I and my team come across lot of start-ups as well as enterprise organization (500+ developers) having problems setting up an appropriate environment for developers. I will try and address some of the challenges that organizations face.
Challenge # 1: What edition of Visual Studio we should buy? And what are the licensing options?
There are mainly four editions in Visual studio that can be deployed on-premise, details as below -
Note that Testers get their own dedicated version - Visual Studio Test Professional
Visual Studio Express edition also comes at free of cost and comes with limited features. For more details on Visual Studio, contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd.
Challenge # 2: What is Microsoft Software Developer Network (MSDN) ? Which one is better from MSDN and TechNet?
Software, services, support, training - Visual Studio with MSDN subscriptions give you a wide range of resources that help you succeed as a developer on Microsoft platforms. With a huge library of both current and previous editions of Microsoft software, plus access to Microsoft’s ALM solution, you have the tools and information you need to support the entire development process.
TechNet license is discontinued by Microsoft in 2013 and anyway, TechNet used to offer applications only for evaluation purpose whereas MSDN offers applications for testing and development environment purpose. Obviously, MSDN helps developers and organizations better to support the software development process and make it easy.
Challenge # 3: We want split payment option or EMI option for Visual Studio as the cost of license is too high or our project has not yet been awarded to us by customer yet, can Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd help?
Please refer to challenge #1, you can either buy Visual Studio Online or Visual Studio under Open Value License. If you are ok to develop applications in cloud - you can opt for Visual Studio Online otherwise you should opt for Open Value License. If you have more than 20 or 200 users, please contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd as we can then give you other options as mentioned in Challenge #5.
Challenge # 4: We want to use old versions of Visual Studio - 2003, 2005 etc.
Customer can use all old versions of Visual Studio of the same edition for which customer owns genuine license, customer has to have setup files though. Customer can also use old versions of Team Foundation Server (TFS) if customer owns genuine license. For more details contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd.
Challenge # 5: We have more than 200-250+ desktop users of Dev Tools, will we get discounts from Microsoft? Please suggest appropriate licensing.
If you have more than 20 users license requirement, we can discuss licensing program called 'Enrolment Application Program' (EAP) and if you have more than 200-250+ users, we can discuss Enterprise Agreement. These program offers customer better manageability of licensing, better finance forecasting, price lock-in for few years, better discounts and overall better value against money.
Challenge # 6: How do we secure our code and intellectual property? How do we store code on a central repository?
Team Foundation Server (TFS) is a repository for development team assets -
Licensing of Visual Studio Team Foundation Server (Indian Version) -
Microsoft licenses TFS under the Server/Client Access License (CAL) licensing model. You must have a license for each running instance of TFS and, with certain exceptions, a TFS CAL for each user or device that accesses it. TFS Server and Client both cost around INR 22,000 (as of Oct 2014).
Note - Team Foundation Server Express is available at no charge and provides small teams of up to five developers with source code control, work item tracking, and build automation for their software projects so they can deliver predictable results.
Benefits of MSDN -
Do you know that Microsoft maintains an open source web site called CodePlex? It's not as big as other open source sites, like SourceForge, but it has a lot of .NET projects available to download.
I will be writing about SQL and Win Server to help our readers to setup a error-proof software development environment.
Do you need expert advice on which Microsoft developer products to buy? Or do you need help to design and deploy software development architecture?
Contact Paresh Lodha - +91-7276000222 | paresh.lodha@sujataindia.com
or Hemant - hemant.bhagwat@sujataindia.com | sales@sujataindia.com
Challenge # 1: What edition of Visual Studio we should buy? And what are the licensing options?
There are mainly four editions in Visual studio that can be deployed on-premise, details as below -
Note that Testers get their own dedicated version - Visual Studio Test Professional
| One-time Payment for License & 2 Years of MSDN Options - | |||
| Editions | MSDN | Approximate Price | |
| Professional (Pro) | Optional | INR 27,000 + MSDN Cost | |
| Test Professional (Test Pro) | Attached | INR 1,38,000 | |
| Premium | Attached | INR 3,85,000 | |
| Ultimate | Attached | INR 8,35,000 | |
Note 1: Above given prices are exclusive of taxes and approximate price. Actual price may vary at the time of purchase. |
|||
| Note 2: MSDN is valid for 2 years after which it is optional for customer to renew or not but it is recommended to renew MSDN to keep using its benefits. | |||
| Note
3: Above prices are for Open License (MOLP) which is one-time purchase cost.
