This browser is no longer supported.
Upgrade to Microsoft Edge to take advantage of the latest features, security updates, and technical support.
![](data:image/svg+xml, %3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' height='64' class='font-weight-bold' style='font: 600 30.11764705882353px "SegoeUI", Arial' width='64'%3E%3Ccircle fill='hsl(105.60000000000001, 20%, 20%)' cx='32' cy='32' r='32' /%3E%3Ctext x='50%25' y='55%25' dominant-baseline='middle' text-anchor='middle' fill='%23FFF' %3EAM%3C/text%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Hello all,
i have Failover Cluster S2D with Lenovo servers with windows server data center 2016, and we covered license for this physical servers, as i know that i can install any VMs without additional license because the hosts has been covered
my question is:
can i install VMs with windows server 2019 on host licensed with windows server 2016 ??
With AVHM (Automatic Virtual Machine Activation) you can run Windows Server 2019 virtual machines on your Windows Server 2016 Datacenter Hyper-V hosts, for more information see:
Automatic virtual machine activation
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/get-started-19/vm-activation-19
----------
(If the reply was helpful please don't forget to upvote and/or accept as answer, thank you)
Best regards,
Leon
SO TO be confirmed
i don't need to additional license on this case
host server: windows server datacenter 2016
VM: windows server 2019
No need for additional licenses, as mentioned in the AVMA documentation:
AVMA lets you install virtual machines on a properly activated Windows server without having to manage product keys for each individual virtual machine, even in disconnected environments. AVMA binds the virtual machine activation to the licensed virtualization server and activates the virtual machine when it starts up.
A Windows Server 2016 Datacenter edition provides rights to use Windows Server in unlimited OSEs, Hyper-V containers, and Windows Server containers when all cores on the physical server (The Hyper-V host) are licensed (subject to the same minimums).
For more information, see:
Licensing Windows Server for use with virtualization technologies
First thanks for your patience, just I need one more answer, I have SQL server on VM and i need to calculate the number of core to determine the needed license,
Please check the attachment how can I determine the amount of cores which need to be licensed because its very confusing me
I would suggest creating a new thread in the dedicated SQL Server forum:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/topics/sql-server-general.html
Also note that these are technical forums, not legal ones, licensing questions should be asked directly to a trained Microsoft licensing specialist:
https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/servicecenter/Help/Contact.aspx
![](data:image/svg+xml, %3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' height='64' class='font-weight-bold' style='font: 600 30.11764705882353px "SegoeUI", Arial' width='64'%3E%3Ccircle fill='hsl(256, 46%, 34%)' cx='32' cy='32' r='32' /%3E%3Ctext x='50%25' y='55%25' dominant-baseline='middle' text-anchor='middle' fill='%23FFF' %3EMM%3C/text%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Hi,
Agree with Leon, you can activate VM win2019 on host win2016 Datacenter:
Since your host are running 2016 Datacenter, AVMA would work.
For other questions about license, you can call MS Licensing Activation Centers for further information:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/existing-customer/activation-centers
Thanks for your time!
Best Regards,
Mico Mi
-----------------------------
If the Answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and upvote it.
Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.
![](data:image/svg+xml, %3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' height='64' class='font-weight-bold' style='font: 600 30.11764705882353px "SegoeUI", Arial' width='64'%3E%3Ccircle fill='hsl(128, 8%, 22%)' cx='32' cy='32' r='32' /%3E%3Ctext x='50%25' y='55%25' dominant-baseline='middle' text-anchor='middle' fill='%23FFF' %3EA%3C/text%3E%3C/svg%3E)
can i install VMs with windows server 2019 on host licensed with windows server 2016 ??
You can install them but a Server 2016 DataCenter host can only active 2016 and 2012 R2 guests via AVMA. So you'll need to provide product keys in order to activate the 2019 guests.
--please don't forget to Accept as answer if the reply is helpful--