# Meaning of 5cals or 5user in ms server



## okine4real (Sep 4, 2009)

Please i want someone to please explain to me in detail what its means when you say win server 2003 with 5 cal or 5user..

What does the 5user mean to win server 2003? Pls help


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## Megabite (Apr 5, 2008)

Try this

*Client Access Licenses*CAL
A Client Access License (CAL) is a kind of software license that legally permits client computers to connect to Microsoft server software. They usually come in the form of a Certificate of Authenticity (CoA) and a license key, which is sometimes attached to the certificate itself. The various editions of most of Microsoft's server software usually include a small number of CALs, and this allows the software to be used by either a few users or a few computers, depending on the CAL licensing mode. If more connections to the server are needed, then additional CALs must be purchased.

Some Microsoft Server products[which?] require one CAL per concurrent connection, whereby one CAL is required for each unique client connection at any point in time. For example, consider a small business network where the computers are used by ten people, but there are never more than five people on site using the computers at any one time. In this scenario, only five CALs are needed. However, some of Microsoft's products[which?] and licensing modes[which?] require a CAL for each unique client regardless of how many will be connecting at any single point in time.[2] Some of Microsoft's server software programs do not require CALs at all, as is the case of Windows Server Web Edition.


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## okine4real (Sep 4, 2009)

Thats a beautiful explanation. let me ask my question these way... lets say i have 10 workstation and their names are A, B, C ,D, E, F G .........now if i have five cal, does that mean any of the workstation can access the server? also not forgetting the number must not exceed five?

or are you trying to say, the cal must be registered to a particular client for it to only have access to the server?

Also if i buy ms server 2003 standard with 5 cal. after installing then, and may be after a year or more i decided in adding more cals. so i'd like to know how i can go on with this. i mean where in the server will it prompt me to add additional cals..

please explain


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## drtunababa (May 18, 2010)

let me try 2 clearify. the key word in licensing issues is "CONCURRENT CONNECTIONS" the licenses are not mapped in anyway to the MAC addresses of the workstations. so you can have ur workstations A-J and either can connect at any time as long as the total number of clients connecting is not greater than 5.

another important thing is the licensing mode you choose. we have per user licensing and per-device licensing modes.


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