Price can split into 3 years and it will be different for Open Value License
(OVL) For details on what features are included in above mentioned editions, please visit: http://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/products/compare-visual-studio-products-vs.aspx You can also buy Visual Studio on a subscription basis or in cloud. Visual Studio Online is an offering for which customer can pay for subscription and can avoid one-time large capital investments into the project. At the moment (as of 24 Oct 2014), Microsoft offers Visual Studio Online only along with Azure subscription which can be bought separately or through MSDN. Details as below - | |||
| Pay-as-you-go Options | |||
| Editions | MSDN | Max. users per account | Approximate Price |
| Basic | Optional | Unlimited | Free for the first 5 users. INR 1,201.75/month for additional users |
| Professional | Optional | 10 | INR 2,703.94/month |
| Advanced | Optional | Unlimited | INR 3,605.25/month |
| Note: Users with the following MSDN subscriptions can be added at no charge to the account. The maximum MSDN subscribers per account is unlimited across (Pro / Test Pro / Premium / Ultimate) MSDN subscription levels. | |||
Visual Studio Express edition also comes at free of cost and comes with limited features. For more details on Visual Studio, contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd.
Challenge # 2: What is Microsoft Software Developer Network (MSDN) ? Which one is better from MSDN and TechNet?
Software, services, support, training - Visual Studio with MSDN subscriptions give you a wide range of resources that help you succeed as a developer on Microsoft platforms. With a huge library of both current and previous editions of Microsoft software, plus access to Microsoft’s ALM solution, you have the tools and information you need to support the entire development process.
TechNet license is discontinued by Microsoft in 2013 and anyway, TechNet used to offer applications only for evaluation purpose whereas MSDN offers applications for testing and development environment purpose. Obviously, MSDN helps developers and organizations better to support the software development process and make it easy.
Challenge # 3: We want split payment option or EMI option for Visual Studio as the cost of license is too high or our project has not yet been awarded to us by customer yet, can Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd help?
Please refer to challenge #1, you can either buy Visual Studio Online or Visual Studio under Open Value License. If you are ok to develop applications in cloud - you can opt for Visual Studio Online otherwise you should opt for Open Value License. If you have more than 20 or 200 users, please contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd as we can then give you other options as mentioned in Challenge #5.
Challenge # 4: We want to use old versions of Visual Studio - 2003, 2005 etc.
Customer can use all old versions of Visual Studio of the same edition for which customer owns genuine license, customer has to have setup files though. Customer can also use old versions of Team Foundation Server (TFS) if customer owns genuine license. For more details contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd.
Challenge # 5: We have more than 200-250+ desktop users of Dev Tools, will we get discounts from Microsoft? Please suggest appropriate licensing.
If you have more than 20 users license requirement, we can discuss licensing program called 'Enrolment Application Program' (EAP) and if you have more than 200-250+ users, we can discuss Enterprise Agreement. These program offers customer better manageability of licensing, better finance forecasting, price lock-in for few years, better discounts and overall better value against money.
Challenge # 6: How do we secure our code and intellectual property? How do we store code on a central repository?
Team Foundation Server (TFS) is a repository for development team assets -
- Test Cases
- Bug Reports
- Work Items
- Source Control
- Work Flow
- Progress Reports
Licensing of Visual Studio Team Foundation Server (Indian Version) -
Microsoft licenses TFS under the Server/Client Access License (CAL) licensing model. You must have a license for each running instance of TFS and, with certain exceptions, a TFS CAL for each user or device that accesses it. TFS Server and Client both cost around INR 22,000 (as of Oct 2014).
Note - Team Foundation Server Express is available at no charge and provides small teams of up to five developers with source code control, work item tracking, and build automation for their software projects so they can deliver predictable results.
Benefits of MSDN -
- You get a lot of Microsoft applications to be used for development and testing purpose for free of cost. Depending on the edition of Visual Studio that you are buying, the applications vary. You can check the list of applications that you can use under different Visual Studio editions here - http://goo.gl/ne2DOa
- You can upgrade your Visual Studio's version at a free of cost, if Microsoft launches any new version and your MSDN subscription is active.
- You can also downgrade or you can access to older versions of Visual Studio such as 2003, 2007 etc.
- Get an access to e-learning portal
- Get a support incident call to Microsoft worth around $500.
- Get limited free credits to Microsoft Azure
- Get access to Office 365 Developer Subscription
- Get training vouchers that you can redeem at any authorized Microsoft's training centers. Depending on number of licenses and type of licenses that you buy, you will get training vouchers. Contact Sujata Computers Pvt Ltd for Visual Studio and other developers' tools of Microsoft.
- Common misunderstanding - "We have all kinds of licenses under MSDN subscription and hence, we do not have to buy any licenses"
- Fact - You may still need to buy licenses as MSDN is supposed to be used only for (temporary) development & testing environment purpose. It cannot be used as a substitute to purchase of license in production or general use. Also, It is to be used by only by one user as the MSDN subscription is for one user only.
Do you know that Microsoft maintains an open source web site called CodePlex? It's not as big as other open source sites, like SourceForge, but it has a lot of .NET projects available to download.
I will be writing about SQL and Win Server to help our readers to setup a error-proof software development environment.
Do you need expert advice on which Microsoft developer products to buy? Or do you need help to design and deploy software development architecture?
Contact Paresh Lodha - +91-7276000222 | paresh.lodha@sujataindia.com
or Hemant - hemant.bhagwat@sujataindia.com | sales@sujataindia.com
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