturing environment - You run 3 shifts of eight employees (+ the boss who always works). All employees other than the shift supervisor only access 1 of the 4 servers from various PCs during their shift and only the shift supervisor (+ the boss) needs access to all 4. In this scenario, your would need only 15 CALS if using the per-server mode (7 employees X 1 server, plus 2 supervisors x 4 servers = 15 CALs). In the per-seat mode you would need 40 CALs regardless of whether computers are even being turned on.

Scenario 2: Office Environment - Your goal is for all 25 employees to be able to access any and all servers at any time. In per-server mode, you would need 100 CALs (25 employees x 4 servers). In the per-seat mode you only need 40 CALs (1 CAL for each computer connected to the network).

So you can see, that licensing modes can make a difference in your bottom line. You just need to decide which mode fits your particular environment.

In less words:
-per server: 1 license for each user and for each server accesed
-per seat: 1 license for each computer (no matter the number of users or servers)