Can MS Windows Server 2022 Standard 16 Core be installed on two physical machines (1 with 10 cores, the other with 4 cores).

Question

Hi.

I have two physical machines. One has 10 cores, and the other has 4 cores. Can I install the same "MS Windows Server 2022 Standard 16 Core" license on both machines since the sum of the cores is less than 16?

Thanks
Aron

Answer 1

You can but each will need its own license.

Some general info

• Each host needs to be licensed.
• A minimum of 8 core licenses is required for each physical processor and a minimum of 16 core licenses is required for each server.
• Core licenses are sold in packs of two.
• Standard Edition provides rights for up to 2 Operating System Environments or Windows Servers containers with Hyper-V isolation when all physical cores in the server are licensed. For each additional 1 or 2 VMs, all the physical cores in the server must be licensed again.
• DataCenter Edition provides rights for unlimited Operating System Environments or Windows Servers containers with Hyper-V isolation when all physical cores in the server are licensed.

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Answer 2

Patrick, thanks for your reply. So if I'm understanding it correctly, I'm required to purchase two 16 core licenses (even though I only have 14 cores in sum)?

Thanks
Aron