High availability without use

[JhonPaul1992]

Hello everyone , I have about 2 Dell servers with the full license of Vmware Esxi 5.1 , it turns out that during a microsoft audit , they saw that the Vshpere HA box was checked , now they are charging us to buy the redundant licenses for Microsoft Server , SQLServer including a charge since the purchase of Microsoft Server 2012 , as they deduce that it is a chargeback , but we never used Vsphere HA , the box was just checked , have you ever had any kind of situation like this ?

[ashilkrishnan]

Hi @JhonPaul1992 ,

vSphere HA is a cluster feature that protects VMs against host isolation/failure's and I don't see a reason why Microsoft would charge you for this cluster feature. 

For ex: If the VM is residing on host1 and it is not accessible/down for some reason, vSphere HA will restart this VM on 2nd host.  

Why are they charging you for additional license unless you are running 2 SQL server instances ?

[JhonPaul1992]

During a Microsoft audit process, they asked for a print screen of our VMWare, they claim that because of the cluster's HA it has the "box" checked (but we don't do load balancing, and we don't even move between servers) we should buy the same amount of licenses that you have on host 1 and put on host 2 .

[IRIX201110141]

Looks like that Microsoft "learned" from Oracle...

Anyway...

1. You have HA Enabled to protect your Non-Windows VMs* (you have a couple of Non windows VMs do you?)!
2. Normaly during a Audit the query the vCenter Database to check the number of vMotions.  Its a well known location in the database and can clean up easily by accident...*upps*
3. Now seriously.... if youre showing them that you have OEM Microsoft they normally stops the audit and even when not having OEM and its a normal Microsoft Server license your are ALLOWED TO REASSIGN every 90 days. So just proof by query the vCenter database that there was no HA event within the last 90 days.

* For today at least a VCSA based on photon OS exists in every customer environment. But with your outdated Version i expect a Windows driven vCenter. Check that and you found the reason why HA is enabled. All your Windows VMs which are not covered by proper licensing are listet on the No-Restart HA List within vCenter.

I dont comment on your MSSQL.

Regards,
Joerg

[JhonPaul1992]

I found this very strange, because we have never used it, it was just a checkbox, do you have a guide on how to find this table? Sorry for the inconvenience

[IRIX201110141]

@ashilkrishnan 

because a Microsoft Server license have normaly no or limited RIGHTS for a reassignment aka when they move away from the physical Host during a vMotion or HA event.

In a simple way..

• Windows Server Standard OEM... assigned during installation and have to stay FOR EVER
• Normal Windows Server Standard Volume licensing every 90 days the right to move

oh... and than next are the MS App like SQL/Exchange

• Movement is covered by Software Assuarance(SA)

So to cover a Windows Server Standard you need a spare lic for your 2nd. Host if you change the phys. Host in less 90 days.  If you do the math and have a need for a higher number of Windows VMs you have to take Windows Datacenter (even OEM now) and youre allowed to move every few seconds if you like.

Btw.. same is true when running on Hyper-V. Microsoft makes no difference between both Hypervisor and thats a huge difference when compared to Oracle.

What makes it difficult is that PUR was adjustet a couple of time in the last 2 decades and that OS differs from Apps. Todays MSSQL you have to buy 2x2 CPU LIC even if only 1-2 vCPU are assigned to the VM.

Regards,
Joerg

[JhonPaul1992]

@IRIX201110141 do you know the name of Table where could i check how much Vmotions or HA has been executed ?

[a_p_]

Just a quick question. Are the VM's stored on shared, or local storage?
In case of local storage, HA is out of question, because it requires shared storage to work.

André

[JhonPaul1992]

@a_p_ all VM's are connected with my storage dell .

do u know about table of VIMSQL ? i see a table called "VPX_ENTITY_VMOP_COUNT" where VMOTION_COUNT is zero . 

[scott28tt]

Please stop creating more threads on the same topic, it is unnecessary.

[depping]

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@JhonPaul1992 wrote:

@a_p_ all VM's are connected with my storage dell .

do u know about table of VIMSQL ? i see a table called "VPX_ENTITY_VMOP_COUNT" where VMOTION_COUNT is zero . 

---

that doesn't include HA failovers. vMotion is something different than a failover.

[depping]

https://www.jonathanmedd.net/2012/03/which-vms-restarted-after-a-vsphere-ha-event.html

[JhonPaul1992]

@depping this is my cenario with some details , maybe could help .

My vmware license is Essentials Plus unlimited , . my doubt is if the movement of a VM from one host to another host had occurred, if this action would be performed by vMotion or otherwise.

I have a Dell MD3200 array that hosts plug into it.

in total I have 1 Windows Server 2012 R2 + 1 SQL Server 2014 Enterprise core + Software Assurance (server A), microsoft deduces that as I had HA enabled, I must purchase

2 Windows Server 2019 (server A and B)
2 SQL Server 2019 (server A and B).

the licenses we have were acquired later (they're not OEM, I don't quite know the difference between OEM and MSVL, sorry) .

[depping]

Essentials Plus has both vSphere HA and vMotion. So it is possible for VMs to run on either hosts. If Microsoft asks for proof, it unfortunately is up to you to provide it.

[JhonPaul1992]

Okay , so vMotion / sVmotion are 0 , i'll try the tutorial that u send me to proof that never a machine has restarted on another host . 

[JhonPaul1992]

Hey @DE  , 

i have the follow HA event .

20/04/2021 - 14:23:03 - Vsphere HA restarted virtual machine SRVSQLSERVER - 192.168.32.188 on host 192.168.32.2 in cluster ALG-Cluster . 

below has a event called 

20/04/2021 - 14:23:05 - Alarm 'vSphere HA virtual machine failover failed' on SRVSQLSERVER - 192.168.32.188 changed from Red to Green

what this means ?

but this VM's ever has been created on 192.168.32.2 , the first event its : 

" Creating VM on host 192.168.32.2 "

, i think that just restarted at same host , its true ? 

[depping]

Yes, could be. if VM/Application Monitoring was enabled then the VM could be restarted on the same host.