18Jul
Know When to Say When in Response to Auditors’ Requests for Information
Software audits can be intensely frustrating ordeals for businesses to navigate. Many publishers will go to great lengths to cajole their customers with assurances of amicability and license-optimization opportunities, but most IT managers know that...
12Jul
Don’t Forget to Raise Equitable Arguments in Software Audits
Most software audits eventually reach a point after all the deployment and license data has been collected when the auditors – often employees of an accounting firm like Deloitte or KPMG, though sometimes the publishers’...
11Jul
Software-Audit Compliance Demands Often Include “Fuzzy Math”
In defending against software audits initiated by publishers such as Microsoft or IBM, many businesses make the mistake of assuming that those publishers or their designated auditors know what they are talking about when it...
8Jul
Be Wary of Audit Tools Promoted by Software Auditors
Most companies with more than a handful of computers in their IT environments rely on the results of network-inventory tools to gather the deployment data needed for accurate software audits. Without the tools, a business...
2Jul
Microsoft’s Auditors Are Not Infallible
Microsoft licensing is a complex, multi-faceted undertaking, with different rules and license metrics applying to different products. In the context of software audits initiated by Microsoft, it is important to keep in mind the fact...
1Jul
To SAM or Not to SAM? The Differences Between a Microsoft SAM Engagement and an Audit
In recent years, Microsoft seems to have been shifting an increasing volume of its license-compliance resources toward what it calls Software Asset Management (SAM) reviews. These “optional” engagements typically are proposed by Microsoft personnel with...
