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StosSpiro

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VMware ESXi 5.5 License Never Expires?

I inherited a network when I started nearly two months ago here and of course, I got down to the bottom of the licensing for all the software, OS's, etc. My predecessor worked as a consultant for this company and had worked for an MSP prior to that. He is also a re-seller.  When inquiring into the vCenter two node client which houses 11 server VMs, the majority of which are in production. VMware support, Dell, no one can seem to find out who owns the license keys for this. The weird thing is that the license expiration shows NEVER under the license menu option. So, I have this feature but no support. The previous IT person basically brushes it off when I've brought it up to him or he doesn't remember when/how he got this license and applied it. The infrastructure has been in place for literally a year this month I believe. I'm more of a Hyper-V guy than VMware. Should I make a plan to migrate these over to Hyper-V? Should I get new licenses for the vCenter Server 5 Standard and vSphere 5 Enterprise Plus? The storage is on an Equallogic Ps4100 SAN and is just over 3TB. Should I just ride this out till the next upgrade? I am stuck in what to do.
Avatar of Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
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The Answer to your license question, and whether your own licenses, and status of Support and Subscription, is login to MyVMware at VMware, and it will show your License Keys, and state of Support and Subscription.

So ask, previous IT person  for the VMware login, or email VMware.

Why do you need new licenses ? Do you think these licenses are not yours ?

Do you need Support and Subscription, this can be purchased at any time, or renewed ?

Seems a huge waste, if this was purchased.

If you want to migrate you will have to purchase new servers, and licenses, and schedule some downtime.
Avatar of StosSpiro
StosSpiro

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That is the issue that I'm facing over here when I started this position Andrew. The previous IT person has not provided me with any information what so ever. I'm sure he used his own email address and not the company's domain to register these licenses. From what I hear, their was a falling out between him and the business here. I had to dig into each software on this network to find the necessary information that I need to support it. Of course, anyone who isn't knowledgeable about licensing, software, etc., i.e., the vice president who approved whatever this guy said they needed, gets screwed from guys like this one. I tried to get the information through Ingram Micro where he is a reseller of IT products but of course, without this guy's approval, I got nowhere. Trying to register these license keys show that these are invalid. I agree with you, it seems like such a waste to go the avenue of revamping this whole network. The big IF is possibly something would happen down the road, I don't have the support option. I obtained a quote from CDW for just over $21k to get replacement licenses along with the support option. Does this price sound correct to you?
It is quite normal for expiry on VMWare licenses to show never. Support depends on the support you have from vmware, which is separate from the software license itself. You should be able to find out about this from your my.vmware.com account.

It is rather worrying however, that vmware or the reseller cannot find out the details. If you have an archive of the old IT person, then search through his emails to see how it has been registered, or maybe assign their old address to yourself and try to sign into my.vmware.com with a forgotten password option. This will enable you to get your company's account details and hopefully make it easier to work out.
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Avatar of Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
Andrew Hancock (VMware vExpert PRO / EE Fellow/British Beekeeper)
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I've already contacted VMware licensing, etc. I even had my CDW account manager look into it. This former IT guy got this license from somewhere; don't know where but if VMware licensing is telling me it's not a valid license, I'm not sure how he was able to apply it. Perhaps he's got an inside guy over at VMware. I am getting nowhere. Thanks anyhow.
In this particular case, you have pirated licenses, generated by keygens, or obtained from elsewhere.

You need to Purchased Licenses ASAP, as you are not licensed for VMware Products.

I would escalate this to your Management, because the Director of the Company is Liable!